The Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts celebrates its 57th year when it returns this week.
The annual event, which typically draws 125,000 people to downtown State College and the Penn State campus, kicks off on Wednesday with Children and Youth Day and continues through Sunday with more than 300 artists at the Sidewalk Sale and Exhibition, entertainment at indoor and outdoor venues, festival food vendors and more.
Following is a guide to what’s happening, from new features to traditional favorites, parking, food and everything else you need to know. Keep up with all of StateCollege.com’s Arts Festival coverage here.
Parking
On campus, visitors are encouraged to park at Penn State’s West Parking Deck on White Course Drive (off of North Atherton Street) and use free bus service or walk to get to and from the festival. Parking is $1 per hour on Wednesday; $1 for less than two hours and a $10 flat rate for between two and 10 hours on Thursday and Friday; and a $10 flat rate on Saturday and Sunday. Cash and credit cards are accepted.
The deck is about a half-mile from the festival area. Free bus service will run between the deck and the festival center at College Avenue and Allen Street:
• Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m
• Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 11 p.m.
• Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Parking in downtown State College at the Fraser Street, West Beaver Avenue and Pugh Street municipal garages is $2.25 per hour or a maximum daily rate of $32 during the festival.
Wristbands
Admission on a first-come, first-served basis to select indoor performances requires an Arts Festival wristband. Children 12 and under are admitted for free with a wristband-wearing adult.
Wristbands are $15 and can be purchased at performance venues and at festival information and sales booths. Proceeds from the wristbands provide support that helps make the festival possible.
New App
The festival has an all new mobile app this year to help attendees plan their visits.
The new app — available in the App Store and on Google Play —allows festival-goers to find artists, food options, live entertainment schedules, activities, places to stay and more. Users can select favorites, create a schedule and add alerts to customize their experiences.
A “My Festival” tab will keep track of what users want to see and do and a map will help them stay oriented and find their locations. The app will be updated in real-time and can provide notifications for things such as time and venue adjustments, weather alerts and special deals.
The traditional printed program guide, published in partnership with Barash Media, is also available at locations around State College and Bellefonte:
State College
• Kish Bank Expect More Store
• Waffle Shop locations
• Weis Markets
• Giant Food Stores
• Wegmans
• Meyer Dairy
• State College Framing Company & Gallery
• State College Borough Building
• Schlow Centre Region Library
• HUB-Robeson Center
• Happy Valley Adventure Bureau
• 3 Dots Downtown
• Art Alliance of Central Pennsylvania (Lemont)
• Residence Inn by Marriott, Hyatt Place State College, Scholar Hotel State College and most other area hotels.
Bellefonte
• Art Ala Carte
• Giant
• Weis
• Bellefonte Art Museum
Children and Youth Day
The festival kicks off on Wednesday with a day of programs and events for kids. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Children and Youth Sidewalk Sale will feature a festival-record 280 young artists and crafters, ages 8 to 18, showcasing and selling their work on South Allen Street.
Among the new activities this year is a Baby Rave hosted by 3 Dots Downtown and Gorinto Productions from 10 a.m. to noon in Sidney Friedman Park on South Fraser Street. The free, family-friendly dance party will feature will feature DJ Elbow Knee Knee spinning all-vinyl disco and old school house at decibel levels friendly for little ears, though attendees may still wish to bring baby headphones, along with blankets or chairs.
Another addition for 2023 will be an Alice in Wonderland Journey hosted by Tempest Productions, a 90-minute experience that will take participants on an adventure from Tempest Studios, 140 Kelly Alley, through State College. Six start times will be offered in 20-minute intervals beginning at 11 a.m. General admission is $20, which covers one child and accompanying adult. Admission for additional family members can be purchased for $15 each. Space is limited and pre-registration is encouraged at tempestproductions.org/alicejourney.
Other activities include music and dance performances on the festival shell stage (Old Main Lawn) and Allen Street stage, as well as arts and crafts activities on Old Main Lawn and in Sidney Friedman Park.
Old Main Lawn will also feature hands-on science activities, Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center teaching about local fauna, a display from the Penn State All-Sports Museum, 4-H members with seeing-eye puppies in training, creative activities with the Palmer Museum of Art and the Center for Arts and Crafts at Penn State and more.
On South Allen Street, Alpha Fire Company firefighters and State College police officers will be on hand with their trucks and cars for kids to get an up-close look, and Centre County Recycling & Refuse Authority and Jabebo Studio will share information on the importance of recycling.
At 4 p.m., the Children and Youth Day Procession steps off with an array of puppets, masks, drums and banners, along with a pep band from State College Area High School, making their way from Old Main Lawn to Sidney Friedman Park. All ages are invited to participate and distribution of procession pieces begins at 3:15 p.m.
The day concludes with the Pat Farrell Community Singalong at 7:30 p.m. at State College Presbyterian Church 132 W. Beaver Ave.
See Wednesday’s full entertainment schedule.
Sidewalk Sale and Exhibition
The work of more than 300 exhibitors from throughout the country will be featured during the renowned Sidewalk Sale and Exhibition, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday downtown and on campus.
Categories of art on display and for sale will include baskets, ceramics, digital art, drawing, fiber, glass, jewelry, leather, metal, mixed media, musical instruments, painting, paper, photography, printmaking, sculpture, water color and wood. The juried show also will award more than $17,500 in prize money to winning exhibitors during a ceremony at 9 a.m. on Saturday at the Allen Street Stage. Find all of the artists here.
“Images 2023” the festival’s juried fine art exhibition featuring Pennsylvania artists, is also on display in Schlow Centre Region Library throughout July and the gallery can be viewed online.
Street Painting
In what has become an evolving festival tradition national, regional and local artists will create street paintings on Foster Avenue at South Allen Street. For a $5 fee, Young Artists Alley will give children the opportunity to create a 14-inch by 14-inch square street painting. Painting ends at 7 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, and 4 p.m. on Sunday, weather permitting.
Banner Exhibition and Competition
One of the festival’s signature annual events, the colorful display of past and present banners hangs over the streets along the festival route. New entries for the competition are divided into three categories each year — professional, general and youth — and are created by individuals and groups. Cash prizes are awarded for first, second and honorable mention in each category.
Entertainment
The festival is filled with performances throughout town and on campus, with a lineup of returning favorites and Arts Festival first-timers. Music will include local, regional and national acts performing rock, jazz, bluegrass, folk, big band, funk, soul, reggae, Americana, celtic, doo-wop, experimental, country and blues. You’ll also find jugglers and nightly Happy Valley Improv shows Thursday through Saturday.
Venues include:
• Allen Street Stage, 100 block of South Allen Street
• Festival Shell, Old Main Lawn
• Sidney Friedman Park, 241 S. Fraser St.
• 3 Dots Downtown, 137 E. Beaver Ave.
• Blue Brick Theatre, 209 W. Calder Way
• The State Theatre, 130 W. College Ave.
• State College Presbyterian Church, 132 W. Beaver Ave.
• Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza, 100 block of South Fraser Street (during Craft Beverage Expo)
See the full entertainment schedule.
Festival Food
The 2023 festival will see a wider variety of food options, including an expanded food court
Allen and Calder Way
• Miller’s Tropical Sno (Bellefonte)
• The Tuckerbox (Alexandria)
Allen and Highland
• Chan’s Golden Gate (Pittsburgh)
Food Truck Court
Memorial Field Parking Lot
• Bees Knees Coffee (Bellefonte)
• Bonnie Blue’s Smokeys and Sweets (Bellefonte)
• Brazilian Munchies (Bellefonte)
• Everything About Crepes (Franklin Lakes, N.J.)
• Funnel Cake Kings (State College)
• Happy Dishes (Milesburg)
• Hellenic Kouzina Mobile Kitchen (Mechanicsburg, Va.)
• Rebelz Mobile Cuisine (McVeytown)
Allen and Nittany
• Backwoods Smoke Shack (James Creek)
• Heeter’s Ice Cream Truck (Danville)
• Moody Culture Kombucha (State College)
• We Be Cheesin’ (Selinsgrove)
Sidney Friedman Park
Hanson’s Kettle Korn (Tarentum)
Maine Bay & Berry (State College)
Old Main Mall
Penn State Berkey Creamery
Regional Favorites, a marketplace of artisinal food products, will also feature select exhibitors selling products for visitors to take home during the Sidewalk Sale and Exhibition hours at the intersection of South Allen Street and Foster Avenue. Vendors include:
• TorchBearer Sauces (Mechanicsburg)
• Blue Dragonfly Farm (Virginia Beach, Va.)
• Hillbillys Beef Jerkey (Ft. Loudon)
• Korte BeeworX (State College)
• Saint Rocco’s Treats (Perkasie)
• Scentual Aroma Inc. (Staten Island, N.Y.)
• Seven Barrels (Tuxedo Park, N.Y.)
• Tait Farm Foods (Centre Hall)
Craft Beverage Expo
For the second year, the local beer, wine, spirits and cider producers of the Central PA Tasting Trail will be featured at a Craft Beverage Expo Thursday through Saturday in the MLK Plaza on South Fraser Street. For $10, patrons over the age of 21, with proper identification, will be able to sample and purchase drinks by the glass to enjoy in the plaza and buy bottles to take home.
Each day will include light entertainment and a different lineup of craft beverage producers.
Thursday, 3-8 p.m.
• Pisano Winery
• Big Spring Spirits
• 814 Cider Works
• Seven Mountains Wine Cellars
• Robin Hood Brewery
• Entertainment: Travis McCoy, 3-4 p.m.; Mountain City Acoustic, 4:15-5:15; The Extra Miles, 5:30-6:30; Jim Colbert, 6:45-7:45
Friday, noon-8 p.m.
• Barrel 21 Distillery
• Happy Valley Vineyard & Winery
• Keewaydin Cider Mill
• Otto’s Pub and Brewery
• University Wine Co.
• Entertainment: Jim Colbert, noon-12:45 p.m.; Mary Madigan, 1-1:45; Doug Irwin, 2-2:45; Conner Gilbert, 3-3:45; Eric Ian Farmer, 4-5:45; OverheaD Duo, 6-6:45; Acoustic Artifacts, 7-7:45
Saturday, noon-8 p.m.
• Axemann Brewery
• Big Spring Spirits
• Elk Creek Cafe + Aleworks
• Mount Nittany Vineyard & Winery
• Titan Hollow
• Entertainment: Eric McCrum, noon-12:45 p.m. Pat McGinnis, 1-1:45; Doug Irwin, 2-2:45; Rue Moyer, 3-3:45; Pat McGinnis, 4-4:45; Ted & Molly, 5-5:45; tba, 6-6:45; Mary Madigan, 7-7:45
Speaking of spirits, the Festive Spirits benefit party will be held at 5 p.m. Friday at The Towers, 403 S. Allen St. Tickets are $125 and the event will include locally sourced drinks from Big Spring Spirits, hors d’oeuvres provided by Catering with Style and music by acoustic duo Anchor & Arrow.
BookFest
The celebration of the the story as art for all ages returns from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday in the Schlow Centre Region Library parking lot. Meet authors and artists, from large publishing houses to independents, and pick up books from myriad genres for all ages.
A costume contest invites visitors to come dressed as their favorite book characters, with check-in at 1 p.m. and prizes awarded at 2 p.m.
Arts Festival Races
The Sue Crowe Memorial Arts Festival Races return for their 45th year at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday. Registration, start, and finish of the 5k and 10-mile races will be at the Pennsylvania Military Museum in Boalsburg. The 5k course will follow roads behind the Military Museum. From the same start, the 10-mile will follow the 5 course and then head along Warner Boulevard toward Oak Hall and Linden Hall and complete the Linden Loop before returning to the Military Museum grounds.
Online registration is available through RunSIgnup. Runners can pick up race packets or register from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday at the Arts Festival at the Nittany Valley Running Club booth in the Mount Nittany Health tent across from Schlow Centre Region Library. The registration fee is $25. Day-of race registration ($30) and packet pickup will take place from 7 to 8 a.m. at the Boalsburg Fire Hall.
Collectible Poster
A decades-long tradition continues with the festival’s annual free 24-inch by 36-inch collectible poster. This year’s edition showcases the festival’s core colors with large art deco-style lettering and subtle nods to the event’s history and central Pennsylvania. Saige Sommese, a 2018 graduate of Penn State’s graphic design program, designed this year’s poster based on a design by her late father, Lanny Sommese, a Penn State professor emeritus of graphic design who created the festival posters for more than 40 years.
The poster can be picked up at no charge at the following locations:
- Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts, 403 S. Allen St., Suite 205A, State College
- Downtown State College Improvement District, 127 S. Fraser St., State College
- State College Framing Company and Gallery, 160 Rolling Ridge Drive, State College
- HUB-Robeson Center Desk, Penn State campus
- Art a la Carte, 107 S. Allegheny St., Bellefonte
