BUFFALO, N.Y. — We have one more weekend until Labor Day weekend, so why not get out there and enjoy it!
There are plenty of festivals happening this weekend in Western New York.
After two cancelled festivals because of COVID, the Elmwood Avenue Festival of the Arts is back Saturday and Sunday.
Some 23 years ago, a group of artists from the Elmwood Village, as well as small business owners and community activists, decided they wanted to put together an event that highlights the best of Western New York that was eco-friendly. So they started the Elmwood Avenue Festival of the Arts.
It runs tomorrow from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. with concerts going until 8:30 p.m. On Sunday it's from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Then there's the Beau Fleuve Music and Arts Celebration on Sunday at the Central Terminal. That starts at 2 p.m. and goes until 10 p.m.
The South Buffalo Irish Festival is already underway and goes until midnight Friday. On Saturday it's from 11 a.m. until 10:30 at night.
The Lewiston Jazz Festival starts Friday at 5 p.m. and goes until 10:30. On Saturday it runs from noon to 10:30 p.m.
The End of Summer Festival is Sunday from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Park School.
And the Ukrainian Independence Day Celebration is also Sunday from 1 until 8 p.m. at the Dnipro Ukrainian Cultural Center.
After COVID cancelled the Elmwood Avenue Festival of the Arts in 2020 and last year, festival chair of is happy to be back at it.
"What we have is, it's free to anyone, we welcome everyone from Western New York to come stop by either Saturday or Sunday. We have 170 world-class artists representing every medium imaginable. Most of them are from Western New York. We have a kids fest in the Lexington Co-op parking lot that has six activity tents that are not your average activity tents. We have homemade drill presses that the kids are going to be making spinning tops with. Wooden spinning tops," explained Joe DiPasquale, Chair of the Elmwood Avenue Festival of the Arts.
They will also have sixty local performances on four stages and food from around the world from 24 food vendors.
Plus, all of the shops and restaurants along Elmwood for you to check out.
Elmwood Avenue closes Saturday morning at 5:30 for the festival between West Ferry and Delavan, so just be aware of that if you plan on driving. And the festival chair said it's best to leave your dogs at home; he says it's just going to be too hot out on the pavement and he would rather have everyone's pets stay safe.
The Beau Fleuve Music and Arts Celebration is Sunday, and it celebrates the artists of Western New York.
"You can expect a lot, so it's going to be a very experimental and very interactive experience for everybody. You're going to see everything from the silent disco, to three musical stages, to art exhibitions, to installations, to our vendors village, to live paintings, to live interactions, to a bounce house, to a cozy igloo. There's more than enough for all families and all ages to enjoy," said Lindsey Taylor, founder of the Beau Fleuve Music and Arts Celebration.
Taylor says they really don't announce set times ahead of time to get people really immersed in the lineup to experience new things.