What's Happening in August!
There’s too many events to list them all, so feel free to add more suggestions in the comments!
All events are free unless otherwise stated.
August 1st-2nd - 13th Annual Pocumtuck Homelands Festival
(In case you need it: Yes! The event runners do actually want you to go to this!)
10 am – 5 pm Unity Park Waterfront, Turners Falls, MA
Educational, Family Friendly and Accessible
FREE! Donations in support of the Nolumbeka Project Appreciated
40 Indigenous Craft Vendors, Music, History Talks, Kids’ Activities, Food
Inspiring presentations and performances by Mohawk Elder Tom Porter, Nipmuck flute maker Hawk Henries, Aquinnah Wampanoag singer songwriter Thea Hopkins, Eastern woodlands skills demo with Andre StrongBearHeart Gaines.
Drumming by Penobscot Rez Dog Singers. History talks by Marge Bruchac, the Native Land Conservancy, and Evan Pritchard.
August 2nd - Sapphic Arm Wresting at New City Brewery in Easthampton - $10 NOTAFLOF
August 7th - Smack Dab Free Open Mic at the LAVA center in Greenfield
First Friday of the month
Sign-up at 6:30, performances start at 7!
Smack Dab Queer Open Mic is a free 18+ LGBTQIA community open mic in Greenfield, MA with the slogan “All genders, all the time.” Your hosts are Jules and Avery.
August 8th - Notchview Stargazing at Arunah Hill
Experience the night sky at Notchview, where high elevation and low light pollution make for exceptional stargazing. Volunteers from the Arunah Hill Natural Science Center guide participants through seasonal constellations, visible planets, and celestial wonders using telescopes and shared knowledge. This hands-on exploration of astronomy can spark curiosity about science, navigation, and cultural traditions. Many early agricultural and nomadic societies used the stars to guide planting cycles and migration routes. Events like this connect skywatching with science, history, and a deeper sense of place in the universe.
August 12th - North Adams Downtown Celebration
The heart of downtown is closed to all but pedestrian traffic. Groups, businesses and organizations distribute information, hold contests and giveaways, while bands play everything from Dixieland to Rock and Roll. The streets are filled with delicious aromas as our local restaurants and vendors provide all kinds of wonderful food. This event is fun for all ages!
August 12th and 26th - Queer and Trans Art Group at Resilient Community Arts in Easthampton
This is a bi-weekly program happens on 2nd and 4th Wednesdays at 7pm! Come hang out, make art in community, or just connect with other queer and trans folks in a safer space. Pre-registration for Queer Trans Art Group is appreciated but not required.
August 12th and 13th - Perseid Meteor Shower peaks
The Perseids, which is visible from mid-July to late-August, is considered the best meteor shower of the year. With swift and bright meteors, Perseids frequently leave long "wakes" of light and color behind them as they streak through Earth's atmosphere. The Perseids are one of the most plentiful showers with about 50 to 100 meteors seen per hour. They occur with warm summer nighttime weather allowing sky watchers to comfortably view them.
Perseids are also known for their fireballs. Fireballs are larger explosions of light and color that can persist longer than an average meteor streak. This is due to the fact that fireballs originate from larger particles of cometary material. Fireballs are also brighter, with apparent magnitudes greater than -3.
Admittedly, this is not very local, but I thought they should be included nonetheless. The aforementioned Aruna Hill is hosting a Perseids watch party from 10pm to dawn, and I'll update with any other events that I find.
The Perseid Meteor Shower is one of
August 15th - Pioneer Valley Roller Derby Game in Greenfield - $15 NOTAFLOF
Cheer on Pioneer Valley Roller Derby as they take on Monadnock Roller Derby from New Hampshire!
August 16th - Dunkfest - Donation
First year music fest in Amherst. Everything else I know is in the pictures. [Instagram post 1 and 2]
August 18th - Transformance - $10+ $10 Parking
Transformance 36: Moonage Daydream returns to the iconic Pines Theater at Look Park. Formerly known to long-time fans as Transperformance, this beloved single-day festival invites the Pioneer Valley’s most talented local musicians to completely transform into legendary, world-class artists. 100% of proceeds benefit arts enrichment for Northampton Public School P.T.O.s.
August 19th - Sanctuary Holyoke Open Stage - $5-10 NOTAFLOF
Come support @thesanctuaryholyoke and so many talented artists!
August 21st - 23rd - Westfield Fair - $15
The Westfield Fair features agricultural and livestock exhibits, amusement rides, games, entertainment, and more. Included this year are live music, an antique tractor pull, dairy and beef shows, a craft barn and farm museum, oxen show, sheep shows, ox draw, truck pulls, kid’s pedal tractor pull, hay bale toss, balloon sculpture, goat show, horse draw, petting zoo- and so much more.
The annual auction begins 6 p.m. on Sunday and benefits the fair. Items that are auctioned are those that people don’t take home from various hall exhibits, including baked goods, vegetables, flowers, corn stalks for decorating and bales of hay.
August 22nd - Stone Soup Cafe's Harvest Supper - Pay what you can - RSVP Encouraged
Every August, the Franklin County community comes together to share the bountiful summer harvest! Farmers, local producers of goods, and talented chefs all donate their time, talent, and products to create an amazing meal served on the Greenfield Town Common! Enjoy a nourishing, chef-prepared meal made with ingredients donated by more than 50 local farms and producers from across the Pioneer Valley. This supper is made for neighbors, by neighbors! It takes a whole community to make a great community event.
Everyone’s Invited to the Harvest Supper! This community feast is pay-what-you-can, because everyone deserves a seat at the table! Your “ticket” isn’t for admission (you don't even have to bring it with you!), it’s just a way to keep this 20-year tradition thriving and to support the amazing work of the Stone Soup Café.
August 28th and 29th - The Magnificent Ms. Pham, the world’s first Vietnamese-American water puppet show in West Stockbridge - $35
Following its sold-out premiere at HERE Arts Center in New York City, The Magnificent Ms. Pham returns to TurnPark’s natural waters and landscape where - under the support of the @jimhensonfoundation - it began its life as a workshop production.
A fantastical retelling of the true story of boat person Kim Pham and her unlikely journey to becoming American, The Magnificent Ms. Pham blends lived experience, memory, literature, and myth, as it reimagines Kim’s exodus from Saigon to Houston as a Country Western musical.
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