Mayor's Downtown Celebration Slated Wednesday
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| Main Street was packed for last year's celebration. |
The annual event has become a late-summer tradition for residents, a last fling before the school vacation ends and fall arrives.
There'll be music, food, sidewalk sales, giveaways and activities. But the celebration really functions to bring old and new friends together, to mingle and catch up with each other.
"The main attraction of the event are the people," Rod Bunt of the Mayor's Office of Tourism said Tuesday."It gives people a chance to meet. ... It's a really great night."
The festivities kick off at 5 p.m. with local historian Paul W. Marino leading a free walk detailing the lore and legend of Main Street. Those wishing to participate should meet across from the Mayor's Office of Tourism at the top of Main Street above City Hall.
The events start at 5:30 p.m. along Main, Eagle and Holden streets. The weather is forecast to be clear with temperatures topping in the high 70s.
Bunt said the night includes a children's fun area, the Fire Department promoting fire safety with its "Smoke House," a ropes course display and entertainment throughout the evening. Downtown merchants, art galleries and other community groups will have sales, promotional and informational set-ups outside on the sidewalk.
Also planned is an information booth on the city's new Take Charge campaign to conserve energy. Residents taking the pledge will get an energy-efficient light bulb or a clothesline. The Fall Foliage Charity Bed Race will also be taking sign ups for teams and explaining how the event works.
Local restaurants and vendors will be offering a wide variety of refreshments, from Boston Sea Foods' traditional barbecue chicken dinner at one end of Main Street to offerings from China Buffet at the other.
Music, dance and other performers will be scattered around the downtown. Grouped by venue, the night's entertainment includes:
Berkshire Plaza
Karen's School of Dance 5:45 to 6
Drury Dance Team 6 to 6:15
Berkshire County Line Dancers 6:30 to 8:30
South Side of Main
Windsor Music School 5:30 to 7:00
St. John's Players 6 to 6:30
North Side of Main
Champagne Jam 7 to 8:40
Magician Johnny Mystic (shows throughout the evening)
RU Ready 7 to 7:45
East End of Main (including Mohawk marquee)
Mass MoCA (community wall drawing and music making with Todd Reynolds) 5:30, 6:30, 7:30
Berkshire Dance Theater 6 to 6:30
Musical Memories and More 6:30 to 8:30
Eagle Street
Whirlwind 6 to 7:30
Loose Change 7 to 8:45
The Downtown Celebration is made possible in part by support from the city, Hoosac Bank, Legacy Banks, the North Adams Transcript and the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art. For more information, call the Office of Tourism at 664-6180 or tourism@northadams-ma.gov.
