Out-of-towners have heard a lot about it, and they want to know:
What can we expect to find at this State College arts festival, this Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts?
I struggle with the question every time. Which answer should I, a nearly-lifelong townie, give them?
It’s a fine-arts mecca with a national reputation, packed with celebrated artists ready and willing to discuss their intricate pieces with anyone who ambles by.
It’s a open-air culinary show, with chicken cooked over open flame, authentic Maryland crab cakes and enough other unique vendors to make the food alone a major event.
It’s a musical showcase, with outdoor stages and grassy seating that occasionally share just a hint of hippie, almost-bohemian flair. (But not enough to scare anyone away.)
It’s a hometown reunion, a regional attraction, a brainy and creative youth playground all rolled into one.
The festival bears so many varied elements, in fact, that deciding how best to absorb it all has become an art in itself. Ask for the highlights, and you’ll get a different answer from everyone.
After more than 20 years of festival-going, I’ve developed a few tried-and-true suggestions of my own. If you’re new to town, new to the festival or hunting a new way to enjoy the summer’s big event, try one of these.
- Go to the Festival Shell Stage, on the Old Main lawn, at night. Especially on clear nights, when the moon rises visibly above the lawn, the atmosphere there is electric. The stage lights bring a cool glow to the nighttime calm, and the music helps your thoughts drift off to a soothing place.
- Beat the heat and hit the festival route early in the day, even before the artist booths officially open. At the least, you’ll have a beautiful walk. If you’re lucky, you might get some extra one-on-one conversations with some favorite visiting artists before the crowds arrive.
- If you’re a night owl, head to the 100 block of South Allen Street in the wee hours of the morning. The water features there, incorporated into the temporary landscaping, become like a water park for the children-at-heart — including rambunctious college students. Their antics are a show unto themselves.
- Townies know Thursday as the festival’s unofficial day for locals, when locals come out to play. If you’re from around here, or want to get a sense of what ‘around here’ is all about, hit up the festival on Thursday. It’s when the hometown-reunion element is in full effect.
- Visit the in-progress sand sculpture — multiple times. In the northwest corner of Sidney Friedman Park, formerly Central Parklet, you’ll find the detailed sculpture taking shape as the festival progresses. Its final form will be a surprise, as it is every year. And while you’re there, grab a crab cake from the adjacent Chesapeake Diversified Foods stand. Unfailingly delicious.
The festival begins Wednesday with Children and Youth Day, then kicks into full gear Thursday through Sunday.
Here’s to your finding your own art — whatever form it takes.
