The warm weather may have you wanting to skip town to head to the beach or cottage, but we think summer is the best time to be in Hamilton! If you live in the region or plan to visit during the season, consider checking out one (or all!) of the HPO’s favourite community summer events in 2019.
RBG Red Hot Jazz and Cool Blues Wednesdays
Every Wednesday until August 28
Royal Botanical Gardens
Our friends at the RBG have a superb lineup of jazz and blues artists to grace their Hendrie Park stage every Wednesday evening until August 28. Your concert ticket gets you access to the gardens after 5 p.m., get there early to explore the stunning botanical displays and snap a few summer photos before the show starts at 6:30 p.m. We recommend you don’t miss contemporary soul artist Avery Raquel on July 31 or Ottawa-based jazz heavyweight Angelique Francis rounding out the series on August 28.
Hamilton Fringe Festival
July 17-28
Multiple venues
Now in its 16th year, the Fringe Festival animates Hamilton with a record 58 companies staging musicals, comedy, dramas, magic shows and live music spanning two weeks. There are more than 400 performances scheduled in an array of venues including The Cotton Factory, the Hamilton Museum of Steam and Technology and The Westdale. There is truly a show for everyone at Fringe; we will definitely be checking out the interactive Babel-o-drome and the feel-good musical Diamond in the Rough.
Festival of Friends
August 2-4
Gage Park
One of Hamilton’s signature summer events, the Festival of Friends in Gage Park offers a free, family-friendly celebration of music, art and community. Grab some lunch and shop artisan vendors in between musical performances at two stages. Headliners for this year’s festival include The Trews and country legend Tanya Tucker.
Supercrawl
September 13-15
James Street North
This collaborative music and arts festival animates downtown Hamilton every September with unique and engaging sound, performance, visual and media arts. This year HPO musicians are teaming up with Hamilton’s Twin Within for a memorable performance you will not want to miss. The legendary Buffy Sainte Marie is one of the announced performers, more lineup announcements will be released ahead of the event.
HPO Opening Night
September 21
FirstOntario Concert Hall (Formerly Hamilton Place)
Spend the last Saturday night of the summer season with the HPO at our 19-20 Season opening night! Music Director Gemma New kicks off her fifth season with the HPO with a vibrant program celebrating the natural landscapes of our community. The performance includes the world premiere of our own Composer-in-Residence Abigail Richardson-Schulte’s original piece The Mermaid and the Fisherman. Season packages can be purchased now and single tickets are on sale August 1.