Culture
Experience the vibrant arts scene, galleries, theaters, and cultural institutions in our community.
Culture
She Spent 40 Years Making Things for Other People. In 2015 She Started Painting.
Kristin Mernitz designed children's wear prints, sewed hats, gold leafed ceilings and ran a faux finishing business before she ever painted for herself. Now the Easton artist paints the Vera Neumann scarves she has been collecting since a Santa Monica flea market, and the work is up in the Alpha Building through Oct. 27.
Culture
50 Odd Years Comes Home: Big Poppa Brings a Live Rock Show to LehighValley.FM
Al Gilotti, known on the air as Big Poppa, is bringing 50 Odd Years to LehighValley.FM every Monday night from 8 to 11 p.m. It is three hours of deep album cuts, underappreciated bands and new music, hosted live from a Bethlehem home studio, and it is the first original show on the station we launched in August.
Culture
Lehigh Valley Murals: The Public Art Transforming Allentown, Bethlehem, and Easton
From the ArtsWalk in downtown Allentown to the Urban Arts Trail on Bethlehem's South Side, the Lehigh Valley's public art scene is transforming the region's streetscapes with murals, sculptures, and installations that celebrate community identity.
Culture
The Moravian Book Shop: America's Oldest Bookstore Still Turns Pages in Bethlehem
Founded in 1745, the Moravian Book Shop in downtown Bethlehem is the oldest bookstore in America. Predating the Revolution by 31 years, it remains a working bookstore and a connection to the Moravian heritage that shaped this city.
Culture
The SouthSide Film Festival: Independent Cinema Finds a Home in Bethlehem
For over 20 years, the SouthSide Film Festival has screened independent films from around the world in Bethlehem's intimate venues. With nearly 2,000 films shown from 107 countries, it is the Lehigh Valley's premier independent film event.
Culture
Zoellner Arts Center: World Class Performance at Lehigh University
Since 1997, the Zoellner Arts Center at Lehigh University has brought world class performing arts to Bethlehem. From the New York Philharmonic to Yo-Yo Ma, its presenting series is one of the finest in the region.
Culture
The Karl Stirner Arts Trail: Sculpture and Nature Along Easton's Bushkill Creek
Easton's Karl Stirner Arts Trail is a 1.75 mile paved path along the Bushkill Creek featuring over 15 works of contemporary sculpture, poetry, and horticulture. Named for the legendary local sculptor, it is one of the valley's most unique cultural experiences.
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Culture
First Fridays on the South Side: Bethlehem's Monthly Art Walk
On the first Friday of every month, Bethlehem's South Side transforms into an open air gallery. Galleries, shops, and restaurants open their doors for art, live music, and community from 6 to 9 PM.
Culture
Mayfair Festival of the Arts: Allentown's Celebration of Creativity Returns
After a revival by Cedar Crest College, Mayfair Festival of the Arts brings visual arts, live performances, garden arts, and children's programming back to Allentown every May. Free admission and a multidisciplinary lineup make it a valley favorite.
Culture
Nearly a Century on Stage: The Civic Theatre of Allentown
The Civic Theatre of Allentown has been producing live theater since 1927, making it one of the oldest continuously operating community theaters in America. Housed in a restored 1928 movie palace on 19th Street, it is a valley institution.
Culture
Inside Touchstone Theatre: Original Ensemble Theater in a South Side Firehouse
For over 40 years, Touchstone Theatre has been creating original, movement-based theater in a renovated 19th century firehouse on Bethlehem's South Side. With just 72 seats, it is one of the most intimate theater experiences in the Lehigh Valley.
Culture
The Banana Factory: Bethlehem's Arts Hub Gets Ready for Its Next Chapter
For 27 years, the Banana Factory on South Side Bethlehem has been home to 30 resident artists, galleries, glassblowing, and community arts education. Now ArtsQuest is planning a ground-up rebuild that will reshape the South Side arts scene.
Culture
The Freddy Awards: How Easton's State Theatre Became the Home of High School Musical Theater
Since 2003, the Freddy Awards at Easton's State Theatre have celebrated high school musical theater across the Lehigh Valley. With a live televised ceremony, record participation, and over two million dollars in scholarships, the Freddys are the region's answer to the Tonys.
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Miller Symphony Hall: 125 Years of Music in the Heart of Allentown
Miller Symphony Hall has been the home of live performance in downtown Allentown for 125 years. The Allentown Symphony Orchestra, the smallest in America to own its own hall, has filled this historic 1,200 seat venue since the late 1940s.
Culture
Free Art for Everyone: Inside the Allentown Art Museum
The Allentown Art Museum houses over 20,000 works spanning two millennia, a complete Frank Lloyd Wright interior, and a world-class Renaissance collection. And it is completely free. Always.
Culture
Godfrey Daniels: The Legendary Coffeehouse Where Folk Music Found a Home
Since 1976, Godfrey Daniels has been the Lehigh Valley's most intimate live music venue. This nonprofit coffeehouse on Bethlehem's South Side has hosted legends from Ani DiFranco to Tom Paxton in a room that holds fewer than 100 people.
Culture
Christkindlmarkt: How Bethlehem Built One of America's Best Christmas Markets
Set against the illuminated blast furnaces of SteelStacks, Bethlehem's Christkindlmarkt draws nearly 150,000 shoppers each holiday season. With 170 vendors, European treats, and igloo rentals, it is the Christmas market that lives up to Christmas City USA.
Culture
Celtic Classic: How the Largest Free Celtic Festival in North America Landed in Bethlehem
Every September, over 200,000 people pack the streets of historic Bethlehem for Celtic Classic, the largest free Celtic festival in North America. Highland games, pipe bands, and three days of music make it one of the valley's most beloved traditions.
Culture
Shakespeare Under the Stars: Inside the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival at DeSales
For 35 years, the Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival at DeSales University has brought world-class theater to Center Valley. From Broadway veterans to emerging talent, PSF is the official Shakespeare Festival of the Commonwealth.
