There are lots of fun and free concerts, outdoor movies and events scheduled throughout this summer in the Twin Cities area as well as a number of suburban areas, including Chaska, Hennepin County, Maple Grove, Shoreview, and more.
Below is a starting list of free events I know of, though I am sure there are many more. If you know of other free summer events, please leave a comment below with a description and a link to the event or promotion and I will update the post as comments are made. Thanks for your help!
Twin Cities Area
Minneapolis: Music and Movies in the Parks
Minneapolis’s huge summer entertainment series includes concerts in parks all around the city from May 30-September 5 and movies from June 13-September 3. (Thanks, Theresa!)
Mears Park: Music in Mears
Every Thursday night, St. Paul hosts a free concert at Mears Park in lowertown St. Paul starting at 6pm as a part of Music in Mears. (Thanks, Greta!)
Minnehaha Park: Improv in the Park
Free improv shows featuring the Stevie Ray’s Comedy Troupe are every Sunday at 5 and 7pm all summer long through August 29 at the Minnehaha Falls Pavilion and Bandshell. (Thanks, Sarah!)
Peavey Plaza: Alive After 5 Concert Series
Every day now through Friday, June 24, you can enjoy free concerts at the Peavey Plaza in downtown Minneapolis from 5-9pm as part of Land O’Lakes Alive After 5 concert series. Upcoming performances include Watson, Lynhurst, G.B. Leighton with Bob Mittnacht Band, and Shoot Lucy. View a complete list of all performances on the Summer in the City web page.
St. Paul: Pianos on Parade
Twenty pianos, each transformed by a local artist, have been or will be placed at various locations around St. Paul as a part of Pianos on Parade. These pianos are available for the public to enjoy along with select piano performances throughout the summer.
Walker Art Center: Free Drawing Club
Every Thursday from 2-7pm through September 1, you can attend weekly Drawing Club sessions hosted by local artists at the Walker Art Center’s Open Field to doodle, sketch or paint. Art supplies will be provided. You can start a new drawing or select a drawing that is in progress from the table. Artwork will be passed around to have it altered, edited or amended until the group declares it complete. All ages, abilities and aesthetics are welcome.
Suburban Areas
Chaska: Concert in the Parks
Every Friday beginning at 7pm, you can enjoy free performances at the City Square Park Gazebo in Chaska as part of Concerts in the Park. The next scheduled performance is this Friday, June 24, by Chaska Valley Community Band. Concerts are scheduled through August 19.
Coon Rapids: Summer Concert Series
Anoka County Parks hosts a Summer Concert Series on Sundays at 7pm at the Coon Rapids Dam. (Note: the schedule on the website is from 2010, but the series is still going on this summer.) (Thanks, Becca!)
Eagan: Family Fun Tuesdays
Family Fun Tuesdays at Caponi Art Park take place every Tuesday from 10-11am. This children’s series provides families with opportunities to experience a variety of art forms, learn about world cultures and experience new ideas together. Admission is free, although there is a suggested donation of $2/person.
Eagan: Summer Performance Series
The Summer Performance Series is held at Caponi Art Park on select nights during the summer. All concerts begin at 6:30pm and are free, although there is a suggested donation of $4/person. Bring the whole family and lawn chairs or a blanket to spread on the grass.
Eden Prairie: Kidstock
Take your toddler to the Staring Lake Amphitheatre every Tuesday from 10:30-11:30am (June 21-August 9) to enjoy the sounds, actions, stories and fun of children’s entertainers from around the Twin Cities as a part of Kidstock. (Thanks, Anna!)
Eden Prairie: Starring at Staring Concert Series + More
Pack a picnic, bring a blanket or lawn chair, and let the sights and sounds of this series at Staring Lake Amphitheatre be the soundtrack to your summer on most Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 7pm from June 29-August 12. They also have Movies in the Park in August. (Thanks, Anna!)
Edina: Centennial Lakes Park
Centennial Lakes Park in Edina hosts free entertainment nearly every Sunday-Thursday, including concerts and movies. Go here for a full schedule of events. (Thanks, Anna!)
Hennepin County: Summer on the Plaza
Catch performances by music groups, dance ensembles, actors, and more during the noon hour at the Hennepin County Government Center’s North Plaza as part of Hennepin County’s Summer on the Plaza entertainment series. Events are scheduled most Wednesdays-Fridays through Labor Day. The next scheduled performance is on Thursday, June 23, by the Wayniacs. Here is a complete list of scheduled events.
Maple Grove: Sounds of Summer
Now through the end of September, you can enjoy free performances, movies, kid’s events and more at the Maple Grove Town Green as part of the 2011 Sounds of Summer promotion. A few upcoming events include a performance by The Bazillions with kid-friendly rock and roll music Thursday, June 23, at 11am and a comedy act by The Stagebenders also on Thursday, June 23, at 8pm. View this brochure for a complete list of scheduled Sounds of Summer 2011 performances and activities.
North St. Paul: Music in the Park
Three free concerts are scheduled at Casey Lake from 6:30-8:30pm as part of North’s St. Paul’s Music in the Park Summer Concert Series. The Music of the Ambassadors will perform on Thursday, June 23; The Music of the Shenanigans will perform on July 28; and The Music of the Minnesota Blue will perform on August 25.
Osseo: Concerts and Movies in the Park
Stop by Boerboom Park in Osseo on Tuesday nights all summer long for free family fun with concerts and movies in the park. Check out the Facebook page for updates on events. (Thanks, Jon!)
Shoreview: Concert in the Commons
There will be free family-friendly concerts at the Shoreview Community Center Pavilion every Wednesday at 7pm through August 17 as part of Concert in the Commons. The next scheduled performance is Wednesday, June 22 by Mick Sterling and His Band. An array of songs will be performed, including songs from Van Morrison, Springsteen, Elton, Cash, Hiatt and Sterling’s originals. View a complete list of scheduled performances on the Shoreview Community Center website. (Thanks, Carol!)
Stillwater: Summer Tuesdays
Starting in July, you can enjoy free music and movies starting at 6pm at Lowell Park in Stillwater as part of the popular six week series, Summer Tuesdays. Music will go from 6-9pm with the featured movie to follow. Summer Tuesdays is scheduled for July 12, 18, 26 and August 2, 9, 16.
White Bear Lake: Marketfest
Marketfest runs Thursday evenings from 6-9pm from mid-June to the end of July, rain or shine. Features include live entertainment, fine art, a variety of foods, children’s activities, a farmers market, a classic car show and more. (Thanks, K!)
White Bear Lake: Ski Otter Waterski Show
Also in White Bear Lake, Ski Otter’s Water Ski Team puts on a free show most Sundays all summer long at 6pm. Carrie’s cousin skis with the club and her uncle drives the boat, so you might see her at one of these events this summer. (Thanks, K!)
Woodbury: Summer Concert Series
Woodbury Lakes summer concert series features live entertainment performed weekly in the courtyard between Kay Jewelers and American Eagle. Check out kid-focused bands on Wednesday mornings from 10-11am or family-friendly concerts on Thursdays from 6-8pm. (Thanks, JoAnn!)
Your turn: How often do you attend free concerts, movies or events in your community during the summertime?
About Laura Wales
Thanks! The links for North St. Paul: Music in the Park take me to a Gmail/Google page.
Sue – I just fixed the links; thanks. :)
White Bear Lake has Marketfest downtown Thurs evenings with music, etc. http://www.marketfest.org Also in White Bear is a free waterski show Sun evenings that is really fun http://www.skiotter.com
There is also a free concert series at the Coon Rapids Dam every Thursday at 7.
Eden Prairie has Kidstock every Tues at Staring Lake Park at 10:30 through Aug 9th. Free concerts and children’s performers. Neat park too! http://edenprairie.org/vCurrent/live/article.asp?r=8281
Centennial Lakes in Edina has concerts and movies every week too.
Forgot to mention that Eden Praire also has free concerts every week and a few movies too. The link for Kidstock will take you to a page where you can click on the links for those too.
And here’s a link for Centennial Park’s summer event calendar: http://www.centenniallakespark.com/PDFs/SummerCalendar2011blac-white.pdf
Mears Park in Lowertown, St. Paul has a free concert (Music in Mears) every Thursday night that starts at 6 PM. http://www.musicinmears.com/ It’s always an awesome event. There are also many weekend-long concerts hosted there throughout the summer as well- Concrete and Grass, Jazzfest, etc.; Also, Rice Park has dance lessons and free music every Thursday night (it’s a big night in St. Paul)
This is really specialized, but- Another thing that might be nice to write about that is ALWAYS available, not just in the summer- Free music downloads from the Saint Paul Public Library System. For anyone that has a St. Paul address and goes and gets a library card- there are 3 free MP3 downloads per week that you can get (and the selection is fantastic! new releases and a variety that’s fantastic) I’m sure other libraries are doing similar things, so that might be something to look at…
http://woodburylakes.blogspot.com/2010/06/join-us-for-summer-concert-series.html
Minneapolis does Music and movies in the park. If you check out the website you can see what music is playing (they have a couple of locations) and then what movies are playing and they show a movie almost every night of the week and they are at different parks around mpls.
Stevie Rays improv comedy shows are FREE on Sundays at 5 and 7 pm at Minnehaha falls. Family friendly and fun!
http://www.stevierays.org/comedypages/improvpark.html