MUSIKFEST 2021 PREVIEW
Here’s what you need to know about concerts, platzes, food and payment
Back in March, no one on ArtsQuest’s staff thought there would be an in-person Musikfest this year.
The vaccines had just started to roll out, but after a year of lockdowns, masks and social distancing, an in-person festival still seemed way out of reach.
Then, finally, things took a turn for the better. So they seized the moment.
“Everything we had been working on for a year, we threw out the window,” said Kassie Hilgert, president and CEO of ArtsQuest. “There was a lot of reinvention there. We had to unwind all that and redo all the contracts. To pull that together in three weeks was a huge accomplishment.”
After a largely virtual program in 2020, Musikfest returns Aug. 6 to 15 with 14 venues of top musical performers, family-friendly activities and tons of food and beverages.
Here’s the rundown of what you need to know about Musikfest 2021:
Hours and venues Historic Moravian district (north side):
Hours: 5 to 11 p.m. Aug. 6; noon to 11 p.m. Aug. 7 to 15.
Venues: IBEW Local
375 Liederplatz, Provident Bank Main Street, Hotel Bethlehem Platz, Martin Guitar Handwerkplatz, Zinzenplatz, T-Mobile Plaza Tropical, Wells Fargo Festplatz, Yuengling Lagerplatz and NJM Insurance Familienplatz
“Everything we had been working on for a year we threw out the window. There was a lot of reinvention there. We had to
unwind all that and redo all the contracts. To pull that together in three weeks was a huge accomplishment.”said Kassie Hilgert, president and CEO of ArtsQuest
SteelStacks in the SouthSide Arts District:
Hours: 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. Fridays; 4 to 11 p.m. Monday through Thursday; noon to 11 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays
Venues: PNC Series at Musikfest Café presented by
Yuengling, Highmark Blue Shield Community Stage on the Air Products Town Square, Air Products Americaplatz at Levitt Pavilion SteelStacks presented by Coordinated Health, now part of Lehigh Valley Health Network and the Wind Creek Steel Stage at PNC Plaza
Note: Hours and venues may be subject to change.
Parking
Parking during Musikfest can be challenging. Here are your options:
There are free and metered parking on streets downtown and surrounding SteelStacks (but they can be hard to find)
Remote shuttle lots: If you want to go to the north side of the festival, head to 1550 Valley Center Parkway for shuttles. For south side shuttles, go to 240 Emery St. Round trip service pricing is $5 per adult (13+); $3 per child ages 3-12; children two and under ride free — as long as they are able to sit on a lap. Ticket price includes North/ South Transfer Service (must change buses)
City garages: Walnut Street Garage & North Street Garage, credit card only, no cash. Pay with credit card on entry. $10 event rate. Event hours: 3 to 9:30 p.m. Aug. 6; 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays; 2 to 9:30 p.m. Monday through Friday.
City lots, all have $10 event rate: Old York Road Lot; pay at the Pay Station or the ParkMobile App; Polk Street Lot & Mechanic 2 Lot, daily event permits available — bethpark. org/parking-lot-permits; pay at the Pay Station (Mechanic 2 only) or the ParkMobile App
Traffic reminder The Main Street ramp
off Route 378 North is closed to all vehicle and pedestrian traffic during Musikfest hours (11:30 a.m.-11:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays; 3-11:30 p.m. Monday-Friday). Guests walking to the festival via 378 North can easily access the Musikfest grounds by taking the stairway off the Hill to Hill Bridge just south of the Main Street Ramp.
How much?
It’s free to walk around the
festival
Payment: Vendors will now accept credit and debit cards as well as Apple Pay and other touchless methods. For those who don’t use or have credit and debit cards, cash can still be used, by converting it into recyclable and reloadable CashCards at several locations. These cards work much the same way as a store gift card. No personal information is taken or stored; the cash is loaded onto the card and can be used and reloaded as needed.
Tickets for shows and more: www.musikfest.org
COVID-19
It’s great to have an in-person Musikfest this year but the Lehigh Valley is still dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. ArtsQuest will continue to follow the latest CDC, state and city health department standards and follow the required health and safety protocols from each artist’s team.
As of now, fully vaccinated ‘Festers do not need to wear a mask or practice social distancing. We suggest bringing along a mask just in case.
Preview night
Musikfest kicks off with its traditional preview night on Aug. 5. The big attraction is Grammy Award-winning country artist Darius Rucker, a Musikfest favorite. (The show is nearly sold-out.) Rucker will be performing with special guest Tyler Booth.
’Fest traditions
Opening ceremonies: 4 p.m. Aug. 6 at Air Products Americaplatz at Levitt Pavilion SteelStacks
Worship services, 10 a.m.
Aug. 8 — A contemporary worship service by Grace Church Bethlehem, Wells
Fargo Festplatz; and Trilingual Catholic Mass; Holy Infancy, T-Mobile Plaza Tropical; 10 a.m. Aug. 15, Polka Mass, Allentown Diocese, Wells Fargo Festplatz.
Fireworks: 10 p.m. Aug. 15
Wind Creek Steel Stage
Even with ArtsQuest organizers having to turn on a dime, they were able to book top acts for the Wind Creek Steel Stage.
See the full schedule here. Here are a few highlights:
Sam Hunt, with special guest Jackie Lee: Aug. 8 — How much: $69-$89 | Steel Terrace: $239
Shinedown with special guest Kendell Marvel: Aug. 9 — How much: $39-$84 | Steel Terrace: $199
Zedd: Aug. 13 — How much: $39-$84 | Steel Terrace: $229
Along with those shows, Musikfest has a number of concerts planned for the Wind Creek Steel Stage that start at only $15.
Hilgert said ArtsQuest recognizes that the pandemic has had a profound impact on people financially — and that shouldn’t prevent anyone from seeing a Musikfest concert.
“We have Wind Creek shows that are $15,” Hilgert said. “You will not see that at a concert venue. It’s a huge thing for us to offer this year when we lost an astronomically amount of money.”
Phillip Phillips: Aug. 6. — The American Idol winner, known for hit songs “Home” and
“Gone, Gone, Gone,” has toured with John Mayer, shared the
Turn to MusikFest,
stage with Bruce Springsteen at the Rock in Rio festival and supported the Goo Goo Dolls’ summer 2017 national summer tour.
Preservation Hall Jazz Band: Aug. 7 — The group, known for standards and traditional New Orleans jazz for more than 50 years, also explores original compositions and Afro-Cuban rhythms.
Jimmie Allen, Aug. 10 — His music is a mix of country, rock, R&B and pop. Allen has made history as the first Black artist to launch a career with two consecutive number one hits on country radio, with “Best Shot” claiming the top spot for three weeks and his second single “Make Me Want To” hitting the top spot in March 2020.
Colin Hay Band Aug. 11 —
The former frontman of Men At Work and his new group have appeared on “The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” and “ABC’s Greatest Hits.” Hay has also been publicly cited as an influence for artists James Hetfield of Metallica, Jeremiah Fraites of The Lumineers and Troy Sanders of Mastodon.
Hector Tricoche and Michael Stuart: Aug 12 (replacement for KT Tunstall who canceled her tour) — This free show features Tricoche’s international music, Latin pop and salsa. Known for his hits “Perriquito Pin
Pin,” “A Corazon Abierto,”
“No Soy Automatico,” Trioche is also known for his offstage personality and entertaining crowds with a bit of comedy. He has released nine albums in the United States, and more internationally.
The Wood Brothers: Aug. 14: The folk group’s most recent studio release, One Drop Of Truth, hit #1 on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart and garnered the band their first Grammy nomination for Best Americana Album.
Black Violin, Aug. 15, the closing night of Musikfest. Individually and together, members Wil Baptiste and Kev Marcus ha.ve worked with the likes of Alessia Cara, 2 Chainz and Lil Wayne. The classicalmeets-hip-hop group has also performed two sold-out shows at the Kennedy Center with the National Symphony Orchestra commemorating the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s death.
Free shows
In addition to the Wind Creek Stage, there will be more than 500 free performances across the 10 days at Musikfest.
To see who’s in the lineup: musikfest.org/lineup/free/
Food, drinks
Almost as important as the music are the food and drink options at Musikfest. Here are just some of the highlights:
New this year:
The Bagel Bus: Delicious bagel creations
Dinky’s Ice Cream: Milkshakes and delicious dairy desserts
Pat’s Pizza & Bistro: Italian dishes, such as meatballs on a stick and orecchiette marinara burrata.
The Philly Waffle Cabin: Belgian waffles with assorted toppings
Randevoo: Modern Asian fusion dishes
Simply Skewered: Various skewer options including Frango churrasco and Sao Paulo Korean beef.
Cubano X-Press: Cuban pressed sandwiches along with loaded Yucca fries, sweet plantains and Cuban nachos
Le Petit Macaron: Macarons (pronounced mack-a-ROHN and is a confection made up of two round, flat, almond-flourbased cookies sandwiching an emulsified filling like ganache or jam; other sweet treats.
Returning favorites include: Aw Shucks Roasted Corn: (Street corn); Chick’nCone (Fork-free, hand-held chicken and waffles); Island Noodles (Wok-fired soba noodles); The Flying V (A variety of poutine, Canada’s comfort food); Take a Taco; Bull & Bear Restaurant; Heidi’s Strudel; Heaven on a Bun; Wiz Kidz Cheesesteaks; and Karl Ehmer.
Also featured ArtsQuest’s
Palette & Pour, the new kitchen and bar inside the ArtsQuest Center: Menu items will include loaded pierogies, Levy’s signature half pound burgers, the impossible burger, AQ brined Buffalo wings, the Cluckery chicken sandwich, build-your-own tacos and more. As for drinks:
Pour Bar on the Air Products Town Square, also new: Crafted cocktails like the Founders
Way Margarita prepared with Cazadores Reposado; the P&P Mojito made with Bacardi
Lime Rum; and the Fire Bridge Lemonade prepared with Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Fire. You can also fill up those Musikfest mugs with one of the more than 20 beers on tap including all Yuengling drafts.
Central Tap, the new bar outside the ArtsQuest Center, will be offering Yuengling and other draft beers, along with house-crafted cocktails and a large variety of liquors and mixed drinks.
Musikfest is for everyone
This year the festival has a host of new accommodations for those on the autism spectrum.
The “Inclusion Zone” will be a designated area inside ArtsQuest’s Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas, providing services, tools and amenities to those with sensory-processing difficulties. Hours: 4 to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday; noon to 10 p.m. Saturday and noon to 8 p.m. Sunday. (The zone will be closed on preview night).
The Inclusion Zone will provide a space for anybody who may need a quiet break from the general festival environment to relax and play in the comfort of an air-conditioned theater.
Aug. 7 will be Inclusion Day on the SouthSide Arts District, featuring ASL interpretation and audio descriptions for certain shows.
More details: musikfest.org/
Comedy
It’s not all music and food. There’s a great comedy lineup, which you can see for free in the Frank Banko Alehouse Cinemas.
Info: musikfest.org/ musik-festivities/comedy-shows/
Art activities and fun for kids
Here are a few fun things for your family as well as some artistic activities:
Crayola Creativity Tent: 5 to 9 p.m. Aug. 6, noon to 9 p.m. Aug. 7-15
PBS39 Summer Jam at KidsPlatz, 10 and 11 a.m. Aug. 6-15 inside the PBS39 Studios on the SouthSide; featuring music from nationally-acclaimed performing artists
Musikfest Poppy Project:
Aug. 6-15: Contribute to a community art project by making your own paper poppies inspired by Sellersville-based artist, Mandy Martin’s painting for the 2021 Musikfest poster. During Musikfest, we will install these paper poppies in the ArtsQuest Center.
Help us create this installation by contributing poppies to the project. Info: https:// www.bananafactory.org/ musikfest-2021-poppy-project/
Musikfest Hot Glass Experience: 4 to 8 p.m. Aug. 6, Aug 9 to Aug. 13; noon to 8 p.m. Aug. 7 and 8 and Aug. 14 and 15. Hot Glass Tent, Air Products Americaplatz on the SouthSide, Next to Levitt Pavilion; how much: $55 plus fees. Register in advance: bananafactory.org. Note: Glass pieces need to cool overnight. Pieces can be picked up another day during the festival, or can be shipped for an additional fee.
Artisans
Musikfest will again host some of the nation’s finest artisans at Martin Guitar Handwerkplatz, NJM Insurance Familienplatz and Air Products Americaplatz.
List of vendors: musikfest. org/lineup/artisans-retailers/
Info
musikfest.org