A heat wave rolls through, as sparks begin to fly a whole week before the Fourth.
Monday, June 23
The second and final week of the 2025 International Festival of Arts & Ideas starts at 5 p.m. in the Beinecke Library with Whitney on Walls!, “a hybrid project juxtaposing film and live performance in response to New York poet Walt Whitman's radical ‘Song of Myself.’” And it ends on Saturday with a Caribbean festival “where the vibrant tastes, sounds, and culture of the Caribbean come alive”; a murder mystery bike tour where, somehow, you can “solve the unsolvable” and win a prize, if you do; and “an immersive outdoor spectacle bursting with rollicking music, dazzling imagery, and the thrill of audience participation,” with plenty more between now and then.
Tuesday, June 24
From 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., East Haven’s Hagaman Library holds an all-ages, drop-in game night at East Haven’s Twin Pines Diner.
British TV star and touring comedian Jimmy Carr comes to College Street Music Hall for a 7 o’clock standup show. “Jimmy tells jokes, and jokes are like magnets. Jokes attract people, but they can also repel. Some people are repelled by Jimmy's dark brand of comedy. This show is not for them.”
At 8, Cafe Nine hosts a sea shanty night featuring New London shanty band My Druthers and “world-renowned shantyman” Seán Dagher, perhaps best-known for lending his voice to the beloved seafaring video game Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag.
Wednesday, June 25
At 3 p.m. at the Yale Center for British Art, assistant paintings conservator Kendall Francis discusses a remarkable item in the YCBA’s collection. “The Island of Barbados (ca. 1694), attributed to Isaac Sailmaker, is believed to be the earliest known painting of the island. This work provides a compelling visual record of seventeenth-century Barbados under British colonial rule and offers insight into the sugar industry, built on the labor of enslaved African and Indigenous people.”
At 6:30, the 2025 Twilight Concert Series at the Pardee-Morris House “kick[s] off with a special blend of urban folk, country and blues by the Porch Party Mamas… Grounds open for picnicking at 5:30 p.m.,” with the historic house open for touring until 8.
Thursday, June 26
At 515 Chapel Street (east of Wooster Square Park), the four-day St. Andrew Society 125th Italian Festa Celebration kicks off at 5 p.m. “Come eat and enjoy with us as we carry on a century-old tradition” featuring “musical entertainment, craft vendors, and delicious Italian American food!”
At 7:30, one of eight concerts in nine weeks kicks off this summer’s Grassy Strip Music Series at the Madison Beach Hotel. The music this time comes from longtime SNL band singer Christine Ohlman and her own band, Rebel Montez.
Friday, June 27
From 4 to 8 p.m., a cruise night at Longley’s in Branford promises “a laid-back evening filled with music, food specials, and good vibes”—and, of course, classic cars.
With food trucks and a DJ (followed by the Hamden Symphony Orchestra) getting things started at 6, the first of the area’s many Fourth of July fireworks shows pops off at 9:20 in Hamden’s Town Center Park.
Meanwhile, at 7:30, the Shubert hosts The Magic of Motown, a show “featur[ing] a cast of 15 powerhouse vocalists who embody everyone from Diana Ross and The Supremes to Marvin Gaye and The Jackson Five!”
Saturday, June 28
Amid a party with “live music, great food and festive fun” starting at 4, the second of the area’s Independence Day fireworks shows begins at 9 or so in East Haven, with the live music picking back up afterward. The location, I believe, is the town beach.
The 7:30 finale of a biweekly Lord of the Rings screening series at Armada Brewing concludes as it must, with Peter Jackson’s The Return of the King (2003). “Middle-earth attire welcome—elves, dwarves, and ring-bearers unite!”
A 9 p.m. show at Three Sheets features Caring Less, a great Philly-based indie band, with more locally rooted acts Katydid and Allie Burnet & The Proven Winners.
Sunday, June 29
The next Westville Arts Market, a monthly curated popup on Westville’s Central Patio, “features 20 local artisans, vintage dealers and other small business owners… Alongside the vendors we also have a live DJ, lawn games and an interactive art project.”
Starting at 6:30, yacht rock jam band Goose should preside over a pleasant evening of aural escapism at Westville Music Bowl.
Written and photographed by Dan Mims. Image features a statue pinned with money at last year’s Italian Festa. Readers are encouraged to verify times, locations, prices and other details before attending events.
