Sauce, sequins and salsa: 5 enjoyable issues to do that weekend

You can eat your weight in sausage grinders and pasta, cheer on Worcester’s subsequent Pride royalty, stand up shut with a barn owl and be taught a number of flamenco strikes — and that hardly will get you thru Saturday.

It’s an particularly colourful weekend round Worcester, with the four-day Original Italian Festival anchoring a lineup that additionally consists of the Pride Worcester Pageant, the debut of Latin American Rhythm on the Common and a pair of decidedly completely different family-friendly choices. 

Here are 5 picks for the weekend:

1. Once upon a time, with much more sequins: Fairy tales get a superb rewrite Saturday, Aug. 15, when the 2026 Pride Worcester Pageant takes over the JMAC at 7 p.m. This yr’s theme, “Once Upon a Time,” invitations contestants to inform their very own tales by way of efficiency, style and loads of character as they compete to develop into the subsequent Majesties of Worcester Pride. More than a battle for crowns and sashes, the annual pageant celebrates artistry, advocacy and Worcester’s LGBTQ+ neighborhood, with dazzling performances and a few critical glamour alongside the best way. Tickets are $32 for common admission, with the pageant held on the Jean McDonough Arts Center, 20 Franklin St.
2. Four days of mangia, music and molto Worcester: Do you name it sauce or name it gravy? No matter. Come hungry—very hungry—as a result of the Original Italian Festival returns Thursday by way of Sunday, Aug. 13-16, to Our Lady of Mount Carmel and Our Lady of Loreto Parish, 37 Massasoit Road. The four-day Worcester custom packs in reside Italian music, bands, dancers, distributors, raffles and lots for the children, however let’s not child ourselves: the meals is a headliner. Festivalgoers can work their manner by way of brick-oven pizza, pasta and meatballs, sausage, eggplant, arancini, calamari, Italian grinders, fried ravioli, Italian egg rolls, gelato and extra. Live leisure runs all through the competition, together with Below Deck on Thursday, XS Band on Friday, Johnny Vincent and Joe Cariglia and Decades by Dezyne on Saturday, and the Jim Geany Band on Sunday. Kids can hit the inflatable space with a $10 every day wristband, whereas adults can browse distributors and Italian merchandise. Admission is simply $2 money per particular person, leaving significantly extra of the funds for the vital stuff: deciding what number of Italian meals one particular person can moderately eat in 4 days.
3. Bird nerds unite: The hen is the phrase on Saturday, Aug. 15, when Feather Fest takes flight on the EcoTarium from 10 a.m. to five p.m. The daylong celebration of all issues avian consists of hen watching, nest matching, hands-on actions and alternatives to find out how completely different species eat, talk and survive. Rhode Island Parrot Rescue stops by for a program exploring the fascinating—and sophisticated—lives of parrots in captivity, whereas Mass Audubon brings alongside a rescued barn owl for an up-close encounter. Other actions embrace “Bird Names for Birds,” Crafty Chickens and planetarium packages all through the day. Feather Fest actions are included with common EcoTarium admission, though some planetarium packages require a separate ticket.
4. That unmistakable rhythm returns to the Common: The Latin American Festival could also be sitting out one other summer season, however the music, dancing and celebration aren’t. Centro and Tumbao Latin Dance launch the inaugural Latin American Rhythm on Saturday, Aug. 15, from 2 to eight p.m. on the Worcester Common, carrying ahead the spirit of a metropolis custom that dates again greater than three a long time. The free celebration options reside music, DJs, cultural demonstrations and performances spanning salsa, bachata, merengue, bomba and flamenco, together with loads of alternatives for social dancing. Organizers say the brand new occasion is designed to rejoice the traditions and variety of Latin America whereas bringing the neighborhood collectively—and maybe whet Worcester’s urge for food for the eventual return of the full-scale competition.
5. A bit of flamenco for the familia: Put some stomp in your Friday afternoon when dancer and educating artist Eve Costarelli brings “I Love Flamenco Dancing” to the Worcester Public Library, 3 Salem St., on Friday, Aug. 14, from 2 to three p.m. Designed for kids ages 5 to 12 and their households, the interactive class introduces younger dancers to flamenco, the expressive Spanish artwork type recognized for its rhythmic footwork, clapping, dramatic motion and unmistakable aptitude. No dance expertise—or castanets—required. The thought is true there in this system’s motto: Flamenco is for everyone.

For extra occasions, go to the Discover Central Massachusetts events calendar. 

Have an occasion, information tip, thought for a characteristic, info, joke, favourite recipe or anything you’d like to inform us about? You ought to. Contact carsenault@theworcesterguardian.org

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