The summer 2024 season of Friday Night Jazz at Cedar Park kicks off this week at the park, located at 49th and Baltimore. This is the 25th year of this popular event! The free shows featuring Philadelphia’s finest jazz musicians and bands, will run every Friday from 6-8 p.m. until the end of July (weather permitting). Here is the schedule:

June 14 – Firestorm
June 21 – Ray Wright’s Jazz Lab
June 28 – Yesseh & Friends
July 5 – Bobby Zankel & the Wonderful Sound 6
July 12 – Dr Ketchup
July 19 – Firestorm and Scholarship Award Night
July 26 – Clef Club

Guests are welcome to bring chairs, blankets and picnics!

This annual event is organized by Cedar Park Neighbors with the help from local businesses. This year’s sponsors are PFCU, Mariposa, Penn Live Arts, VIX Emporium and Cleo Bagels.

For more details and updates, visit the event’s Facebook page.

The 2024 West Philly Porchfest map (the full map is available at westphillyporchfest.com)

The annual West Philly Porchfest is scheduled to return Saturday, June 8, from 12-6 p.m. This year, the DIY music festival featuring dozens of free porch and stoop shows in various music genres (including folk, jazz, rock ‘n’ roll, rap and hip hop, classical music and more!) will be held from 42nd to 56th Street and from Market St. to Woodland Ave. As always, the shows are divided into three two-hour time slots – from 12-2 p.m. (marked in red on the map), from 2-4 p.m. (marked in pink), and from 4-6 p.m. (marked in light blue).

The Porchfest provides an opportunity for local musicians to play and for West Philly residents and guests to host and enjoy free shows.

The full list of performers and schedule, as well as an interactive map, are available on the West Philly Porchfest website.

cinéSPEAK, a local independent cinema that celebrated its 10th anniversary last year, is returning next week with its outdoor film screening series, Under the Stars at Clark Park.

The popular event kicks off Friday, May 24 in the park’s “Bowl” located near 43rd and Chester. The weekly program, which runs every Friday through June 14, features independent films from around the world, local DJs, food trucks and more. All events are free and open to the public.

At the opening night on May 24, cinéSPEAK and community partner, Free Library of Philadelphia, will present screening of Butterfly in the Sky (2022) and The ABCs of Book Banning (2023). The evening will kick off at 6:30 p.m. with a Drag Storytime, followed by DJ Mariyama⁠ at 7 p.m. Film screenings begin at 9 p.m.

Rain dates for this year’s series are on Saturdays – May 25, June 1, June 8 and June 15.

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Two popular outdoor “do-it-yourself” music festivals are returning to Philadelphia next month. Both of these events are free and give a chance to local musicians to showcase their talent.

The 2024 West Philly Porchfest will be Saturday, June 8 from 12-6 p.m. Dozens of porch owners have already signed up to host solo artists and groups/bands performing in various genres, including folk, jazz, rock, rap, R&B and even opera music. Shows are usually divided into three groups depending on their location – from 12-2 p.m., 2-4 p.m. and 4-6 p.m. All shows are free and anyone can host or play a show. For more details, go to: https://westphillyporchfest.com.

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Gretchen Elise performing at a Pop-up at the Portal (Photo courtesy UCD).

Free, all-ages music performances, Pop-Ups at the Portal, are returning to Trolley Portal Gardens at 40th St. and Baltimore Ave. For five weeks starting May 9, University City District (UCD) in partnership with local musician Gretchen Elise will present inclusive musical performances featuring local talent every Thursday evening (from 5 – 7 p.m.)

“Our goal with Trolley Portal Gardens is to bring programming for the neighbors, parents, and commuters who use the space every day,” said Margaret Starke, UCD’s Senior Manager of Events and Community Partnerships. “Gretchen has deep connections with the neighborhood and other local musicians and made a great fit to collaborate with again as both a presenter and a curator.”

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West Philadelphia’s Curio Theatre Company invites everyone to the Philadelphia premiere of Old Stock: A Refugee Love Story, a unique theater/music hybrid inspired by the true tale of two Jewish Romanian refugees finding love after arriving on the shores of Canada in 1908. This hilarious and edgy story is interwoven with a high-energy Klezmer concert.

The play is written by Canadian playwright Hannah Moscovitch and features songs by Ben Caplan and Christian Barry. At Curio, Old Stock will be directed by Rachel Gluck with sound and music direction by Damien Figueras. Artistic Director Paul Kuhn will bring his set design talents to the stage, using his well-known ability to create detailed worlds using repurposed materials (read more about Curio’s recycling efforts here). In addition to Gluck, Kuhn, and Figueras, Aetna Gallagher joins the crew as Costume and Prop Designer.

The show features themes of hope and of learning to love after being broken by the horrors of war.

“As a Jewish woman, I feel as though Old Stock could be about my ancestors who came to the New World looking for refuge from anti-Semitism at the beginning of the 20th century,” says Gluck. “Old Stock is a raucous, deeply moving punk-Klezmer musical that challenges us all to see ourselves as a part of a larger narrative that continues to this day. It’s the story of refugees banging on the door, begging to be let into a place where they hope that they might finally be safe.”

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