Rhode Island Fall Festivals Reimagined

Music lovers gather each Labor Day Weekend on the salty shoreline of Ninigret Pond in Charlestown for Rhythm & Roots. The festival “kept the vibe alive” September 4-6, but from an online venue. Over thirty films of past shows, featuring Los Lobos, Rosanne Cash, Keb’ Mo’, and the Mavericks, streamed in high-definition on their website for free. “It’s just our way of trying to bring a little happiness, and to bring the whole community back together, to keep that spirit connected and alive,” says director Chuck Wentworth. “Really, that’s our main goal.”

Just like the leaves are changing, so will this equally vibrant season of festivals. Due to restrictions surrounding COVID-19, many of the state’s beloved autumn celebrations won’t take place, like the Johnston Apple Festival, Woonsocket Autumnfest, Misquamicut Fall Fest, and Warren Folks Fest, among several others. However, fall festivities are far from out of the picture, and while they might look a bit different this year, many of these special events have found creative ways to pivot.

“We immediately started to think about how we can adapt,” begins WaterFire Providence’s managing director Peter Mello, “because it’s important to continue to create art in challenging times like this.” The nonprofit already launched alternative programming like its virtual live stream of the Beacon of Hope and outdoor arts performances Decameron in partnership with the Wilbury Theatre Group. This fall, they will offer dynamic art installations inside the WaterFire Arts Center and Museum in Providence’s Valley Arts District, but will hold off on basin lightings in the river. Also determined to bring art to the people, the 22nd Annual Pawtucket Arts Fest will take place September 4-13, thanks largely to a generous sponsorship donation by the Pawtucket Teachers Alliance. “[The Alliance] saw that the public needs some type of outlet, that art still serves an important purpose,” says festival director Anthony Ambrosino, “and that makes me even more appreciative of being associated with them.” A slate of programs includes children’s crafts, dining on Main Street, music from Mixed Magic Theater, a Harvest Kitchen Farmers Market, and an Enchanted Garden living art exhibit at Slater Park by TEN31 Productions.

Fall festivals in Rhody also celebrate our love for food, and while we won’t be driving to Narragansett for the annual Calamari Festival, we still get to indulge in some New England classics. The 10th Annual Rhode Island Seafood Festival honored the harvest of the sea ashore Narragansett Bay on September 12 and 13. The festival was nearly canceled, says TJ McNulty of Grand Festivals, but “we’re making the effort for vendors because they’ve been with us for so long, we owe them that.” Those vendors include Matunuck Oyster Bar, Shuckin’ Truck, Redstreet Kitchen, Sunset Farm, and Behan Family Farm, which will all offer takeout. Then on September 26, the Ocean State Oyster Festival, in collaboration with Trinity Beer Garden, will host table seating with access to raw bars from local farms, grills, local brews, and live music at Biltmore Park in Providence. That same day on Aquidneck Island, Escobar’s Highland Farm will host its annual Corn Maze Pumpkin Festival. The maze, shaped like a tractor, celebrates farmers who continue to work despite modern obstacles, says director Stuart MacNaught, “because farmers have to keep going. No matter what, the cows have to be milked twice a day.”

Other anticipated autumn events have also adapted creatively, like the Roger Williams Park Zoo Jack-o-Lantern Spectacular which has turned into a drive-through affair all October long. The annual Harvest Fair at the Norman Bird Sanctuary in Middletown also boasts special surprises, inviting folks to pick up hay bales and stakes for a homemade scarecrow contest, attend a drive-in movie on the nature preserve, and interact with wildlife experts in a virtual lecture series. “Right now conservation is having its moment,” says the nonprofit’s director Kaity Ryan. Plus, autumn is prime time for a breath of crisp air at this seaside Sachuest Point sanctuary.