Three Rivers Arts Festival Returns This Summer
Son Little performs on June 13 as part of the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival.
Filling the streets of Downtown Pittsburgh with the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival is a longstanding Pittsburgh tradition. The festival, featuring 10 days of free art and music, draws people from all over with live concerts, a massive artist’s market, and of course, funnel cakes. (It wouldn’t be a true festival without a taste of – and sticky fingers from – the powdered sugar-dusted, messily fried cake.)
After canceling the 2020 festival due to coronavirus, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust has announced the return of the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival (TRAF) in 2021, featuring a special hybrid format of virtual and in-person events.
“We cannot imagine summer in Pittsburgh without the Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival, and we are thrilled to see the work being done to return to in-person arts events and also build upon the accessibility of virtual experiences,” said Joe Smith, Senior Vice President of Marketing for Dollar Bank, in a press release.
The 62nd annual fest will take place June 4 to 14 this year, showcasing a new layout that runs through the Downtown Cultural District. For the first time in a year, the district’s galleries, theaters, and art venues will open their doors.
100 independent artists will be on-site at the festival’s open-air market, selling handmade fine art and crafts every day of the festival. Find gorgeous jewelry, bright ceramics, paintings, hand-illustrated stickers, wearables, woodworking, and more inside the market, from both emerging and established artists.
More than 350 artists across the country will participate in TRAF’s virtual market, set to run alongside the in-person market.
Weekends on the main stage– inside the Byham Theater – will feature limited-capacity, in-person concerts. Headliners include songwriter, guitarist, and vocalist Celisse, Bassel and the Supernaturals, who tell the experience of being a first-generation Syrian-American through “soulful melodies, funk-inspired rhythms, and captivating lyrics,” and cinematic pop artist Caroline Rose.
Top acts from the region will be showcased in-person on stage at the Allegheny Overlook Pop-up Park.
And though there’s no mention of funnel cakes yet, festival organizers do say that there’s more to come – keep your fingers crossed and appetites ready!
Tickets for the live events and artist market are available online, along with a full list of TRAF events. (This includes virtual-only experiences from the Harris Theater and access to the festival's 24/7 virtual stage.) Main stage concerts will also be live-streamed through the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust and on 91.3 WYEP-FM.