Thu 6/22-Sat 6/24
Tri-C Jazz Fest has been through a lot of changes to reach its 38th year. In 2014, it made some huge ones that have paid off in a major way, so it’s kept them. It moved the event from April to summertime, consolidated it in one weekend and location (PlayhouseSquare) instead of spreading events all over the city over a period of several weeks, and added a big, free outdoor celebration to draw in casual onlookers.
The plethora of theaters are PlayhouseSquare offers venues for numerous ticketed shows including familiar-to-Clevelanders musicans such as Terence Blanchard and Diego Figueriedo, up-and-coming young sax player Kasami Washington, veteran sax player Jane Bunnett’s exciting new all-woman ensemble of Cuban musicians, an old pop favorite for non-jazz fans, Boz Scaggs, and the usual crowd-pleasing “smooth jazz” show with Boney James and Norman Brown.
Outdoors on Friday and Saturday, people can drop by to hear jazz, blues, folk, gospel, R& B and more on the big stage with the dance floor situated right under the chandelier. It kicks off at 3pm Friday with the Tri-C Jazz Camp Showcase, a reminder that one of JazzFest’s key components and drivers is still the education of the next generation of jazz musicians. It closes at 11pm Saturday with the irresistible Puerto Rican-style sounds of Sammy DeLeon y su Orquesta and the official Festival jam session at Bin 216.
Kids won’t be bored in KidBop area in the CSU Galleries where they can meet JazzFest artists, see puppets perform, hear steel drum bands and storytellers, and get their faces painted. For grown-up kids, Amusement Alley will have a photo booth, giant games and cornhole.
There’ll be plenty of food too, from food trucks and PlayhouseSquare restaurants, and cooking demos by Chef Jack Ahern who’ll pass out tastes and tips.
A couple of new things have been added to the growing festival. This year, there’ll be a Vendor Village featuring dozen of local makers, craftspeople, artists and entrepreneurs. And the Jazz Talk Tent will feature JazzFest artists doing interviews and meeting festival visitors. If it rains, outdoor activities will move inside.
Cleveland, OH 44115