We have your guide to Iowa City concerts, festivals and movies happening this summer
Iowa City's festival season is near.
Summer of the Arts has hosted arts and cultural festivals for all ages in Iowa City since 2005.
Fan-favorite festivals like the Free Movie Series and Iowa City Jazz Festival will return in 2024, while new festivals like Rhythms at Riverfront Crossings are also on the horizon.
Here is a complete schedule of this year's programming
Friday Night Concert Series
The Friday Night Concert Series is the first festival on the docket. The weekly slate begins May 10 and runs through Sept. 20, with familiar and emerging artists performing on the Pedmall stage. Each concert starts promptly at 6:30 p.m.
This year's lineup includes Iowa City favorites like Blake Shaw and Alyx Rush.
The Iowa Steel band will open up the festival series on May 10.
May Lineup
May 10: Iowa Steel Band
May 17: Clear Creek Amana and Liberty High Jazz Ensembles
May 24: West High and City High Jazz Ensembles
May 31: Murphy Fisher Quartet and Beauty and the Beats
June Lineup:
June 14: Blake Shaw with Alyx Rush
June 21: Swampland Jewels
June 28: Avey Grouws Band
July Lineup:
July 12: Vibe
July 19: Charlotte Blu and Natural Habits
July 26: Vivian Shanley Quartet and Kiersten Conway Quartet
August Lineup:
August 2: The Fabulous Trutones and Cedar County Cobras
August 9: River Glen and Flash in a Pan
August 16: The Beaker Brothers
August 23: Dandelion Stompers
August 30: Uniphonics
September Lineup:
September 6: Jumbies
September 13: Big Begonias and Miss Christine
September 20: Signal Flow Productions
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Rhythms at Riverfront Crossings
Rhythms at Riverfront Crossings is Iowa City's newest festival. The Saturday music festival will be held at Riverfront Crossings once a month starting in May. The Summer of the Arts hopes the festival will attract new visitors to the recently renovated park and eliminate barriers for residents who can't attend downtown events.
Here is the full programming list for the festival,, with each performance starting at 6:30 p.m.:
May 25: Diplomats of Solid Sound
June 29: Kevin Burt & Big Medicine
July 27: Dave Zollo & the Body Electric
Aug. 24: Winterland
Sept. 28: Shade of Blue
More: Iowa City's newest summer music festival, Rhythms at Riverfront Crossings, kicks off in May
Free Movie Series
Summer of the Arts' Free Movie Series returns on May 25. The first Rythyms at the Riverfront Crossing performance will be followed by a movie, marking the start of the twice-monthly series. The Academy Award-winning documentary "Summer of Soul," directed by Questlove, is the year's first offering.
The Free Movie Series runs through Sept. 21 with showtimes set for 9 p.m. Each Saturday screening will be held at a different park in the greater Iowa City area.
Below is the schedule for the Free Movie Series, including the park that will host each event:
May Lineup:
May 25: Riverfront Crossings Park (1001 S Clinton St., Iowa City) "Summer of Soul," PG-13
June Lineup:
June 1: Brown Deer Golf Course (1900 Country Club Dr., Coralville) "The Marvels," PG-13
June 15: James Alan McPherson Park (1858 7th Ave Ct., Iowa City) "Tooth Fairy," PG
July Lineup:
July 13: Iowa City Municipal Airport (1801 S Riverside Dr., Iowa City) "Barbie," PG-13
July 20: Mercer Park (1317 Dover St., Iowa City) "Spies in Disguise," PG
August Lineup:
Aug 3: Pepperwood Plaza (1067 HWY 6 E, Iowa City) "Hercules," G
Aug 10: Location in North Liberty to be announced at a later date. "Trolls Band Together," PG
Aug 17: Pepperwood Plaza (1067 HWY 6 E, Iowa City) "The Super Mario Bros. Movie," PG
September Lineup:
Sept 21: Johnson County Fairgrounds (4261 Oak Crest Hill Rd. SE, Iowa City) "Halloweentown," TV-G
Music on the Move
Music on the Move initially started as "Truckload of Soul" during the COVID-19 pandemic. Kevin Burt wanted to bring live music to neighbors. So he loaded into his pickup truck with his guitar and traveled to a few different neighborhoods. The project has been rebranded as Music on the Move, bringing 12 nights of music in 2024. The performances will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesdays in local parks, from June to late August.
Here is the parks and artists that will be playing the shows:
June Lineup:
June 4: Natural Habits at Terry Trueblood Recreational Area (579 McCollister Blvd, Iowa City)
June 11: Kevin Burt at Mercer Park (1317 Dover St., Iowa City)
June 18: James Tutson at Penn Meadows Park (170, 310 N Dubuque St., North Liberty)
June 25: Cedar County Cobras at S.T. Morrison Park (1513 7th St., Coralville)
July Lineup:
July 2: Blake Shaw at Northside Marketplace (N Linn St., Iowa City)
July 9: Dave Zollo at James Alan McPherson Park (1858 7th Ave Ct., Iowa City)
July 16: Kevin Burt at Willow Creek Park (1117 Teg Dr., Iowa City)
July 23: The Feralings at North Market Square Park (600 Fairchild St., Iowa City)
July 30: Blake Shaw at Peninsula Neighborhood (1188 Foster Rd., Iowa City)
August Lineup:
Aug 6: Crystal City Trio at Northside Marketplace (N Linn St., Iowa City)
Aug 13: James Tutson at Fairmeadows Park (2451 Miami Dr., Iowa City)
Aug 20: Dave Zollo at Frauenholtz-Miller Park (4329 St Patricks Dr., Iowa City)
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Iowa Arts Festival
The Iowa Arts Festival, first known as Arts Fest when it kicked off in 1983, returns for its 41st season June 7-9 in downtown Iowa City. Dozens of local musicians will be performing while more than 100 artists and plenty of food vendors will be on hand.
Though the musical lineup has been released, the list of artists will be announced at the end of May.
Here is the lineup of all the acts performing at this year's Iowa Arts Festival:
June 7
6: p.m.: Weary Ramblers at the Main Stage
8 p.m.: Pert Near Sandstone at the Main Stage
June 8
12 p.m.: Iowa City Community Band at the Main Stage
1:30 p.m.: Subatlantic at the Main Stage
2:30 p.m.: Pete Balestrieri
3 p.m.: UAY Performers
4:00 p.m.: Joe and Vicki Price at the Main Stage
6 p.m.: Alysha Brilla at the Main Stage
8 p.m.: Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience at the Main Stage
June 9
12 p.m.: Annie Savage and the Lorch Sisters at the Main Stage
12:30 p.m.: Iowa City Flute Choir Quartet
1 p.m.: Pandelirium Steel Band
1 p.m.: Gimenez Voice Academy at the Main Stage
2 p.m.: Iowa City Flute Choir at the Main Stage
3 p.m.: Forró fo Sho at the Main Stage
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Iowa City Jazz Festival
The Iowa City Jazz Festival is a summer favorite and returns Fourth of July weekend. Happening July 5 to 7, the Iowa City Jazz Festival offers a diverse lineup of jazz musicians — from solo acts to Grammy-nominated artists.
This year's Iowa City Jazz Festival lineup is as follows:
July 5
5 p.m.: The MJ Group at the Side Stage
6 p.m.: Fareed Haque and His Funk Brothers at the Main Stage
7 p.m.: The Wayne Page Quartet at the Side Stage
8 p.m.: Ingrid Jensen and the Iowa Women's Jazz Orchestra at the Main Stage
9:30 p.m.: City of Iowa City Fireworks at the Old Capitol Museum
10 p.m.: Jam Session with Blake Shaw (and One of His Many Bands) at Wilder
July 6
11:30 a.m.: United Jazz Ensemble at the Main Stage
12:15 p.m.: North Corridor All Stars at the Main Stage
1 p.m.: Kiersten Conway Trio at the Side Stage
2 p.m.: The Blake Shaw BIG(ish) Band at the Main Stage
3 p.m.: Jackson Churchill and Good Question at the Side Stage
4 p.m.: Emiliano Lasansky at the Main Stage
5 p.m.: Tobi Crawford Trio at the Side Stage
6 p.m.: Matt Wilson's Good Trouble at the Main Stage
7 p.m.: Ritmo Quinto at the Side Stage
8 p.m.: Lakecia Benjamin and Phoenix at the Main Stage
9:30 p.m.: Jam Session with Blake Shaw at Wilder
July 7
12 p.m.: Reese Pike Trio at the Side Stage
1 p.m.: Trio Grismore at the Main Stage
2 p.m.: Sam Ross Quintet at the Side Stage
3 p.m.: 10 of Soul at the Main Stage
Jessica Rish is an entertainment, dining and business reporter for the Iowa City Press-Citizen. She can be reached at [email protected] or on X, formerly known as Twitter, @rishjessica_
This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: Iowa City's festival lineup: Things to do, music to enjoy this summer
