Things To Do

Philadelphia Folk Festival, Foo Fighters, Newark Independent Film Festival and more in this week’s ‘Things to Do’

Aug. 13–16: A kid-friendly science fair at the Franklin Institute, the music of Frankie Beverly and a free concert at Spruce Street Harbor Park are the highlights.

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Audience members form a conga line while a band performs onstage

File - Audience members form a conga line as Baile An Salsa performs on the stage at the Philadelphia Folk Festival in 2017. (Jonathan Wilson for Newsworks)

The Foo Fighters kick off weekend concerts with a show in support of their latest release, “Your Favorite Toy.” But it’s the 63rd annual Philadelphia Folk Festival that brings out the genre’s heavy hitters. Delaware also hosts a variety of events from the three-day Newark Independent Film Festival to the Caribbean Carnival that comes with a parade and live performances.

Saturday is a food lover’s delight with the ninth annual Philadelphia Taco Festival and the Reading Terminal Ice Cream Festival. Speaking of snacks, SNACKTIME will be at the Delaware River Waterfront on Friday night as part of a free concert series. The weekend wraps with yet another Caribbean fest at Cherry Street Pier. Be ready to dance!

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Delaware | Arts & culture | Kids | Food & drink | Sports | Music | The rest

Delaware

Newark Independent Film Festival

Now in its third year, this festival features three days of independent short films from emerging and established filmmakers. Unlike traditional film fest lineups, movies are organized in themed blocks from “Family Drama” to “Dreams and Nightmares,” with filmmakers and audiences connecting through post-screening Q&As. Among locally based films are “YETIMAN: Scourge of the North,” shot in Newark; “The Freezer,” about a junk-cleaning crew clearing out a dead mobster’s house; and “Restless Ground: The Untold Story of Mount Olive,” a documentary examining the impact of institutional racism on those buried there.

Forever Motown

A close-up of Marvin Gaye singing into a microphone.
Singer Marvin Gaye performs on opening night at Radio City Music Hall, May 17, 1983, New York. (AP Photo/Nancy Kaye)

Seven singers and a five-piece band that features veteran performers with ties to groups including The Main Ingredient, The Spinners and The Marvelettes are part of the touring cast of the show that puts Motown’s music at the forefront. Rather than focusing on one act, the fast-paced show recreates the vocal arrangements, harmonies, choreography and wardrobes associated with Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, Gladys Knight and the Pips, The Temptations, Four Tops, The Supremes, Stevie Wonder, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, and Mary Wells. The production covers nearly 30 songs, including “My Girl,” “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” and “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.”

3rd Annual Delaware Caribbean Carnival

  • Where: Rodney Square, 1000 Market St., Wilmington, Del.
  • When: Saturday, Aug. 15, 4–10 p.m., parade starts at noon
  • How much: Free, pay as you go

Now in its third year, the celebration was created by Caribbean Culture Awareness Inc. to give the state’s Caribbean community a place to share its music, food, traditions and history. It starts with a parade of masqueraders in the elaborate, feathered costumes associated with events like Carnival in Trinidad and Tobago and Crop Over in Barbados, followed by a concert featuring soca, reggae and dancehall, along with food, vendors and other programming.

Arts & culture

Festival of India

Dancers perform on stage during the Festival of India

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The annual festival marks Aug. 15, 1947, when India gained independence from nearly two centuries of British rule, with a colorful mix of food, music, dance and culture. Northern and Southern Indian cuisine, Bollywood performances, music, cultural organizations, vendors and more provide an introduction to the diversity of Indian culture. Presented by the Council of Indian Organizations in Greater Philadelphia, the free festival is part of the long-running PECO Multicultural Series.

40th annual Caribbean Festival

If you didn’t make it to the islands this year, they come to you courtesy of the 40th annual Philadelphia Caribbean Festival, a celebration of the region’s music, food, fashion and cultural traditions. Expect to hear performances in multiple genres including reggae, roots, soca, steel band, jazz and dance that reflect the diversity of the Caribbean. Food and apparel vendors will serve up the best of what the region has to offer, and there’s plenty for kids, too, including a Caribbean Children’s Village with face painting, bead making, balloon animals and games.

Kids

Don’t Try This at Home Day

  • Where: Franklin Institute, 222 N. 20th St.
  • When: Saturday, Aug. 15, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
  • How much: Included with museum admission, $23 to $29

Science isn’t always quiet, precise or confined to a lab — and the latest iteration of this annual program proves that in entertaining ways. There’s a reason why it’s called “Don’t Try This at Home Day.” The museum transforms its programming into a live-action event where chemistry and physics unfold in real time through sometimes-literally explosive demonstrations. And it’s not just demos; there are hands-on opportunities to try things that would be much more dangerous outside of a controlled atmosphere.

Food & Drink

Reading Terminal’s Ice Cream Festival

  • Where: Reading Terminal, 1136 Arch St.
  • When: Saturday, Aug. 15, noon to 4 p.m.
  • How much: Free, pay as you go

Block party or festival, either way, this annual event is a good time. Set up inside and outside the market and onto Filbert Street, it’s led by Bassetts, the country’s oldest ice cream company. They come with local makers who are brand-new by comparison, including Milk Jawn, Cloud Cups and Tubby Robot. Along with the sweet treats from specialty vendors and Terminal stalwarts, there are DJs, kid-friendly activities and ice-cream-eating and sundae-building competitions.

Philadelphia Taco Festival

Nine years in and the Philadelphia Taco Festival remains an anticipated event on the annual food and drink calendar. The festival brings together more than 40 taco and food vendors offering upwards of 130 kinds of tacos, along with elotes and a giant nacho station. Entertainment on multiple stages, including a mariachi band, live performances and DJs, comes along with the food. And that’s not all — there’s also lucha libre wrestling, taco and hot-pepper eating contests, carnival games, axe throwing, mechanical bull riding and a free kids’ zone.

PureSoul Presents: The Music of Frankie Beverly & Maze Brunch

Frankie Beverly singing
Legendary musician Frankie Beverly performs his final show in his hometown, Philadelphia, at the Dell Music Center July 6, 2024. (KDMorris Photography)

Born and raised in Philadelphia, Frankie Beverly was in several bands before he emerged as the leader of Raw Soul. After moving to the Bay Area, the band found a fan in Marvin Gaye, who ultimately helped get them signed as Maze. From that point, they became one of the most beloved and enduring R&B bands, performing up to Beverly’s death in 2024. This special themed brunch is meant to bring people together to celebrate his music and legacy.

Sports

126th United States Amateur Championship

Over 300 of the country’s top amateur golfers are coming to the Philadelphia area for one of golf’s oldest and most prestigious championships, returning to Merion Golf Club’s historic East Course for the first time in 21 years. The tournament has historically been a proving ground for future major champions. Tiger Woods won three consecutive U.S. Amateur titles from 1994 through 1996, while Bobby Jones, Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Phil Mickelson and Ben Crenshaw are among other legends who have won the title. This marks the 20th United States Golf Association championship staged at Merion, the most of any club in USGA history.

Music

The Foo Fighters Take Cover Tour 2025

FILE - Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters performs
File: Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters performs at Festival d’été de Québec, July 8, 2023, at Plains of Abraham in Quebec City. (Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP, File)

Former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl is now better known for his own band, forming it in 1994 after Nirvana’s breakup. Foo Fighters are touring in support of “Your Favorite Toy,” released in April, the band’s first album since 2023’s “But Here We Are.” After his 2014 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Nirvana, Grohl and Foo Fighters have earned 15 Grammys, including a record-setting five Best Rock Album wins. At the Philly tour stop, the lineup is particularly strong, with Queens of the Stone Age and Philly’s own Mannequin Pussy as the openers.

Eagles of Death Metal: Death By Sexy 20th Anniversary Tour

Eagles of Death Metal, which, by the way, is not a metal band but one that combines garage rock, blues and rockabilly, are on the road celebrating the 20th anniversary of their second studio album, “Death By Sexy.” The album yielded some of their best-known songs, including “I Want You So Hard (Boy’s Bad News),” “Cherry Cola” and “Don’t Speak (I Came to Make a Bang!).” The Death by Sexy era was a breakthrough period for the group, including tours with The Strokes, Peaches and Joan Jett. But despite their musical accomplishments, the band will forever be known for being onstage at the Bataclan in 2015 when a terrorist attack inside the venue killed 90 people, including their merchandise manager. They’re in Philly on Friday night.

Summer Sounds Concert Series: SNACKTIME

Members of the Philly band Snacktime pose with Phillies jerseys on, instruments in hand.
Members of the Philly band Snacktime pose with Phillies jerseys on. (Courtesy of Snacktime)

SNACKTIME comes to the Delaware River Waterfront as part of the free Summer Sounds Concert Series. Formed during the pandemic, the multicultural band has built a following with its genre-inclusive sound and high-energy performances, earning attention well beyond its hometown. Just last month, they backed up Ms. Lauryn Hill at the Newport Jazz Fest, moved on to Lollapalooza and are headed out on tour for a few dates with Devon Gilfillian in September. But on Friday, you can see them right here in Philly and for free.

Matteo Mancuso: The Route 96 Tour

Sicilian guitar prodigy Matteo Mancuso inherited his talent from a direct source. His father, Vincenzo Mancuso, is also a celebrated guitarist. But the younger Mancuso’s career breakthrough came via an outlet his father didn’t have — the power of YouTube. After going viral there, Matteo released his first album, “The Journey,” in 2023. Now, he’s touring in support of his second, “Route 96.” He stops in the Philly ‘burbs for a concert with fellow guitarist Kevin Hufnagel.

Up Next

The XPoNential Music Festival heads to the Camden Waterfront from Friday, Sept. 18 to Sunday, Sept. 20. On the bill are Devon Gilfillian, Dawes, Sierra Hull and Little Feat. If you want to get ahead of the Sixers’ season before the hype really begins with LeBron James in town, they open the season against the defending champions, the New York Knicks, at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, Oct. 20. Tickets are going for around $2000. Good luck.

Saturdays just got more interesting.

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