Pride March and Festival, Roots Picnic, Philly Beer Week and more in this week’s ‘Things To Do’

Who run the world? Girls! Wilmington’s all-female Ladybug Music Festival takes place downtown with over 30 bands scheduled to perform. In Philly, the Sorry Papi dance party is a female-only reggaeton gathering that promises good vibes and great music. We love it when women support women.

In Philly, The Roots Picnic dominates the music scene at their two-day fest (and free conference), but let’s hear it for the boys and nostalgia, too. Tom DiMenna is the frontman for “Story Songs of the ‘70s — Music of Gordon Lightfoot, Harry Chapin and Cat Stevens” at City Winery. Philly Beer Week and Shuckfest 2024 are events for food-and-drink enthusiasts who want food (and drink) with a side of fun. And if you’re Black and enjoy the outdoors, the Audubon Society wraps up Black Birding Week with a Sneaker Ball.

New Jersey | Delaware | Special Events | Kids & Family | Arts & Culture | Food & Drink | Music

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New Jersey

2024 Youth Fishing Derby

• Where: Stacy Park, 1399 Riverside Dr., Trenton, N.J.
• When: Saturday, June 1, 2024, 9 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
• How much: Free, with registration

Trenton’s Department of Recreation, Natural Resources and Culture is prioritizing community-based events for the summer season. This Saturday, its Fishing Derby is geared toward second- to eighth-graders who want to learn how to fish or gain more proficiency. Children will be given all the necessary equipment. There will even be a competition and other water activities.

Snoop Dogg

• Where: Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena, 1000 Boardwalk, Atlantic City, N.J.
• When: Saturday, June 1, 8 p.m.
• How much: $112 and up

From a gangsta rapper to one of America’s most beloved all-around entertainers — that’s been the journey of Snoop Dogg. Whether you’ve watched him on his cooking show with Martha Stewart or are looking forward to seeing him reprise his role as Olympic commentator this summer, you’ve enjoyed him in some capacity. But it started with the music, and he’ll perform his hits, including “Gin and Juice,” “Ain’t Nothing But a G Thang,” at Hard Rock Live.

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Delaware

Ladybug Music Festival

• Where: 400 and 500 blocks of Market Street, Wilmington, Del.
• When: Friday, May 31, 4:15 p.m., afterparty starts at 10:30 p.m.
• How much: Free

The all-female Ladybug Music Festival returns to Market Street with 30 local and national musicians on eight indoor and outdoor stages. A lineup of curated vendors and food trucks are participating as well. Queen HD the DJ will spin on the main stage and at the afterparty; the Wilmington Whisky Club hosts specialty bars inside and outside. Featured performers include Catbite, Tanya the Empress, Acacia Sears, Liz Watkins and CLOVER.

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Special Events

Pride roundup Philadelphia

• Where: Multiple venues
• When: Through Sunday, June 30
• How much: Various prices

Pride Month begins this weekend with events tailored for the LGBTQ+ community. The W Hotel celebrates Pride at its Wet Deck, which includes a pool, bar and guest DJs. On Friday, the Franklin Institute hosts a Summer Ball with Galaei. At the Black Squirrel Club, Fire Werk With Me: A Damn Fine Twin Peaks Cabaret combines the classic TV show with a drag queen performance.

On Saturday, you can choose from Family Pride Day at the Franklin Institute and the Love is Love Block Party outside Evil Genius’ brewery, or head to the Philadelphia Art Museum for the Pride Promenade.

On Sunday, the signature event, the Philly Pride March, starts from 6th and Walnut at 10:30 a.m. The festival begins at noon in the Gayborhood. Delco celebrates Pride Month with activities including a parade in Media on Saturday. For a full list of Pride events, click here.

Sorry Papi: The Mala Santa Tour

• Where: The Fillmore Philadelphia, 29 E. Allen St.
• When: Friday, May 31, 10 p.m.
• How much: $38 – $114

Ladies first — and only! Sorry Papi: The Mala Santa Tour is an all-female reggaeton party allowing women to dance in their sacrosanct space. If you’ve ever felt uncomfortable under the male gaze, now you can party with your girls without considering it. Before you ask, an all-female party means just that: No boys allowed! The 18-and-up event is touring the country making its local stop at the Fillmore on Friday.

3rd Annual Black Excellence in Birding Sneaker Ball

• Where: Academy of Natural Sciences, 1900 Benjamin Franklin Pkwy.
• When: Saturday, June 1, 6–10 p.m.
• How much: $55

You must wear comfortable shoes to be a birder, lest you miss the rare sighting of a white-rumped sandpiper. So it only makes sense that the  third annual Black Excellence in Birding group would host a Sneaker Ball. As the Audubon Society’s Black Birders Week continues through Saturday, the ball celebrates Black birdwatchers with a series of events, including a talk with Christian Cooper, the birdwatcher who became a symbol for Black outdoors enthusiasts when a white woman wrongfully called the police on him in Central Park.

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Kids & Family

Historic RittenhouseTown Fair

• Where: Historic RittenhouseTown, 208 Lincoln Dr.
• When: Saturday, June 1, 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.
• How much: Free

The annual Historic RittenhouseTown Fair is a free, family-friendly event to showcase the home and grounds just visible off Lincoln Drive. Originally a mill, it became one of the earliest paper factories in the country and the home to the fledgling Mennonite population. Papermaking workshops are on the schedule along with a series of wellness classes from the Black Lotus Holistic Health Collective. Pay-as-you-go food and drink are available on-site.

Navy Yard Family Fest

• Where: Philadelphia Navy Yard, 4747 N. Broad St. (Central Green)
• When: Saturday, June 1, noon – 6 p.m.
• How much: Free

Music. Food. Family. Free. That’s all you need to know about the Navy Yard Family Fest, billed as an official kickoff to summer. On the expansive grounds of the Yard’s Central Green, there will be food and retail vendors and a live music performance from OTC Collective.

2024 Fete Day

• Where: Elfreth’s Alley, 126 Elfreth’s Alley
• When: Saturday, June 1, 1–5 p.m.
• How much: $10 for children 7–12, $25 for adults

Elfreth’s Alley throws open the doors to its historic homes during its annual Fete Day. The ticketed event allows the public to see inside the homes that form the oldest continuously occupied street in the U.S. And yes, people reside there, despite its popularity as a tourist attraction. Proceeds from the event benefit the street’s upkeep and preservation.

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Arts & Culture

Father Comes Home From the Wars (Pts. 1, 2 and 3)

• Where: Sedgwick Theater, 7137 Germantown Ave.
• When: Through Sunday, June 23
• How much: $15 – $60

Pulitzer Prize–winner Suzan Lori-Parks penned the play “Father Comes Home From The Wars” as an homage to the unknown Black soldiers who had to navigate unthinkable choices amid the Civil War. Split into three parts, it’s also a look at the complicated relationships enslaved people had with their owners. Six more plays in the saga were due, but perhaps Parks moved on. Her latest work was a stage version of 1972’s cult classic “The Harder They Come” in 2023.

6th Annual Hand to Hand 2024

• Where: FringeArts, 140 N. Christopher Columbus Blvd.
• When: Friday, May 31, 7:30 p.m., Saturday, June 1, 3 p.m., 7:30 p.m., Sunday, June 2, 7 p.m.
• How much: Pay what you can – $25

Circus arts are highlighted in the sixth annual Hand to Hand event. The Circadium School of Contemporary Circus performs two shows of “Begin Again” inspired by the book “Einstein’s Dreams.” On Sunday, they perform “Test Flights,” which preview their works in progress.

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Food & Drink

Strawberry Festivals

• Where: Linvilla Orchards, Shady Brook Farm
• When: Saturday, June 1, 8 a.m. – 6 p.m.; Saturday, June 1, Sunday, June 2, Saturday, June 8 and Sunday, June 9, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
• How much: Free, $12

Strawberry season is upon us and the fruit is the theme of not one but two festivals this weekend. At Linvilla Orchards in Media, the fest is one day, with no admission fee and pay-as-you-go prices for activities like train rides and face painting. At Shady Brook Farm in Yardley, the festival is over the next two weekends. There’s an admission fee, but activities including a giant slide and hay ride are free. At both, strawberries are pay-as-you-pick or you can buy to take home without the manual labor.

Philly Beer Week

• Where: Multiple venues
• When: Friday, May 31 – Sunday, June 9
• How much: Various prices

A rousing celebration of Philly’s ever-evolving beer scene, Philly Beer Week happens at locations across the cities and the suburbs. There’s a free, pay-as-you-go opening night kickoff party at Attic Brewing Company Beer Garden, and a full schedule of events including a relay, an interactive true crime lecture and even a chance to drink with… goats? Yes, we said goats. You drink, they’re just there to cheer you on.

Shuckfest 2024

• Where: Liberty Point, 211 S. Christopher Columbus Blvd.
• When: Sunday, June 2, noon – 3:30 p.m.
• How much: $80, children under 10, free

Just shuck it. There’s a time and place to do so at Shuckfest 2024. Liberty Point, the city’s largest restaurant, is the venue for the event hosted by Oyster House. Along with meet, eat and great tables with master oyster growers, there are tutorials with master shuckers. Live music and a kids’ craft table are part of the day. Aww, shucks.

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Music

Mitsuko Uchida Plays Ravel

• Where: Verizon Hall, 300 S. Broad St.
• When: Thursday, May 30, 7:30 p.m., Saturday, June 1, 8 p.m.  Sunday, June 2, 2 p.m.
• How much: $25 – $181

Under the direction of Yannick Nézet Séguin, acclaimed British-Japanese pianist Mitsuko Uchida heads to Verizon Hall (soon to be renamed Marian Anderson Hall) to perform Ravel’s Concerto in g minor. She will also perform “Concerto for Orchestra,” a commissioned world premiere by Valerie Coleman, and Debussy’s “La Mer.”

Story Songs of the ‘70s — Music of Gordon Lightfoot, Harry Chapin and Cat Stevens

• Where: City Winery, 990 Filbert St.
• When: Friday, May 31, 7:30 p.m.
• How much: $30 – $40

We told you that tribute bands have proliferated since the pandemic — and well, that hasn’t slowed down. Tom DiMenna is the frontman for Story Songs of the ‘70s — Music of Gordon Lightfoot, Harry Chapin and Cat Stevens. The singer-songwriters were revered in their heyday for their heartfelt music, and it appears this generation can appreciate it, too. And, City Winery hosts a Bowie tribute this weekend, too.

Roots Picnic

• Where: Mann Center, 5201 Parkside Ave.
• When: Saturday, June 1, Sunday, June 2
• How much: $135 and up

Jill Scott, Nas, Lil Wayne and The Roots, Gunna and André 3000 are the headliners for Roots Picnic happening at the Mann Center on Saturday and Sunday. The hometown crew has assembled much of music’s most potent R&B and hip-hop acts from veterans like Babyface to ascendant artists like October London. Even gospel artist Tasha Cobbs Leonard is on the bill. Friday’s second annual Roots Picnic Con at the Fillmore includes panels on real estate, finances and the music industry and a keynote discussion with Questlove.

Jazzmeia Horn: Jazz Cultural Voices Concert Series

• Where: Philadelphia Clef Club of Jazz and Performing Arts, 736 S. Broad St.
• When: Saturday, June 1, 7:30 p.m.
• How much: $45

Jazz vocalist and educator Jazzmeia Horn is just coming off a European tour and heading to the Philly stage. The concert is part of the Clef Club’s Jazz Cultural Voices Series. The Dallas-born Grammy nominee won the 2015 Thelonious Monk Institute International Jazz Competition. Her most recent release is 2021’s “Dear Love.”

Yaya Bey

• Where: World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut St.
• When: Saturday, June 1, 8 p.m.
• How much: $22 – $35

Grand Daddy I.U. was a rap pioneer best known for his work with New York City’s legendary Juice Crew, including Roxanne Shanté and DJ Marley Marl. After his untimely death in 2022, his daughter, Yaya Bey is carrying on in his musical footsteps. She’ll perform music from her soon-to-be-released contemporary R&B album “Remember Your North Star” at a performance at World Cafe Live. Watch her recent “Tiny Desk” here.