Arts & Culture

Organizers had hinted that this year's crowds were expected to break records. On Tuesday, ArtsQuest confirmed it. More than 1.3 million visited Bethlehem during the 11 nights of Musikfest 2023.

The opening line of The Band's song "The Weight" — “I pulled into Nazareth/Was feelin' about half past dead” — has again put the spotlight on the Northampton County borough with the death of its writer, Robbie Robertson.

The time-lapse was shot from the weather camera atop the Univest Public Media Center on the SteelStacks campus.

The 40th Musikfest drew to a successful close on Sunday night in Bethlehem. The nation's largest open-gate free music festival delivered more than 500 free performances, plus paid-ticket headliners. Organizers believe a record of roughly 1.25 million attended the 11-day event. An official count is expected to be announced Tuesday.

The Grammy-winning band closed out the 11-day spread with a 90-minute set of their biggest hits and covers of The Eagles and Journey.

Giuseppe Iatarola, 11, of Hellertown, is a widely known gearhead looking to make a mark on the automotive industry with his YouTube channel and MotorWeek segment.

In a stripped down production that felt custom-made for the Musikfest stage, Morris capped a 17-song set with three songs that put a rush of energy into the crowd as the skies opened up over Bethlehem.

Musikfest attracts tens of thousands of people to the city each day during its 10-day run. Officials said they’re continuously working to lessen the event’s impact on the environment.

Take a look at stories that ran throughout the week of which we are most proud, had a profound impact on readers or that you might want to look at again.

Here are the Musikfest acts and more you should see today, Saturday, Aug. 12.

Comic fans, gamers, movie fanatics, cosplayers and more will return to the Agri-Plex in Allentown this weekend for the 24th annual Lehigh Valley Comic Convention.

Chris Janson, whose song “Buy Me a Boat” peaked at No. 2 and sold double-platinum in 2015, will perform at Wind Creek Event Center 8 p.m. Oct. 9.

Kay Haring will read from her children's book, "Keith Haring: The Boy Who Just Kept Drawing," at the Sigal Museum on Saturday, April 12.

Swan Lake, written 150 years ago by Russian composer Tchaikovsky and one of the most popular ballets of all time, will return to the theater at 2 p.m. Oct. 26. And Let’s Sing Taylor — A Live Band Experience Celebrating Taylor Swift, which calls itself “the ultimate tribute to the music of Taylor Swift,” will perform at the center at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 20. And it will include a tribute to an even more recent hitmaker — Olivia Rodrigo.

Dylan Scott will perform Sept. 12 as the final show for the Sounds of Summer concert series. And Led Zeppelin tribute band Get the Led Out is set to perform Aug. 29.

Gilberto Santa Rosa, nicknamed "El Caballero de la Salsa" (The Gentleman of Salsa)," will perform on the festival's main Steel Stage at 7 p.m. Aug. 7.

Hundreds of students attending the event aimed to give students a chance to connect with ArtsQuest’s employees in the music programming, production, and other arts nonprofit sectors.

J&J Demolition Derby, a Labor Day mainstay at Allentown Fairgrounds, will return for its closing-night grandstand entertainment offering at 5 p.m. Sept. 1, the fair announced Monday.

The projects were among 81 community projects across Pennsylvania for which Gov. Josh Shapiro announced grants through the Main Street Matters program.

Chris Cagle, who had the No. 1 hit "I Breathe In, I Breathe Out" in 2001, and topped the Country Albums chart with his self-titled disc in 2003, will perform at 8 p.m. June 20.

The Mexican nonprofit dance company, founded in New York City in 2003, offers educational cultural programming for audiences of all ages and puts on dance performances globally.

Pretty Poison plays a free show from 7-11 p.m. today, April 4, at Wind Creek Casino's Molten Lounge.