Events
Mid-February
Chinese
New Year festivities (Location: Chinatown)
Mid-March
St.
Patrick’s Day Parade and annual celebrations throughout the city.
3rd
Monday of April
Boston
Marathon As many as 1 million spectators may look on as the course
roughly follows the T Green Line into town on Patriots' Day, a Boston public
holiday. It is a free citywide celebration that dates back to 1897. Phone
617-236-1652.
Mid-May
Kite
Festival (Location: Franklin Park)
Early
June
Early
Music Festival in
alternate years.
1st
3 weeks of August
North
End Italian Feast Days and Processions.
Boston's oldest neighborhood, the North End, celebrates feast days of the
Italian saints with weekend street fairs, processions, parades and Italian
cuisine.
Throughout August
Roxbury
Film Festival. This
annual festival features works by minority and native New England filmmakers.
For information: 617-541-3900.
Mid-August
Fisherman's Feast of the Madonna Del Soccorso di Sciacca. The feast dates to
the 16th century in Sciacca, Sicily. For information: 617-248-0343
2nd
week in September
Boston
Arts Festival.
Theater, dance and music performances from Boston's finest music ensembles and
dance troupes, and a juried art show. (Location: Christopher Columbus
Waterfront Park, North End). For information: 617-635-4447.
Early-Mid-October
Oktoberfest. Free music, dance performances, street artists and children's
entertainment on three stages, along with international cuisine. More than 200
regional artisans display crafts, jewelry, clothing and other gift items.
(Location: Harvard Square, JFK Street, Brattle Street and Massachusetts Avenue,
Cambridge). For information: 617-491-3434
3rd
weekend in October
Head of
the Charles Regatta (the “mini-Olympics of rowing”) on the Charles River. More
than 5,000 participants representing rowing-club teams or colleges from across
the U.S. and Europe take part in the event. For information: 617-864-8415.
Throughout November
Thanksgiving at Plimoth Plantation.
Plimoth Plantation re-creates Thanksgiving with 1627 theme -dining and other
activities. New England Thanksgiving and Victorian Thanksgiving dinners feature
period food and song. Workshops and lectures on customs of the time. 137 Warren
Ave., Plymouth (Location: 40 miles south of Boston). For information:
508-746-1622.
Early
December
Holiday
Tree Lighting on
Boston Common. The public garden is also illuminated, and the night is
celebrated with family-oriented festivities. (Location: Tremont Street). For
information: City of Boston Department of Parks and Recreation:617-635-4505.
New
Year's Eve -
concerts and festivities, with fireworks over Boston Harbor to bring in the New
Year.
Arts and Entertainment
Boston
Symphony Orchestra/Boston Pops
301
Massachusetts Ave.
(Symphony
stop on the Green E Line), Boston.
617-266-1200.
One of the
best and most-recorded orchestras in the world, performing in a pitch-perfect
concert hall. The orchestra is thriving under the direction of new musical
director James Levine. Symphony performances run October-April at Symphony Hall.
(In summer, the orchestra plays at Tanglewood in Lenox, Massachusetts, three
hours' drive west of Boston.) The Pops, made up of BSO musicians and led by
popular conductor Keith Lockhart, play at Symphony Hall May-July and give free
outdoor concerts at the Hatch Shell on the Charles River in July.
Berklee
College of Music
136
Massachusetts Ave. (Hynes/ICA T stop on the Green Line), Fenway
617-266-1400.
The
world's largest independent music college. Famous alumni include producer Quincy
Jones, rock singer Melissa Etheridge and saxophonist Branford Marsalis. Its
performance center hosts many big-name jazz and pop artists. Student and faculty
performances in recital halls (at 921 and 1140 Boylston St.) are free.. For
information about student and faculty concerts, phone 617-266-1400, ext. 8820.
New
England Conservatory of Music
30
Gainsborough St.
(Symphony
stop on the Green E Line), Boston
617-585-1122.
During the
academic year, the NEC's symphony orchestras, chamber ensembles, solo
recitalists and opera groups perform frequently in another of Boston's
acoustical gems: Jordan Hall. Frequent free performances.
Boston
Lyric Opera
Performances at the Shubert Theater, 265 Tremont St.
(Boylston
T stop on the Green Line), downtown, Boston.
617-542-4912 for information
Varied
repertoire with world-class singers, designers and directors. Season runs
October-May.
Boston
Ballet
19
Clarendon St., Boston
617-695-6950
The city's
preeminent dance group. Its annual production of The Nutcracker is among the
city's top attractions. Performances are primarily at the Wang Center. Season
runs mid September-mid May.
Wang
Center for the Performing Arts
270
Tremont Street (Boylston T stop).
617-482-9393
The Wang
Center frequently hosts plays, musicals, ballet, concerts and individual
performances.
Sports
Baseball
Boston
Red Sox
617-267-1700
Fenway
Park has been the home of the Boston Red Sox since 1912 and a must-see for
baseball fans. With or without a championship, enthusiasm runs high and most
games sell out.
Basketball
Boston
Celtics
1
FleetCenter (North Station T stop on the Orange and Green lines), Boston.
617-523-3030
The NBA's
Celtics play at the new Fleet Center. Good seats are usually available. The
Celtics' season runs October-April.
Football
New
England Patriots
CMGI Field
Route 1,
Foxboro, MA
Toll-free: 800-543-1776
Special
commuter trains and buses operate on game days. Call MBTA for details at
617-222-3200
The New
England Patriots, two-time Super Bowl champions, play home games in Foxboro
(about an hour south of downtown Boston). Dress warmly: this is not a domed
stadium. The season runs September-December. Individual tickets are usually very
hard to come by.
Hockey
Boston
Bruins
1
FleetCenter
617-624-1500
(North
Station T stop on the Orange and Green lines), Boston.
The Bruins
play at the FleetCenter October-April.
Soccer
New
England Revolution
CMGI Field
Foxboro,
MA
The
region's professional soccer squad plays at Foxboro's April-September.
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