FRIDAY, August 28th
Grand Opening, Strawberry Fields, 306 W Springfield Ave, Urbana, 10 a.m., free (until you buy a bunch of delicious stuff)
Strawberry Fields is finally up and running again, under new ownership. The store looks great, and it appears as if some of the product has been expanded.The Grand Opening will feature storewide discounts and sales through September 4th, but the fancy fun opening shenanigans (featuring both Champaign’s and Urbana’s mayors!) happens at 10 a.m. on August 28th. Check out the in-store specials and the beefed up (and vegan) cafe options. (JH)
Savoy Rec Center birthday party, 402 W. Graham, Savoy, 4-7 p.m., free
Savoy Rec center is turning 10 on Saturday and they want you to come celebrate with them. They will be providing free food, bounce houses and pickle ball. And for those of you not in the know, pickle ball is a combination of tennis, badminton, and ping pong. Free food and a sweet game, this event is worth a stop through. (SL)
Urbana Sweetcorn Festival, Race, Vine, Broadway & Main Street, Urbana, Friday & Saturday, free
The Urbana Sweetcorn Festival is back for its 40th year. The largest free festival in C-U features all the vendors and beer normally found at street fests like it, however, a stellar musical lineup headlined by notable 80s alternative bands The Psychedelic Furs and Berlin and cobs on cobs of locally grown sweetcorn to eat make it a unique. Participate in a summer staple of C-U. (MR)
Over/Under Opening Reception, Figure One Gallery, 116 N. Walnut, Champaign, 5-8 p.m., free
Figure One will be showing off some of the works created during its 2015 Summer Artist in Residence Program this Friday during its opening reception of the Over/Under show. This year’s artists are Sue Kay Lee, Jenna Richards, and Jade Williams. Their works will be on view from August 28 to September 26. (RP)
SATURDAY, August 29th
Sweet Corn Hole tournament to support Sipyard, 5 p.m., Airbana, 204 W. Main St. U, $5 entry fee.
Sure, I hate the name “Corn Hole” as much as I hate it being called “Bags”. But I want the Sipyard. I do. And it’s the Sweetcorn Festival. And the game can be fun, especially with three-quarters of a beer in your other hand to counterbalance. So pay some dollars and help make a cool thing happen in downtown Urbana. It’s getting there, but it needs the help. (RK)
Friends of The Urbana Free Library Summer Book Sale, 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m., 210 W. Green St., Urbana.
In conjunction with Downtown Urbana’s biggest festival comes the Urbana Free Library’s annual book sale. Let’s face it, we could all stand to read a few more books, and this is just the opportunity to build your library for cheap – all while supporting a wonderful local ammenity! If you can hold out until Sunday, the books will be half-price from 1-4:30 pm. (BH)
Go star gazing, nighttime of course
Have you ever driven about 15-20 minutes outside of town, parked your car and looked up at the stars? It is legit pretty once your eyes adjust. Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying it’s like being in a dessert looking up at the sky, but there are still a lot of stars to see and totally worth doing. There is 0% precipitation after 10 p.m. (at the time of writing this) and the cloud cover should be minimal. Take a blanket, a friend, and drive out to park for a bit. Be sure not to park on a farmer’s land! (SL)
SUNDAY, August 30th
Breakfast, Huaraches Moroleon, 805 Philo Rd, Urbana, 8-11:30 a.m., about $8 per person
Take advantage of the early Sunday morning quiet and treat yourself to a nice breakfast. There are Mexican and American favorites on the menu, so there’s something for everyone. If you need more convincing, check out my review from earlier this year. Photo by Jessica Hammie. (JH)
Matsuri Festival, 3-7 p.m., Japan House, 2000 South Lincoln Avenue, U, free entry.
You may think you are festivaled out, but this is almost the polar opposite of SweetCorn. Ok, there’s demonstrations, but they are martial arts and bonsai. Sure, there’s music, but it’s taiko drumming. And yes, there’s food vendors, but they are… Pandamonium Doughnuts debuting their new flavor Matcha Green Tea. Ok, that’s the same, but different. And amazing. Check out these pictures and then tell me it’s the same. (RK)
Illumination Celebration, Art Theater Co-op, 7-9 p.m., $5
Exposed has been “On the Road” these past few weeks, and its final stop will be The Art Theater Co-op. The event will feature young people performing poetry, comedy, live music, and show the short films they have created. They will also be sharing their perspective on area statistics revolving around social/racial justice expressed through film. (RP)
Multicult, Gnarwal, Great Deceivers, The Autocorrect, The Highdive, 7:30 p.m., $8
The thing about Sunday nights is that they typically don’t have enough noise rock in them. The thing about shows at the Highdive is that they usually aren’t cheap. The thing about bands from Baltimore and Nashville is that they don’t always play here. This show is a rarity. (MR)
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All event information is accurate to the best of our abilities, but sometimes we make mistakes and sometimes event information, times, prices, etc., change after we look them up. Whenever possible, we’ve provided a link to the original event page; you should always double-check the source before you make any firm plans. Thanks for your understanding.