This weekend, feast on authentic Asian cuisine at the first-ever Night Market, celebrate LGBTQQA progress at Cleveland Pride, get to know the distinct personality of Waterloo Arts Fest, play free pinball in Coventry and more.

Night Market Cleveland
Friday, June 26th, 5-11 pm
Rockwell and East 21st St.
Free

Hugely popular in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore and Chinatowns worldwide, brightly-lit open-air Night Markets create a unique and lively fusion of nightlife, food and entertainment.

While Cleveland is bursting with open-air markets this summer, ranging from the Hispanic community’s La Placita monthly pop-up market to the hugely popular Cleveland Flea, Night Market Cleveland aims to place its own distinct spin onto this traditional event in Cleveland’s AsiaTown neighborhood.
 
“Throughout Asia, Night Markets are historically pop-up events,” says Brendan Trewella, Night Market organizer at Small Organization Solutions. “As time went on they became very popular places to sell and buy almost anything. It’s an idea that we don’t really have here in Cleveland. We are trying to blend that traditional feeling of nightlife with something that is traditionally Asian. There is an excitement to it — everything is different at night.”

Night Market is the result of a strong collaboration between St Clair Superior Development Corporation and the Campus District. Night Market is a mixture of arts, retail and food, with the ultimate goal of bringing people together for an event as distinctive as the community it is held within.

Festival organizers hope that this event also serves as a tool for community development by helping to connect local businesses and familiarize festival goers with the AsiaTown neighborhood, which is too often overlooked.

“There will be four commissioned food carts. We built them for the night market because we wanted to pay homage to the historic roots of what a night market is,” says Trewella. These specialty food carts will be selling everything from Chinese dim sum to Night Market merchandise.

Festival goers can also expect to see an abundance of local Asian food vendors, Cleveland-centric art, soaps, lotions, handmade products, pottery, painting, commissioned products from food carts, clothing, jewelry and crafting activities from Upcycle Parts Shop.

The night’s musical acts include danceable beats by p.stoops and bluesy jazz by Prime Directive. Transportation by bicycle and RTA is encouraged. There will also be secure parking located on site.

Patio Kulchur
Wednesday, June 24th, 6-9 pm
Gordon Square Arts District
Free

Wednesday is the kickoff of Patio Kulchur! Throughout the summer, visit the Gordon Square Arts District on the fourth Wednesday of the month for an evening of art and entertainment. Merchants throughout the area will be presenting music, theater, dance and visual arts on their patios. It is a fantastic opportunity for visitors to stroll the neighborhood from one end to the other, have a drink, experience a performance, and move on to another cool venue. Make sure to stop by the Gordon Square Farmers Market, which runs Wednesdays from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m.

Cleveland Public Library strikes up a different conversation
Thursday, June 25th. 5:30 pm
Cleveland Public Library, Louis Stokes Wing Auditorium, 525 Superior Ave.
$15 per event, $40 for all three events

CEOs Mal Mixon and Andrew Jackson are kicking off Cleveland Public Library’s series focused on how literature shapes leadership. The Executive Speaker Series was established to bring together champions of industry and state to the CPL campus. 

Mal Mixon, retired Chairman and CEO of Invacare Corporation, and Andrew Jackson, president and CEO of Elsons International will share philosophies, insight and experiences gained throughout their careers. They will also discuss influential books they have read or written.

The executives will discuss “An American Journey.” Mixon will talk about his memoir as a business leader, Vietnam veteran, cancer survivor and philanthropist. Jackson will discuss his career experiences and endeavors as an entrepreneur and CEO. Buy tickets are available online or call 216.623.2821.

Cleveland Pride 2015
Saturday, June 27th. 11 - 8 pm
Voinovich Park 800 E 9th St.
Suggested donation $10 - $20

The gayest event of the year is right around the corner! Join Cleveland Pride's 27th Annual Parade, Rally and Festival this weekend. Celebrate LGBTQQA progress over the past year with top name entertainment including special guest Belinda Carlisle, former lead singer of the Go-Go’s, keynote speakers and a fabulous parade.

The parade steps off at noon. This year’s festival features two stages: Triangle Stage with family friendly content and the Performance Stage with a wide range of diversity and variety for adult festival goers. Festival goers can enjoy an expanded food court, lakefront beer garden and more.

2015 Waterloo Arts Fest
Saturday, June 27th, 12-7 pm
Waterloo Arts District
Free

This year's Waterloo Arts Fest features more than 100 artists, 40 bands and DJs and 25 food vendors on Waterloo Road. Join fellow artists, families, friends and neighbors from greater Cleveland and explore this diverse and vibrant community.

Make sure to stop by the grand opening of Zygote Press' Ink House satellite open house, for Free the Ink Fest featuring printing demonstrations, refreshments, live porch concert and giveaways in the Print Garage.

Shaker Heights Arts & Music Festival
Saturday, June 27th, 10 am-10 pm
Sunday, June 28th. 11 am-5 pm
Shaker Middle School, 20600 Shaker Blvd.
Free

Shaker Heights Arts & Music Festival will deliver a weekend packed with food from local restaurants and food trucks, beer and wine, a juried art show, musical entertainment and plenty of activities for children.

The Festival has a new temporary location in front of Shaker Middle School due to construction to reconfigure roads and to redevelop the Van Aken District. Enjoy a musical line-up featuring many local bands, including Blue Lunch, Northcoast Jazz Collective and Evil Ways scheduled throughout the weekend.

Coventry Pop Up Pinball Party
Saturday, June 27th. 12 - 5 pm
Coventry Village
Free

No quarters? No problem! This Saturday, play free outdoor pinball on Coventry Road and get playing tips from the experts at Cleveland Pinball League. The B Side Liquor Lounge & Arcade will also be open to all ages during the pinball party and ALL the arcade games will be set to FREE PLAY.