Free outdoor concerts and films each summer in Santa Fe from June through August
Last weekend, I was invited to attend an art show and reception for artist Erin Currier in Santa Fe. I know Erin from dance classes we’ve been in together at her husband’s Double Time Dance Studio in Albuquerque. Erin seems like a really nice person with an interesting background (she’s a fellow avid traveler), so I decided to check it out. Plus, I’ve never attended an artist reception before, so I figured it would be a good education for me. I’m glad I did. It was a fun event and I enjoyed seeing Erin’s impressive artwork.
When the event ended and I stepped outside to leave the Blue Rain Gallery, I found myself in the middle of a large crowd of people enjoying live music. It was a free concert, headlined by the band Ozotmatli, as part of the Santa Fe Summer Scene Music and Film series. That’s when I realized, I’ve never written a post on Santa Fe, even though I’ve probably been to Santa Fe over 50 times. I’ll fix that today by sharing more information about the Santa Fe Summer Scene music and film series. It’s one of the things I like best about Santa Fe. I mean, how can you not like free music and movies each week for nearly four months of the year! Here’s what you’ll need to know if you decide to attend.
Table of Contents
What is the Santa Fe Summer Scene?
Originally referred to as the “Santa Fe Bandstand” or “Dancing on the Plaza”, the Santa Fe Summer Scene has evolved into New Mexico’s largest free summer entertainment series. I’ve gone to a number of these events over the years, but it has really taken off since the Lensic Performing Arts Center expanded it through it’s Lensic 360 program, which offers concerts at locations scattered across Santa Fe, Taos, and Albuquerque. Part of the Lensic 360 portfolio of offerings is the Summer Scene, which features a wide variety of local, national, and international bands that usually perform at two locations in Santa Fe: the Santa Fe Plaza and the Santa Fe Railyard Plaza. Occasionally, they’ll pick a different venue in Santa Fe. The Summer Series has also been expanded to go beyond music. It now shows films at the Santa Fe Railyard Park. The Summer Scene events are offered free of charge.
What type of music is offered?
Name the genre, and they’ve probably had a representative band, although they try to select bands that are accessible to a broad audience. In other words, you probably won’t see a heavy metal or hardcore punk band on the billing. They also try to keep it family friendly since it’s intended to be an all-ages event.
To give you an idea of what to expect, here’s the schedule for the Summer of 2023:
- Thursday, June 8, 6 pm: Shakey Graves, with Buffalo Hunt – Santa Fe Plaza
- Friday, June 9, 7 pm: Save Ferris, with Red Light Cameras – Santa Fe Railyard Plaza
- Saturday, June 10, 7 pm: Puss In Boots: The Last Wish (Movie) – Santa Fe Railyard Park
- Saturday, June 10, 7 pm: The Sticky – Funk On The Farm – Reunity Resources Farm
- Sunday, June 11, 6:30 pm: Black Pearl Band – Swan Park
- Thursday, June 15, 6 pm: Ladama, with Proyecto Cumbion – Santa Fe Plaza
- Friday, June 16, 7 pm: The Record Company, with Sgt. Splendor – Santa Fe Railyard Plaza
- Sunday, June 18, 6 pm: Sister Nancy Juneteenth Celebration 2023 – Santa Fe Plaza
- Thursday, June 22, 6 pm: Eliza Gilkyson CD Release Party – Santa Fe Plaza
- Friday, June 23, 7 pm: Shemekia Copeland, with JJ and the Hooligans – Santa Fe Railyard Plaza
- Saturday, June 24, 7 pm: Grease Santa Fe Pride Movie Night with Karaoke – Santa Fe Railyard Park
- Thursday, June 29, 6 pm: Nick Shoulders, with Luke McMurray Nutting – Santa Fe Plaza
- Friday, June 30, 7 pm: Ozomatli, with Frontera Bugalú – Santa Fe Railyard Plaza
- Thursday, July 6, 6 pm: Cracker, with Volores – Santa Fe Plaza
- Friday, July 7, 7 pm: Grupo Fantasma, with Vivalda Ndula – Santa Fe Railyard Plaza
- Saturday, July 8, 7 pm: Santa Fe Revue – Reunity Resources Farm
- Monday, July 10, 6 pm: Jenny and the Mexicats, with Chacho Soul – Santa Fe Plaza
- Tuesday, July 11, 6 pm: Felix y los Gatos, with Jimmy Climbs – Santa Fe Plaza
- Thursday, July 13, 6 pm: Nosotros and Friends – Santa Fe Plaza
- Friday, July 14, 7 pm: Detroit Lightning, with Fugitive Colors – Santa Fe Railyard Plaza
- Saturday, July 15, 7 pm: Everything Everywhere All At Once (Movie) – Santa Fe Railyard Park
- Sunday, July 16, 6:30 pm: Shinyribs – Swan Park
- Monday, July 17, 6 pm: Sim Balkey, with Bard Eldrige V and The Blackbirds – Santa Fe Plaza
- Tuesday, July 18, 6 pm: James McMurtry, with Bill Hearnes – Santa Fe Plaza
- Thursday, July 20, 6 pm: Lumber del Sol, with Busy McCarroll – Santa Fe Plaza
- Friday, July 21, 7 pm: Imarhan, with Orb Rider – Santa Fe Railyard Plaza
- Monday, July 24, 6 pm: John Francis and the Poor Clares, with Glorietta Pines – Santa Fe Plaza
- Tuesday, July 25, 6 pm: Meow Wolf Monster Battle – Santa Fe Plaza
- Friday, July 28, 7 pm: Santa Fe Salutes Elton John – Santa Fe Railyard Plaza
- Saturday, July 29, 7 pm: Princess Bride (Movie) – Santa Fe Railyard Park
- Monday, July 31, 6 pm: Lucy Barna and the Leviathans, with Zephania Stringfield – Santa Fe Plaza
- Tuesday, August 1, 6 pm: Kaleta and the Super Yamba, with Squirrel Head – Santa Fe Plaza
- Thursday, August 3, 6 pm: Boomroots, Mr. Kali and Lakandon – Santa Fe Plaza
- Friday, August 4, 7 pm: La Santa Cecilia, with Alma – Santa Fe Railyard Plaza
- Saturday, August 5, 7 pm: Rose’s Pawn Shop – Reunity Resources Farm
- Sunday, August 6, 6:30 pm: Satang – Swan Park
- Monday, August 7, 6 pm: Eilen Jewell, with Sarah Streitz – Santa Fe Plaza
- Tuesday, August 8, 6 pm: Robert Randolph Family Band, with Matthew Andrae – Santa Fe Plaza
- Thursday, August 10, 6 pm: Novalima, with Barcutanga – Santa Fe Plaza
- Friday, August 11, 7 pm: Pharcyde Hip-Hop 50th – Santa Fe Railyard Plaza
- Saturday, August 12, 7 pm: Disney Pixar’s Soul (Movie) – Santa Fe Railyard Park
- Monday, August 14, 6 pm: Lady Wray, with Brainstory – Santa Fe Plaza
- Tuesday, August 15, 6 pm: Robert Mirabal, with Levi Platero – Santa Fe Plaza
- Monday, August 21, 6 pm: Golden Oak, with Roses For Paradise – Santa Fe Plaza
- Tuesday, August 22, 6 pm: Joe West and Friends, with Strangers From Afar – Santa Fe Plaza
- Thursday, August 24, 5:30 pm: Motet, with DB Mandala – Santa Fe Plaza
- Friday, August 25, 7 pm: Big Sam’s Funky Nation, with Shake Alert – Santa Fe Railyard Plaza
- Saturday, August 26, 7 pm: Top Gun Maverick (Movie) – Santa Fe Railyard Park
- Monday, August 28, 6 pm: Hilary Smith, with Jono Manson – Santa Fe Plaza
- Tuesday, August 29, 6 pm: Tropo Magica, with Innastate – Santa Fe Plaza
- Thursday, August 31, 6 pm: Cuarenta y Cinco, with Severo y Grupo Fuego – Santa Fe Plaza
In other words, it’s a lot!
As you can imagine, there’s quite a bit of dancing going on, which is why I’ve also heard it referred to as “Dancing on the Plaza” in years past.
Summer Scene logistics
If you’re looking to go to one of the movie nights, then your destination is the Railyard Park Performance Lawn. If you’re going to a music performance at the Railyard Park Plaza, you’re basically going to the same place. You can find directions, parking suggestions, and a good map of the area on The Railyard website. According to the website, “Parking is plentiful and convenient in the North Railyard. There are 400 spaces in the 3-level underground parking structure near REI and 500 surface spaces spread across The Railyard, both north and south of Paseo de Peralta.” I usually just park on one of the streets in the area, but that means I end up walking for about a half-mile or so to get to the Railyard.
When the music venue is the Santa Fe Plaza, that’s in a different part of town – about 1.5 miles away from the Railyard. Santa Fe Plaza is in the heart of Santa Fe, near landmarks such as the La Fonda Hotel and The Cathedral Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi (Saint Francis Cathedral – it’s the big Catholic Church and is worth seeing). Parking is a bit trickier near the Santa Fe Plaza. There are lots of options, including parking garages and metered street parking, but they’re scattered around the area.
You’ll be outside for any of the Summer Scene events, so plan accordingly. Many people bring their own lawn chairs and blankets. Each location has plenty of nearby food and drink options, although they may be closed or close early, depending on the day of the week.
You can visit the Santa Fe Summer Scene website and The Railyard website for the most up-to-date information to help you plan a fun evening in Santa Fe.
Thought for the Week
This week’s thought for the week comes from Trappist monk, religious scholar, and writer, Thomas Merton, on the topic of art.
“Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.”
— Thomas Merton
Thanks for reading and happy travels!
Mark (The New Mexico Travel Guy)
Mark Aspelin, The New Mexico Travel Guy (www.newmexicotravelguy.com), is a travel writer and author of two books who has enjoyed a wide variety of adventures in his travels to over 100 countries and all 50 U.S. States. His current project involves visiting EVERY town in his home state of New Mexico (there’s over 500 towns) and writing a story about each one. When not traveling, Mark lives as a recluse in the mountains outside of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
