Looking for things to do this weekend? Well, we’ve got a county fair, lots of lobsters, the O.F.F. Market and a murderous singing plant.
Also, just a friendly reminder that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention once again has Hamilton County at a high risk for COVID-19, so be smart and remember to take precautions if you’re going out.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 13
The Great Inland Seafood Festival
The Great Inland Seafood Festival is taking over Newport on the Levee’s Festival Park this weekend, bringing plenty of fresh seafood and seafood-infused creations, live music, drinks and shopping. Vendors will be serving up traditional seafood bites like whole lobsters, beer-battered cod and varieties of fried shrimp, plus some extravagant concoctions like Asian spicy tuna tacos, Crabby Lobster Mac N Cheese and deep-fried salmon croquette balls. In addition to eats, the fest has a daily lineup of live music and will host The Artisan Market, where guests can shop from local arts and crafts vendors. 5-11 p.m. Aug. 12-13; noon-11 p.m. Aug. 14; noon-9 p.m. on Aug. 15. Free admission. Festival Park, Newport on the Levee, Newport, facebook.com/greatinlandseafoodfestival.
Cincinnati’s Riverfront Live is hosting its inaugural Interstellar Music Festival this weekend with Cincinnati-based Electronic music entertainment group Uncut Republic. The EDM/Dubstep-centric festival will feature two stages with “state-of-the-art lighting production,” with headliners Boombox Cartel, Adventure Club and Liquid Stranger. If you don’t get enough dancing in at the music fest, an after-party will take place on Friday and Saturday night at Newport’s Thompson House from 11 p.m.-2 a.m. Aug. 13-15. Tickets start at $99. Riverfront Live, 4343 Kellogg Ave., East End, interstellarfest.com.
Rev your engines and get your 4-H Club ready: the Hamilton County Fair is back with a midway full of rides and games, livestock displays, arts and crafts exhibits, tons of fried food, giant tomatoes and all the rest of the wholesome county antics you’d expect. The 165th Hamilton County Fair (“take two,” because last year’s event was canceled due to COVID-19) also promises main events like a demolition derby, BOSS motorcycle race, go-kart racing, Soccer Mom Derby and Queen City Cage Match. 4-11 p.m. Aug 12 and 13; 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Aug. 14; noon-10 p.m. Aug. 15. Admission is $10 (includes rides) and parking is $5. Hamilton County Fairgrounds, 7801 Anthony Wayne Ave., Carthage, hamiltoncountyfair.com.
If you look up at the night sky this week, you may catch a glimpse of a shooting star. Or a meteor, to be more exact. The popular Perseid Meteor Shower has returned with peak viewing times midnight-4 a.m. Aug. 12 and 13 (the meteors also were viewable Wednesday night). In addition, you might see a stray meteor earlier in the night for “a few days on either side of the peak,” says Cincinnati Observatory Astronomer Dean Regas. “The Perseids are tiny specks of ice and dust that come from the tail of a comet: Comet Swift-Tuttle. Every year, Earth slams into this cosmic debris to create these shooting stars,” Regas says on the Cincinnati Observatory website. According to NASA, “The Perseids will appear as quick, small streaks of light: they get their name because they look like they’re coming from the direction of the constellation Perseus.” cincinnatiobservatory.org.
SATURDAY, AUGUST 14
This weekend, The O.F.F. Market will be taking over Summit Park’s expanse, with up to 120 local vendors. Booth offerings run the gamut from artisan eats and apothecary items to vintage shops, flower stalls and T-shirt companies. The market also has partnered with Fifty West Brewing Co. to serve brews on tap. And this weekend, there’s a special feature: The 14th-annual Untouchables Classic Car Show. 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Aug. 14. Free admission. Summit Park, 4335 Glendale Milford Road, Blue Ash, theoffmarket.org.
Western & Southern Open
The Western & Southern Open returns to the Lindner Family Tennis Center this weekend. The oldest tennis tournament to be played in its original city, the first ball to hit the court in the W&S Open (originally the Cincinnati Masters) was in 1899, when the matches were held at the current-day site of Xavier University. Today, the Mason-based open features more than a week’s worth of men’s and women’s tennis matches, with players competing for $5 million and $2.8 million in prize money, respectively. Aug. 14-22. Single-session tickets start at $24 for the qualifying rounds with prices and packages going up from there. Lindner Family Tennis Center, 5460 Courseview Drive, Mason, wsopen.com.
Little Shop of Horrors
The Carnegie presents this Broadway classic about Skid Row floral assistant Seymour; the love of his life, Audrey; and a murderous talking plant with machinations for world domination. The show includes hit songs like “Skid Row” and “Suddenly Seymour.” Performances take place at the new outdoor Covington Plaza. 8 p.m. Aug. 13 and 14; 6 p.m. Aug. 15; 8 p.m. Aug. 20 and 21; 6 p.m. Aug. 22. $32; $29 Carnegie members; $25 students. Covington Plaza Amphitheater, 144 Madison Ave., Covington, thecarnegie.
Counting Crows at PNC Pavilion
Fresh off the release of Butter Miracle, Suite One, the group’s first album in nearly seven years, Counting Crows are stopping in Cincinnati on its “Butter Miracle” tour. Seán Barna and Matt Sucich open as supporting acts. Before the show, check out a craft beer tasting starting at 5:30 p.m. Sample beers from Platform Brewing Co., Golden Road and Goose Island (while supplies last). 7 p.m. Aug. 14. Tickets start at $24. PNC Pavilion, 6295 Kellogg Ave., California, riverbend.org.
SUNDAY, AUGUST 15
Krohn Conservatory Butterfly Show
Butterflies of Bali at Cincinnati’s Krohn Conservatory features 120,000 fluttering butterflies and is inspired by Bali’s vibrant forests, rice paddies, beautiful beaches and lakes. This year, the show is operating at a reduced capacity, so it will be twice as long, running through Sept. 6, in order to accommodate all of its prospective guests. The conservatory has also extended the event’s hours past its typical 5 p.m. closure, welcoming guests 10 a.m.-8 p.m. daily. The limited capacity offers a comparatively unique and intimate experience with the show. Tickets can be reserved and purchased online before attending the show, but there are a some tickets available at the box office. Tickets cost $10 for adults, $7 for guests aged 5-17 years old and free for children ages 4 and under. For more info, visit cincinnatiparks.com/krohn.
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This article appears in Aug 5-17, 2021.