Bicentennial Stage Adds Free Entertainment Downtown to The Town & The City Festival

Boston-based indie rock band Vundabar performs live on Palmer Street as part of a free City of Lowell performance presented in collaboration with The Town & The City Festival to celebrate Lowell’s Bicentennial. The performance took place on a mobile stage provided by The Wandering Stage.

As Lowell continues its Bicentennial year, downtown Palmer Street became the setting for a free outdoor music performance during this year’s The Town and The City Festival.

The Bicentennial Stage performance brought live music into the heart of downtown Lowell, creating a gathering space for residents, visitors, and festivalgoers to enjoy the city’s creative energy as part of the broader Bicentennial celebration. Held during one of Lowell’s signature music weekends, the free performance offered an accessible way for the community to take part in the festival atmosphere.

The City of Lowell was proud to collaborate with The Town and The City to make this performance possible. The partnership helped connect the City’s 200th anniversary celebration with a festival that continues to highlight Lowell’s strong arts and music scene, while bringing additional activity and energy to downtown businesses.

Despite rain in the forecast, the weather held up as Palmer Street was transformed into an outdoor performance space. The performance was supported by The Wandering Stage, which provided the equipment needed to bring live music to Palmer Street and help transform the street into an outdoor performance space. With Copilot and Vundabar on the lineup, the Bicentennial Stage added to the festival weekend’s energy while giving residents, visitors, and festivalgoers another way to experience Lowell’s Bicentennial through public arts and cultural programming.

Thank you to The Town and The City, The Wandering Stage, Copilot, Vundabar, and everyone who attended and helped make the Bicentennial Stage performance a success. Events like this reflect the spirit of Lowell’s Bicentennial year by bringing people together, celebrating local and regional creativity, and using the city’s historic downtown as a place for community connection.

A father records the live performance on his phone while his son sits on his shoulders, watching the free outdoor concert on Palmer Street.

Boston-based rock-pop band Copilot performs live on Palmer Street as part of the free City of Lowell performance presented in collaboration with The Town & The City Festival.

A mother and daughter watch Vundabar’s performance on Palmer Street while recording the free outdoor concert on their phone.

A family of spectators looks through Copilot merchandise on Palmer Street, including a display suitcase filled with photographs of the band.

Chris Porter, founder and organizer of The Town & The City Festival, speaks from the Palmer Street stage to thank spectators and share information about the remaining shows taking place throughout the festival.

Revitalizing City Culture is on the Agenda of Lowell Bicentennial Celebrations, and Funding is Available to Those Who Dare to Innovate

Cobblestones of Lowell owner Scott Plath had long thought about starting something like a paint night in his restaurant.

He didn’t have the right connections with local artists, and worried about taking a financial risk on a new initiative.

The City of Lowell changed all that last year, when it offered American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to businesses who worked together to create new events focused on revitalizing Lowell’s cultural economy during the city’s Bicentennial birthday.

At a downtown meeting called by City Manager Thomas A. Golden, Jr., Plath heard the offer of financial support, and met Jimmy Le, who has operated Draft Studios in the Western Avenue Studios for six years now.

The result of that meeting of the minds, and funding, is a new series of events being held at Cobblestones this year, known as the Makers and Shakers Workshop Series. Makers and Shakers is just one of several new initiatives in Lowell that will receive ARPA funding, and additional funds are still available for other businesses who want to innovate.

“Cobblestones is incredibly fortunate to be part of a community where City leadership understands and promotes the symbiosis between residents, businesses, the nonprofit community and the artistic community,” said Plath. “The offer of some funding from the City was a catalyst to reduce our risk.”

Makers and Shakers will combine the food and drinks of Cobblestones with artists from the Western Avenue Studios, who will lead art-related workshops. The events will help draw patrons to Cobblestones for creative offerings, while also providing greater public exposure to artists from Western Avenue Studios.

Things kicked off on March 4, when ceramics artist Tracy Flynn, of Pottering Around Studios, led participants in a class on making and painting ceramic mugs. To find out about upcoming Makers and Shakers Workshops, visit: https://lowellma200.org/our-events/

Other new ARPA-funded offerings in the City of Lowell this Bicentennial year include Jazz Nights at Brew’d Awakening Coffehaus, Comedy Nights at Warp & Weft, and Cobblestones own culinary created event — a monthly chef-based series featuring various themes and local chefs paired with additional Lowell-based nonprofit initiatives. The next Monthly Chef Series event at Cobblestones will be Friday, March 27, when a murder mystery dinner is held, to benefit The Boys & Girls Club of Greater Lowell. For more information on the Monthly Chef Series, please visit: cobblestonesoflowell.com

The City is making a total of $250,000 in ARPA funding available to fund Bicentennial efforts to enrich Lowell’s cultural economy, and much of that funding remains available. Le said he and his colleagues at Western Avenue are hoping to collaborate with even more Lowell businesses.

“The City of Lowell has been innovating for all of its two centuries of existence, and I am encouraging city businesses to think big during this Bicentennial year, as we seek to get everyone in our community involved,” said City Manager Golden. “We believe that City government should encourage connections among businesses, residents, and cultural institutions, so we are offering this ARPA funding to those who want to join us in expanding what Lowell has to offer.”

To learn more about the ARPA funding that is available to Lowell businesses, or to apply for funding, click here.

The City’s Bicentennial celebrations will also go big again from Thursday, April 30 to Saturday, May 2, with a special Bicentennial edition of The Town and The City Festival. The Town and The City Festival is a multi-day music and arts event in a myriad of event spaces, bars, cafes, and galleries throughout downtown.

This year’s festival will include a special Bicentennial Stage on Saturday, May 2. The bands Copilot and Vundabar will perform free shows that are open to the public.

The festival is named after Jack Kerouac’s earliest novel, which is set in Lowell, and is inspired by Kerouac’s creativity and exploration. To learn more, or to review a schedule of events, please visit: https://www.thetownandthecityfestival.com/

Additionally, the Tsongas Industrial History Center, located inside the Boott Cotton Mills Museum on John Street, will host a series of drop-in events on the second Saturday of each month from 1:00 to 4:00PM in recognition of the City’s Bicentennial and the Center’s 35th anniversary.

The Hands-On History series will focus on City history, while providing participants with hands-on activities relating to weaving, Lowell’s many cultures, water power, engineering, and what it was like to work on the line in a Lowell mill. For more information and a schedule of events, visit: https://www.uml.edu/tsongas/

“From intimate, weekly events held at our small businesses, to major community festivals, the City of Lowell’s Bicentennial will be an ongoing, community-driven celebration of both our history and our shared future,” City Manager Golden said.

WinterFest Returns on Saturday, February 28, 2026

The City of Lowell celebrates Bicentennial kickoff at an extra-special WinterFest on Saturday, February 28!

The City of Lowell is delighted to announce the return of WinterFest, set to take place on Saturday, February 28, in the heart of Downtown Lowell. This year, the event falls just shy of Lowell’s official incorporation date, March 1, 1826. To celebrate, the City is planning an action-packed, one-day WinterFest event Saturday, February 28, 12:00PM – 10:00PM. This free, family-friendly, cold weather classic celebrates music, art, and community while shaking off the winter blues.

The festivities kick off with activities starting at 12:00PM and continuing throughout the day until 10:00PM. In addition to celebrating on Middle Street, Palmer Street, and the Rockland Trust lot, the wintery fun expands this year to include Merrimack Street.

In honor of Lowell’s Bicentennial, a special guest will stop by to help us mark the occasion: Celebrity Chef Buddy Valastro, owner of Carlo’s Bakery. Mr. Valastro will craft a one-of-a-kind birthday cake for the City and will host a showcase of Lowell’s finest bakeries in the main tent on Merrimack Street.

Saturday, February 28, boasts a day of festivities to remember, including:

  • St. Anne’s Chocolate Festival from 11:00AM – 4:00PM
  • Curling and air hockey on Merrimack Street, beginning at 12:00PM
  • The Richard Rourke Memorial Soup Competition at the Masonic Center, beginning at 12:00PM
  • The Experience Lowell Arts Market, produced by Mosaic Lowell, 12:00 – 8:00PM
  • Live music in the Rockland Trust Music Tent from 12:00 – 10:00PM
  • Fold-a-Lowla Workshop at Arts League of Lowell from 12:30 – 2:30PM
  • A showcase of Lowell’s bakeries hosted by Buddy Valastro from 3:00 – 6:00PM
  • Live ice carving on Palmer Street
  • Fire performances throughout the event
  • LED swings, photo opportunities, interactive art and roving performers, all day
  • The 4th annual WinterFest Scavenger Hunt, all day
  • Mosaic Lowell’s Youth Mural Competition, with voting open all day

While you’re gearing up for the Saturday fun, check out the Nordic Jam Sessions, busker pop-ups at various restaurants and eateries in Downtown Lowell. These mini-concerts will take place on Friday, February 27, and continue throughout the day on Saturday, February 28.

Congresswoman Lori Trahan, Lowell native, reflected on this momentous occasion, “Lowell’s story is one of opportunity, hard work, and hope, and it is the same story that shaped my family and shaped me. From my grandparents who immigrated here in search of opportunity, to my parents who built their careers and our lives in this city, Lowell has always been a place where perseverance is rewarded. Two hundred years later, while the city continues to evolve, its heart remains the same: a community where families from every corner of the world can put down roots and build a future. I am proud to join our community in celebrating the Mill City’s Bicentennial and the people who make Lowell the great place it is.”

“This WinterFest is especially important, serving as a celebration of 200 years of our great City,” remarked Mayor Erik Gitschier. “Festivals are a key piece of Lowell’s cultural offerings and economic development as a City, and WinterFest is no exception. We encourage everyone to join us on Saturday, February 28, to mark this momentous occasion.”

City Manager Thomas A. Golden, Jr., expressed his excitement, stating, “We are thrilled to celebrate WinterFest as the kickoff to the City’s Bicentennial year, and bring some midwinter fun back to Downtown Lowell for all to enjoy. The City of Lowell is proud to welcome Buddy Valastro to host the local bakery showcase as we celebrate 200 years of community in Lowell. We look forward to seeing all residents come out to enjoy the festival.”

“There might be a lot to like about Lowell, but there’s going to be even more to love about it during the Bicentennial celebration thanks to the overwhelming generosity of our private sponsors. Their donations will allow us to celebrate with celebrity chef Buddy Valastro during Saturday at WinterFest, Grammy Award-winning country star Lee Brice and friends on March 26 at the Lowell Memorial Auditorium, the biggest July 4th fireworks Lowell has ever seen, and an October street festival to cap it off, all at no charge to attend. Just bring your Lowell pride and a spirit of community,” shared Mike Kuenzler, Shelagh Mahoney, and Steve Panagiotakos, the Lowell Bicentennial Fundraising Committee.

With all of the added activities, the City of Lowell is proud to welcome Suffolk in the City to cover WinterFest. Suffolk in the City is a partnership of Suffolk University and New England Cable News (NECN), providing opportunities for Suffolk students to produce and present live news stories on NECN. The City of Lowell is excited to continue partnerships with local media outlets to enhance access to WinterFest, through Inside Lowell, the Lowell Sun, Lowell Telemedia Center, and WCAP.

For more information about WinterFest, visit https://www.lowellwinterfest.com/ or contact the Office of Cultural Affairs and Special Events at (978) 674-4260.