As the Dog Days of Summer heat up again, Wheeling’s festivals and special events will be at a fever pitch this weekend. Don’t miss out on some of the best music, food, and fun that Wheeling has to offer this summer.
Heritage Music BluesFest
A Weekend of Award-Winning Blues at Wheeling’s Beautiful Heritage Port Amphitheater
FRIDAY, AUG. 12
Noon – 1:30 p.m. Taste of the Blues with Ben Hunter & Joe Seamons
5 to 6 p.m. Quinn Sullivan
6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Sue Foley
8 to 9 p.m. Rod Piazza And The Mighty Flyers
9:30 to 11 p.m. Shemekia Copeland
SATURDAY AUG. 13
Noon to 1 p.m. IBC Winners Ben Hunter & Joe Seamons
1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Albert Castiglia
3 to 4 p.m. Ben Miller Band
4:30 to 5:45 p.m. Paul DesLauriers Band
6:15 to 7:30 p.m. Curtis Salgado
8:00 to 9:15 p.m. Janiva Magness
9:45 to 11 p.m. Harmonicon with Sugar Blue, Billy Branch and Jason Ricci
SUNDAY, AUG, 14
1 to 2 p.m. Ben Prestage
2:30 to 3:30 p.m. Jonn Del Toro Richardson
4 to 5:15 p.m. Sister Sparrow and the Dirty Birds
5:45 to 6:45 p.m. Tinsley Ellis
7:15 to 8:30 p.m. Laith Al-Saadi
9 to 10:30 p.m. Butch Trucks and the Freight Train Band
The Blues Society of Northern West Virginia will be staging its first IBC competition on the BluesFest SecondStage to select an Act to represent it in Memphis at the International Blues Challenge. For more information: http://www.heritagemusicfest.com/
Art and Ale
Friday, Aug. 12 6:30-8:30 p.m. $30 per person.
Location: The Stifel Fine Arts Center, 1330 National Road
Sample more than a dozen craft beers while learning brewing techniques from local experts. Enjoy food prepared by Chef Charlie Schlegel and live music.
For more information: http://oionline.com/events/local-craft-beer-tasting/
Improv with the Crazy 8’s
Treat yourself to a night of comedy
Saturday 8-10 p.m. $5
Location: Towngate Theater, 2118 Market St., Wheeling
Join the Crazy 8s for a night of improvisational comedy in Wheeling. These brave performers hit the Towngate Theatre stage without a script, props or a safety net. Armed only with adrenaline and their imaginations, they make-up stories on the spot that entertain and amuse.
Audience members offer suggestions for scenes, conflicts, characters, and theatrical styles and contribute directly to the action on stage.
Made up of high school and college students, the Crazy 8s are brave, talented, and oh, so funny! Each performance is filled with creative comedy and laughs galore.
Support these young performers!
For more information: http://oionline.com/events/improv-with-the-crazy-8s-august-2016/
Mahrajan- A Lebanese Festival
Sunday Aug. 14, 10:30 a.m.-7 p.m.
Location: Oglebay Park at Site 1, Levenson Shelter Wheeling, WV
Thanks to our devoted volunteers at Our Lady of Lebanon Church, you don’t have to be Lebanese to know the English translation of “Mahrajan” is “festival.” For more than 80 years, the Mahrajan has been held in Wheeling, W. Va., welcoming thousands of people of every ethnicity across the country to share in the rich culture of our Lebanese heritage.
Mass begins at 10:30 a.m. – Maronite Catholic Liturgy
Food and Activities: Noon to 7 p.m.
For more information: http://www.ololwv.com/mahrajan.htm