The big outdoor night is Light Up the Lawn at Ivy Hill on Saturday - The Embers, food trucks and fireworks - and there's plenty around it: 1776 the Musical on the lawn at Poplar Forest (Fri & Sat), the Academy's Big Gay Dance Party Pride night, the 5th Annual Gem & Mineral Show, Lynchburg FC's home conference final Sunday at City Stadium, MasterWorks' orchestra (Ravel & Rachmaninoff) at Liberty, and Wolfbane's Grease closing its run. Bonus: scroll to the bottom for the July 4th-weekend rundown. Here's everything going on:

Times and details can change after this is sent — for the latest, view this post on the web (the "view in browser" link up top). I post corrections there.

We're now on Instagram too: @lyhevents_. Another easy way to get the list and share with your friends!

Today (Fri Jun 26)

Sat Jun 27

  • Forest Farmer's Market · 8:00am-12:00pm · Forest Farmer's Market · Forest — local produce & vendors

  • LAYSi Summer Play Day · check-in 9:00am, pickup 3:30-3:45pm · Drysdale Plaza, University of Lynchburg · free (online registration recommended) — a full day of youth sports (soccer, football, basketball, hip-hop) for rising 1st-8th graders, with a free lunch, t-shirt & goody bag

  • Virginia Concealed Carry Firearms Class · 9:00am-12:30pm · 110 Vista Centre Dr, Forest · Forest · register online — single-session class meeting Virginia's CHP training requirement

  • Scrappy Elephant: Printmaking Workshop · 9:00-11:30am · Scrappy Elephant · $35

  • Grief, Coffee & Connection · 10:00-11:30am (drop in anytime) · The Bagel & I, 20584 Timberlake Rd · free — a casual gathering for anyone navigating grief, loss, or life's hard moments; come as you are (hosted by Liz Quinn, Healing Hearts)

  • Cafe Monte Bello: Saturday Vendor Market · 10:00am-2:00pm · Cafe Monte Bello, 828 Main St · free to browse — biweekly maker & vendor market, local goods + cafe coffee/drinks

  • Free RPG Day · 10:00am-8:00pm · Mythic Hall, 918 Commerce St · free — the annual celebration: free games & exclusives, new-game demos, open board-game play

  • Hammer & Stain: Crushed Glass Resin Suncatchers · 10:00am-12:00pm · Hammer & Stain Lynchburg · $60 — make a crushed-glass suncatcher sealed in food-safe resin

  • 5th Annual Gem & Mineral Show · 10:00am-5:00pm · Moose Lodge 715, 1023 Greenview Dr · hosted by the Gem & Mineral Society of Lynchburg — gems, minerals, vendors & displays

  • Bubble Bash · 10:00am-2:00pm · Imagination Rising, 4541 S Amherst Hwy, Madison Heights · Madison Heights · $10/child — bubble play, crafting & smiles; unlimited playtime

  • Mobile Raku Workshop with Brett Thomas (Day 2 of 2) · 10:00am-4:00pm · Academy Center (May Carter Pottery Studio), 600 Main St · adults · $110 (two-day) — hands-on raku firing, ending with a baked-potato bar

  • Speak the Words (Cosmere RPG one-shot) · 11:00am · Mythic Hall, 918 Commerce St · $15/seat — intro one-shot in Brandon Sanderson's Stormlight Archive world

  • Psychic Tarot Readings with Irene Dean · 1:00-5:00pm · Grounded Earth, 3831 Old Forest Rd · walk-ins welcome or book ahead — "The Occasional Psychic" offering tarot readings

  • ARRL Field Day - Lynchburg Amateur Radio Club · Sat 2:00pm → Sun 2:00pm (24-hr) · Brookville Ruritan Club, 311 Beverly Hills Circle · free — six ham-radio stations on the air; the public can come operate one under a coach, even if unlicensed

  • Into the Woods (Academy Youth Theatre - live stage musical) · 2:00pm matinee & 7:00pm · Academy Center (Historic Academy Theatre), 600 Main St · $8-$22 — Sondheim's Tony-winning fairy-tale mashup

  • Dragon Fire Games: weekend tabletop (Yu-Gi-Oh! 2:30pm · Riftbound Nexus Nights 6pm · Disney Lorcana 7pm · Gundam 7pm $6.99) · Dragon Fire Games, 408 Federal St · weekly

  • Hill City FC vs. Virginia Beach United · 3:00pm tailgate / 7:00pm kickoff · City Stadium, 3180 Fort Ave · adults $10 / youth $8 · USL League Two semi-pro soccer

  • MasterWorks Festival: Opera Scenes Performance · 3:30pm · Center for Music & the Worship Arts (Room 305), Liberty University · free — staged opera scenes by festival singers

  • Light Up the Lawn 2026 at Ivy Hill · 5:00pm · Ivy Hill Golf Club, 1148 Ivy Hill Dr, Forest · Forest — the club's biggest night out: live music from The Embers, food trucks, bouncy houses, drinks & fireworks

  • Downtown Lynchburg Walking Ghost Tour: Sunset Tour · 7:00-8:00pm · meets at the Lynchburg Community Market, 1219 Main St · $15 (kids 7-18 $10, 6 & under free) — historical walk with live paranormal-detection demos (Waterfront Tour follows 8:15-9:15pm)

  • Apocalypse Ale Works: Open Mic Night (Troy Coleman) · 7:00pm · Apocalypse Ale Works, 1257 Burnbridge Rd, Forest · Forest · free — all acts welcome (music, comedy, poetry, storytelling)

  • Kevin Devine: An Intimate Evening · 7:00pm · private venue (address sent to ticket holders), hosted by Super Rad · $35 adv (Undertow) — unplugged set from the indie singer-songwriter

  • Starr Hill On Main: Drag Bingo (Enya Salad) · doors 6:30pm / 7:00pm · Starr Hill On Main, 1300 Main St · ticketed (Toast) — "Bingo, Brews & Ballads" hosted by drag performer Enya Salad

  • MasterWorks Festival Orchestra Concert (Week 2) · 7:30pm · Concert Hall, Center for Music & the Worship Arts, Liberty University · free — Ravel's Piano Concerto in G (pianist Carter Johnson) and Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 2, conducted by Delta David Gier

  • The Night Shift · 8:00-10:00pm · The Music Hall at 722 Commerce St · $10-$13 — Aaron Geller (guitar) & Lilly Potts (vocals) play classic rock, blues, jazz & folk

  • Big Gay Dance Party: A Pride Celebration · 8:00-11:00pm · Academy Center (Joy & Lynch Christian Warehouse Theatre), 600 Main St · 21+ · $10 — the Lavender Lodge & Academy's 3rd-annual queer-anthem dance party, bar & snacks

  • Trading Post Music Hall: DJ Night (both floors) · 9:00pm-2:00am · Trading Post Music Hall, 1222 Main St · DJ night across both floors

  • 🎤 Karaoke: Lola's 7pm (Mogu Entertainment) · 801 Raw Bar on Rivermont 7pm

Sun Jun 28

Running all weekend

  • Wolfbane's Grease (live musical, PG-13 - closing weekend) · Fri 6/26 7:30pm, Sat 6/27 2:30pm & 7:30pm, Sun 6/28 2:30pm (doors 45 min prior) · The Wolf Den Downtown, 723 Jefferson St · ticketed

  • Riverside Sprayground · daily 10:00am-7:00pm · Riverside Park · free · [Parks&Rec] — open through Sept 7

  • Ivy Creek Park: Canoe & Kayak Rentals · Sat & Sun 10:00am-5:00pm · Ivy Creek Park, 118 Clemmons Lake Pl · canoes $10/hr, kayaks $8/hr · [Parks&Rec] — paddle the lake all summer weekend

  • Academy Center galleries · free — on view: Histories (Meredith Peverill) and BECOMING (Sarah-Faith Strait), through Jul 31

🚗 Worth the Drive

A few standout day-trips within about an hour of Lynchburg this weekend:

  • Doc McCabe Bluegrass Festival (30th Annual) · through Sat Jun 27 · The Sedalia Center, Big Island (~25-30 min) · ticketed — three days of bluegrass with The Po' Ramblin' Boys, Lonesome River Band, and Ralph Stanley II & the Clinch Mountain Boys, plus free Saturday music workshops

  • Boxerwood Music in the Garden: Betty and the Hot Flashes · Fri Jun 26, gates 5:30pm / show 6:30-8:00pm · Boxerwood Gardens, 963 Ross Rd, Lexington (~50 min) · the local-treasure summer garden concert series (park in the field at the end of Munger Lane)

  • Petals & Paws Pet Walk (3rd Annual) · Sat Jun 27, 10:00am-2:00pm · High Bridge Plaza Caboose, 315 N Main St, Farmville (~60 min) · a pet-friendly community festival day

  • Murder on the Menu: Interactive Mystery on the Train · Sat Jun 27, 4:00-7:00pm · Virginia Scenic Railway, 415 Bridge St, Staunton (~75 min) · ticketed — a turn-of-the-century murder mystery played out aboard a scenic train ride

  • Nirvani: A Nirvana Tribute · Sat Jun 27, show 9:00pm · Marshal's Bar & Grill, 7643 Richmond Hwy, Appomattox (~45 min) · all ages — a full Nirvana tribute show

  • Live Late-Night Music: Light•Year! · Sat Jun 27, 10:00pm-1:00am · 11 E Nelson St, Lexington (~50 min) · an improvised live-EDM duo (synths, looping & grooves), after-hours

  • Nelson 151 wine & cider trail · live music along Rt 151 this weekend (~60 min): Max Mandu (Fri Jun 26, 5:00pm) & The Loya Brothers (Sat Jun 27, 3:00pm) at the Rockfish Valley/Afton tasting rooms — make a day of the brewery/winery loop

🗓️ Coming up next week — July 4th weekend

A taste of what's ahead - the full lineup lands in Tuesday's email:

📱 Now on Instagram — @lyhevents_

We're on Instagram now too: @lyhevents_. It's another easy way to catch the weekend's events in your feed - and an easy one to share with a friend who never knows what to do this weekend. Give it a follow:

  • Lynchburg's weekend events, right in your Instagram feed

  • See something fun? Tap share and send it to a friend who needs weekend plans

  • Follow + tag the person you'd actually go with 💛

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