June First Friday in Downtown Waterville – PRIDE!
Celebrate Pride on First Friday!
What are First Fridays?
First Fridays celebrate the vibrant creativity in Waterville through a wide array of arts experiences. On the first Friday of every month, visit Main Street in downtown Waterville to meet artists, see performances, listen to live music, eat delicious food, shop at local businesses, enjoy the arts, and come together as a community.
10am–5pm at the Waterville Public Library, there will be Pride button making & book giveaways! The Library will have supplies to make buttons featuring a wide range of Pride flags and pronouns, and there will be a free drawing for several new LGBTQIA+ books! Entries will be collected on Friday, June 2, and the winners will be drawn and notified on Saturday, June 3.
4-6pm Clay Play at the Ticonic Gallery + Studios.
5–7pm at the Paul J Schupf Art Center will have art-making, community resources, t-shirts, and more! Create rainbow art with Ticonic Gallery +Studios, and pick up a Waterville Pride shirt at the Ed Harris Box Office.
5–7pm Check out activities in Castonguay Square* from Family Violence Project, Universalist Unitarian Pride Committee, Central Maine Pride, Maine Children’s Home, PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays), FORQS ( Folks Organizing Reform for Queer Spaces), and Rainbow Quest.
5–7pm Join the Colby College Museum of Art at the Paul J Schupf Art Center for Wearables and Handmade Books for Pride with art-making activities that support LGBTQ+ Pride month. Design a message of support and love on a pin, made with recycled matboard scraps. Do some folding and gluing to create your own handmade books that you can fill with brightly colored paper to share your own beliefs, stories, and creative practice; this project is inspired by the artist Paula Wilson’s books, on view in the exhibition Ashley Bryan/Paula Wilson: Take the World into Your Arms.
Enjoy half off concessions (except for alcohol) at the Maine Film Center at the Paul J Schupf Art Center all evening.
6pm, the Waterville Opera House will give a sneak peek of the upcoming production Rock of Ages, plus a chance to win tickets to the show!
7–8pm Join Greene Block + Studios for an Open Mic celebrating LGBTQ+ voices!
8–10pm Come dance and get your groove on at an All-Ages Dance Party at Greene Block + Studios.
*In the case of inclement weather, First Friday activities will move inside the Paul J. Schupf Art Center
What else is happening on First Friday? Check it out: https://www.watervillecreates.org/first-friday/
Interested in First Fridays?
Whether you are an artist, musician, or local business owner in downtown Waterville, we hope you will participate in First Fridays. This is a great opportunity to showcase your art or promote your local business as the community comes together each month. If you are interested in participating, promoting your event, or offering a discount on First Fridays, we would love to talk with you.
Contact Colby Arts Office Program Manager Tyler French at [email protected] or Serena Sanborn from Waterville Creates at [email protected] if you have any questions.