CIRQUE DREAMS HOLIDAZE will be dazzling audiences in State College during its 7-week, 70-city U.S. tour this holiday season. Audiences from coast-to-coast will be captivated by this brilliant and whimsical holiday spectacular December 13 at the Bryce Jordan Center.

It’s no secret that the last few years have been difficult for the performing arts industry, as theaters grappled with quarantine, audience size limitations and adapting live event-reliant art mediums for virtual spaces. However, as the pandemic worries subsided and live events and festivals filled calendars once again, things have started to look — at least a little bit — like normal.

Don't miss the 2023 Juneteenth Celebration happening this weekend in Downtown State College! Community members are invited to an Art Exhibition that opens on Friday, June 16 and Juneteenth Block Party in downtown State College on Saturday June 17, 2023. Hosted by State College Chapter of the NAACP, in partnership with the Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State, The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau, the Downtown State College Improvement District, and the State College Borough. The Block Party begins at NOON and will showcase live performances by a wide range of musicians, poets, dancers and more. There will be food trucks, an array of Black vendors, and fun activities throughout the day for kids and adults.

Get ready for an exhilarating event this Saturday - the State College Pride Parade and Festival! Come and immerse yourself in a joyous celebration that embraces the vibrant diversity of Happy Valley. The streets will come alive with an explosion of colors, music, and infectious energy as the community unites to honor and uplift the LGBTQ+ community.

There’s even more in store for State College Spikes fans as the 40-game regular season home schedule, matching the biggest in franchise history, starts off tomorrow with Opening Night presented by PSECU at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park. The next wave of the Spikes’ home schedule release offers the chance for fans to purchase an exclusive Sean Clifford 1923 VIP Bobblehead Package as part of the Sean Clifford Retirement Party on August 15, an epic Adventure Hunt with The Happy Valley Adventure Bureau, BuccoMania Night on August 18, the inaugural Beer Run on August 3, plus much more.

On what would have been his 19th birthday, all of us at the State College Spikes are honored to announce that on Sunday, August 20, our friend and teammate Josiah Viera will be featured on jerseys that will be worn by the entire team, which will go up for bids in a Jersey-off-the-Back Auction presented by PSECU to benefit Children’s Miracle Network, specifically the work done by CMN at Gesinger Janet Weis Children’s Hospital in Danville, which provided Josiah with outstanding care throughout his lifelong battle with progeria, a rapid aging condition.

The Centre County Historical Society is holding a Centre County Explorers Day for visitors of all ages at the Centre Furnace Mansion on Sunday, June 4, 2:00-5:00 p.m. To celebrate the newly designed Centre County Explorers Passport, visitors will have the opportunity to pick up a passport for themselves or their family, tour the Centre Furnace Mansion, visit a 19th century building tool display and demonstration and meet representatives from other Centre County Passport sites.

Heading out for brunch while you are in Happy Valley? Be sure to check out Webster’s Bookstore Cafe, which recently ranked as one of the top places to eat brunch in Pennsylvania on PAEats.org (as if we needed another reason to love Webster’s!)

The annual McFarland Gathering in Coburn, PA is a sacred ritual — a place where fly rod enthusiasts have met to cast, fish and enjoy each other’s company dating back to 2007. Members of the gathering range from 14 years old to over 80, and come from diverse backgrounds in consulting, teaching, IT, healthcare, and marketing. We all have one thing in common: the belief that the little hamlet of Coburn is proof of God’s benevolence in our busy lives.