(NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ) -- New Brunswick Cultural Center/Arts New Brunswick presents the 13th annual Hub City Sounds series, taking place this summer to fall from July 29th through November 1st, 2023. This FREE, family-friendly series is a performing, visual, and culinary arts festival with events for all ages and tastes.

The Hub City Sounds series includes a variety of activities and events for all ages including music and dance performances, live cooking demonstrations, spoken word performances, craft making, and more.

Hub City Sounds events include the Kick-off to Hub City Sounds at East Jersey Old Town Village on July 29th, the New Brunswick HEART Festival Art Battle on August 11th and Block Party & Festival on August 12th, the 8th Annual Caribbean Festival on August 26th, the Indo-American Festival on August 27th, the Mexican Independence Day Celebration & Flag Raising Ceremony on September 16th, CareSparc Sustainable Health & Wellness Village Festival on September 15-16th, the 43rd Annual Raritan River Environmental Festival on September 24th, and the Inaugural Middlesex County Jazz Festival on September 29th – October 1st. Fall events include the Annual Corazon Latino Festival & Trick or Treat Around Town and City Hall-Oween on October 29th, and Día de Muertos on November 1st. Admission is FREE of charge for all Hub City Sounds events.

“From July to November, we have so many amazing events for people of all ages to enjoy at this year’s Hub City Sounds,” said Tracey O’Reggio Clark, Interim Executive Director of the New Brunswick Cultural Center. “Whether you love history, live music, dance, or tasting the local eats, you will find it at Hub City Sounds. And, with the essential support from all our partners, collectively, we are very honored and grateful to be deemed as one of the most culturally inclusive series in the area.”

The festival includes collaborations with the city of New Brunswick,  County of Middlesex, New Brunswick Development Corporation, The Heldrich Hotel & Conference Center, New Brunswick City Center, New Brunswick Free Public Library, New Brunswick Community Arts Council, Rutgers Department of Government Affairs, Elijah’s Promise, coLAB Arts, New Brunswick Department of Recreation, Esparanza Neighborhood Coalition, Middlesex County Regional Chamber of Commerce, Civic League of Greater New Brunswick, Youth Advocacy Program, AMARDV, Robert Wood Barnabas Health, New Brunswick Tomorrow, LiveWell/Vivir Bien, New Brunswick Area NAACP, Rutgers African – American Alumni Alliance, New Brunswick Vulcan Pioneers (New Brunswick Fire Department), New Brunswick Police Department, Metuchen – Edison Area NAACP, Perth Amboy Area NAACP, American Hungarian Foundation, Rutgers Collaborative, Middlesex College New Brunswick Center, New Brunswick Jazz Project, TEMPO Networks, United Caribbean American Network, TSO Productions, Above Art Studios, TV Asia, Metuchen Arts Council, Highland Park Arts Commission, Navrang Dance Academy, Hub City Jazz Festival, New Brunswick Performing Arts Center (NBPAC), Arts Institute of Middlesex County, State Theatre New Jersey, George Street Playhouse, Crossroads Theatre Company, American Repertory Ballet, Rutgers, Mason Gross School of the Arts, Zimmerli Art Museum, and the Stress Factory Comedy Club. 

HUB CITY SOUNDS 2023 SCHEDULE:

Saturday, July 29th, 12:00pm-4:00pm – 1050 River Road, Piscataway. Kick-off to Hub City Sounds at East Jersey Old Town Village. A Historic Epicurean Experience with live cooking demonstrations, FREE printmaking workshops with Frontline Arts, exploration of historic buildings on site, historical interpreters, and more.

Friday, August 11th – Above Arts Studio, 55B Morris Street, New Brunswick. 4th Annual HEART Festival Art Battle.  7:00pm-9:00pm – In-person and live stream Art Battle. The Art Battle is where the Food Network © “Chopped” meets Visual Arts. This competition features 7 artists, 3 rounds, and 1 Cash Prize winner!

Saturday, August 12th, 3:00pm-6:00pm – Monument Square, 2 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick. 4th Annual New Brunswick HEART Festival. This family-friendly festival celebrates the vibrant arts and history of New Brunswick and Middlesex County. The festival features live music and dance performances, dance classes for kids, an Arts Market, craft vendors, free balloon animals and face painting, a health & wellness area, a history corner featuring historical interpreters, arts & crafts activities, games, free Henna and caricatures, free button making, roaming musicians, giveaways, and more. 

Saturday, August 26th, 2:00pm-6:00pm – Recreation Park, 7 Pine Street, New Brunswick. 8th Annual Caribbean Festival. Featuring Caribbean cuisine, music, and dance performances (reggae, soca, and calypso), and more! And, THE jerk chicken tasting cook-off is BACK!

Saturday, August 27th, 2:00pm-6:00pm – Monument Square, 2 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick. Annual Indo-American Festival. Offering mouthwatering treats, music and dance performances, educational dance/theatre presentations, Zumba Bollywood, and a visual arts workshop.

Friday, September 15th and Saturday, September 16th – Boyd Park, Route 18 North, New Brunswick. CareSparc Sustainable Health & Wellness Village Festival. A community-based health and wellness program that connects the most vulnerable populations with community resource providers to expand access to healthcare and improve quality of life.

Saturday, September 16th, 4:00pm-7:00pm – Monument Square, 2 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick. Mexican Independence Day Celebration & Flag Raising Ceremony. Celebrate Mexico’s Independence Day with the County’s Flag Raising Ceremony and Sagrada Youth Dance Troupe’s 10th anniversary, featuring traditional music and dance performances, and food from different regions in Mexico.

Thursday, September 28th – Sunday, October 1st. Inaugural Middlesex County Jazz Festival. Showcasing local talent from Edison (9/28), Perth Amboy (9/29), New Brunswick and Metuchen (9/30) and Woodbridge (10/1).

Sunday, October 29th, 1:00pm-3:00pm – Monument Square, 2 Livingston Avenue, New Brunswick. Annual Corazon Latino Festival & Trick or Treat Around Town. Traditional music and dance performances celebrating the culmination of Latinx Heritage Month, a community mural installation, face painting, and trick or treating at local businesses on George Street and French Street.

Sunday, October 29th, 1:00pm-3:00pm – 78 Bayard St, New Brunswick. City Hall-Oween. Pics with Marvel inspired Superheroes fun DIY activities, pumpkin decorating contests, free giveaways, and more.

Wednesday, November 1st, 1:00pm-6:00pm – New Brunswick Performing Arts Center, 11 Livingston Ave. Día de Muertos. An interactive community altar creation and installation, celebrating the lives of loved ones that are living and paying homage to those that we lost.

For more information on the Hub City Sounds events call 908-917-2862 or visit www.NewBrunswickArts.org.

Hub City Sounds is sponsored by Middlesex County and New Brunswick City Center.

The mission of the New Brunswick Cultural Center is to stimulate the cultural development and economic growth of arts and entertainment in New Brunswick through the enhancement, preservation, maintenance, and effective administration of existing and future venues that service the primary constituent base of the New Brunswick Cultural Center. And, by nurturing emerging and viable arts, educational and entertainment organizations that reach the diverse communities of New Brunswick, New Brunswick Cultural Center and its Arts Partners thrive to establish New Brunswick as the premier arts and entertainment destination in the region.