Here’s your curated Hartford event calendar for May 2024.

What makes this list? Events that I would either attend or recommend to a good friend. Review events with the host/venue to confirm details have not changed since publication.

ADD TO CALENDAR

  • COMMON GROUND: Asylum Hill Congregational Church (814 Asylum Avenue) is hosting a free screening of Common Ground, a documentary about our food system. This is 6-8:30 PM on May 1, 2024 in the Twichell Room.
  • RIVER SMART: Farmington River Watershed Assoc. Education Manager Heather Geist and Park Watershed Director, Mary Rickel Pelletier, will be discussing storm water pollution, water conservation and the recent updates to the North Branch River Management Plan in a virtual lecture on May 1, 2024 from 6:30-7:30 PM. Register to receive the event link.
  • QUEER CRAFT NIGHT: Make flower crowns at SPACE (30 Arbor Street) on May 1, 2024 at 7 PM. There’s a requested $5 donation to cover cost of materials. RSVP here.

  •  FINE ART & FLOWERS: See floral arrangements inspired by art at the Wadsworth Atheneum, May 3-5, 2024. Note: there is a small admission fee for this, so if you would normally have free admission, it’ll cost $5. See their website for details.
  • DISCOVER CEDAR HILL TOUR: Take a one-hour, free guided walking tour of Cedar Hill Cemetery on May 4, 2024 from 10-11 AM. The Cedar Hill tours are popular, so be sure to RSVP to get a spot.
  •  SUPERHEROES UNITE: On May 4th, come down to Pratt Street from 5-8 PM for photos with Star Wars and Marvel characters. Face painting, raffles, and more. Free.
  •  CRAFTED: Local arts and crafts show at Hartford Flavor Company (30 Arbor Street) on May 5, 2024 from 11 AM until 4 PM.
  • SOUND HEALING FOR IMMIGRANTS: At Carriage House Theater (360 Farmington Avenue): “HartBeat Ensemble se asocia con SoulCare Love, LLC para ofrecer curación con sonido especial para nuestra querida comunidad de inmigrantes. María del Carmen, sanadora de sonido facilita la tarde tanto en Inglés como en Español // HartBeat Ensemble partners with SoulCare Love, LLC to offer a special sound healing and workshop for our beloved immigrant community. Join Maria del Carmen, seasoned sound healer as she facilitates the afternoon both in English and Spanish.” Register here for this free event on May 5, 2024 at 12 PM.

  •  MOVING MONEY 101: This is a four-part virtual workshop offered through the Saturday Cooperative; participants are asked to attend all sessions. They describe this workshop: “The revolution will not be funded by corporations, the government or philanthropy. Instead it will be resourced by people like you, me, your mom, your grandma, your co-worker, and your neighbor down the street conversation by conversation. Moving Money 101 is designed for people interested in both sorting through some of their own blocks and challenges in talking openly about money and class and in supporting others to do the same. We will have conversations about money and class, reflect on our own money story, and practice making an ask of someone we are in community with to contribute to an organization that we care about that is doing organizing, community care, or mutual aid work.” Tickets are on a sliding scale fee; click here to rsvp. The workshops are held on Thursdays from 6-8 PM: May 9, May 23, June 6, and June 20, 2024.
  •  KENDAL MOUNTAIN TOUR: One night of short films at Cinestudio, beginning with Bring The Salmon Home, a documentary about “the emotions, courage, and determination of Klamath River tribal communities as they host a 300+ mile run from ocean to headwaters to cultivate support for the biggest river restoration project in history – the removal of four Klamath River dams.” The film line up also includes Like Mother Like Daughter, Flow, Soundscape, I Am Because You Are, Changabang, and Going Home. This is May 10, 2024 at 7 PM.  General admission is $15.
  •  A REALLY, REALLY QUEER MARKET: clothing swap and free prom formal wear for queer youth on May 11, 2024 from 12-3 PM at MCC Hartford (155 Wyllys).
  •  KNIT & STITCH: On May 23, 2024 and other Thursdays from 6-7:30 PM, learn to knit at the First Presbyterian Church (136 Capitol Avenue). Just show up. They’ll provide the yarn and needles.
  •  SALSA SOCIAL: Hartford’s car-free Pratt Street is transformed into a dance floor from 5-8 PM on May 24, 2024.
  •  CT Veg Fest: Vegan festival in Bushnell Park from 1-10 PM on May 25, 2024.

CULTURAL ASSETS
For ongoing free education, entertainment, public art, and resources — like 24/7 food pantries and libraries — check out this map. Zoom in and click on the icons for more information.

This was last updated in January 2024:

This map does not include my favorite kind of public art: the uncommissioned installments that are unsigned and understood as ephemeral, and untainted by excessive artist ego. But, if you move through Hartford at human speed and notice where you are, you will begin to see the ways that residents choose to decorate spaces for ourselves and each other.

GETTING TO EVENTS
See CTtransit for bus schedule.
If you would like better bus service, contact CTtransit.
If you would like bicycle parking at a venue, contact that venue directly.
Ask for the kind of world you want to live in.