There are many ways to immerse yourself in a new destination – eating or drinking, adventuring, or museum-going among them. But perhaps one of the best is living in the moment and taking in some live music.
The Williamsburg area hosts noteworthy free entertainment most nights a week year-round, so there’s always something that’ll fit into your vacation lineup.
For the jazz lovers
Who needs karaoke when you’ve got free live jazz at Silver Hand Meadery? Whether you’re in town for just a few days or call Williamsburg home, everyone is welcome to join in monthly jam sessions on the second Friday of the month with an instrument (or their vocal cords). Keep it ultra-local and grab a glass of honey wine produced here from the output of local bees before or during the show from 7-9 p.m.
Mix it up, stir it up
Delicious whisky isn’t the only thing produced at Copper Fox Distillery, and tunes of all genres from local musicians share the stage during Thursday Night Live from 6-8 p.m. Guests can make it a whole afternoon with a distillery tour at 3 p.m., followed by the Thirsty Thursday cocktail menu. Tipples are just $8 from 4-7 p.m., and there’s a bar snacks menu served alongside.
Tunes for TGIF
Kick off the weekend with toe-tapping tunes at Alewerks Brewing Company every week from 6:30 - 9:30 p.m. during Fired Up Fridays. There are heat lamps on the covered patio to get things truly blazing, along with covers of popular songs and original songs from Virginia musicians and bands. Fired Up Fridays also offers a selection of rotating food trucks for a true dinner-and-a-show experience. The party continues at Alewerks with Brews and Grooves Saturdays, weekly midday into the late evening.
Have a ball at the Corner Pocket
Racking your brain for something fun to do on both Friday and Saturday nights? Queue up for a rotation of funk, soul, blues, and Motown tunes from Williamsburg musicians every weekend from 7-10 p.m. at the Corner Pocket. Play your own – game of pool, that is – as you sip a local craft beer or enjoy upscale pub grub-like burgers and spicy mains that put the “jam” in jambalaya.
Seasonal specials
Yorktown’s Sounds of Summer
There are no wet blankets – only picnic blankets – at Yorktown’s Sounds of Summer concerts each Thursday from 6:30 - 9 p.m. through August 15. You can also pull up your own chair and settle in for beachy melodies, country, jazz, and R&B on the stage, which will even feature its own adjacent dance floor for those feeling the groove. Come early to try one of Historic Yorktown’s waterfront restaurants, including Water Street Grille, Carrot Tree Kitchens, and Yorktown Pub – or check out to-go meals from a rotating selection of food trucks if you watch the acts and have a snack. The concert series includes free parking options and a complimentary, wheelchair-accessible Yorktown Trolley that runs from 5 to 9:30 p.m.
Merchants Square Concert Series
It’s common to hear the echo of fife and drums through historic Williamsburg’s streets, but summertime brings other distinct kinds of entertainment to Duke of Gloucester Street. Hit up the the heart of Merchants Square for a concert series featuring the hits of today and yesteryear, with acts playing everything from folk harmonies to rock anthems on the first Friday month from 6-8 p.m.
