Spring and summer highlights

Throughout the Season

Farmers’ Market
Local growers put on weekly produce sales on Saturdays year-round from 7:30 a.m.-1 p.m. in the parking lot at Second and Wall streets. 893-FARM.

Thursday Night Market
This popular street market is sponsored by the Downtown Chico Business Association and includes free entertainment along with the produce and other goods for sale. It runs from 6 to 9 p.m. through late October.

La Pulga
An outdoor market featuring food, crafts and bargains of all kinds is held each Sunday at 1705 Manzanita Ave., near the Elks Lodge. 899-0885.

Concerts in the Park
Chico’s Downtown Park Plaza fills with music some summer evenings. On Fridays, the host is the DCBA (345-6500), with everything from oldies to jazz to world music. And on Saturday nights starting May 11 and running through October with the exception of July, the Music Revolution (894-8621) returns with a focus on “dance-friendly music.”

Chico Heat
The city’s league-winning baseball team plays its fifth season’s first home game May 31 at Nettleton Stadium and will continue the season through late August. 343-HEAT.

Chico Rooks Soccer
The local pro soccer organization hosts home games at Chico State University’s Soccer Stadium on some Saturdays and Sundays through August. 343-7665.

Silver Dollar Speedway
Races are held most Friday nights, and summer events include the Golden State Challenge Series at fair time and NARC Speed Week in July. 891-6535. For BMX race information, call 673-0600 or 673-3193.

Chico Museum
Through late May, several exhibits are taking place at the museum. An art show titled Chico Scene: Through the Eyes of the Artist highlights students’ and others’ perspective on Chico, while another display shows the history of Girl Scout uniforms.

April

11th Annual Annies Arts Awards
April 14. This year celebrating Native American artists, the Annies include an art show, silent auction, dance and music performances and more. 228-0771.

California Sprint Car Civil War Series
April 19. Cars converge at the Silver Dollar Fair Grounds for this annual favorite. 891-6535.

Natalie McMaster
April 19, 7:30pm. The Celtic fiddler returns to Laxson Auditorium. Winner of a Canadian Grammy, McMaster dances whilst she plays. 898-6333.

Red Bluff Round-Up
April 19-21. Head north a bit to one of the biggest rodeo events in the nation, the annual Red Bluff Round-Up at the Tehama County Fairgrounds. 527-1000 or 537-8700.

Fishing derby
April 20, 9:30-11:30am. This event for children up to age 15 takes place at the Aquatic Park in Paradise. 872-6393.

Butte College Renaissance Faire
April 20-21, 10am-5pm. This will be the first time the college has held such an event. It includes a jousting tournament, music, merchants’ booths, re-enactment camps and a Children’s Grove. 566-1584.

Founders Week
April 21-28 at Chico State University, is an alumni association-sponsored week of historical fun. 898-6472.

Joy!
April 24, 7:30pm. A traditional gospel choir, bringing spirit and energy to Harlen Adams Theatre for free. 898-6333.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
April 25-May 11. Butte College’s Department of Performing Arts presents this thought-provoking classic at the Chico Center at 260-A Cohasset. 895-2994.

American Dreams, New Beginnings
April 27-28. The Chico State choral program takes on European composers who lived in the United States. Harlen Adams Theatre. 898-5666.

Gold Nugget Days
April 25-28, brings a parade, talent shows, entertainment and more (like the crowning of the Gold Nugget Queen) to Paradise, all in honor of the Gold Rush on the Ridge. 872-8722.

Spokesong
April 26, 27 and 28. This play by Stewart Parker is presented by the Chico VELO Cycling Club.

Wildflower Century Bike Race
April 28, is an annual trek through scenic Butte County, with awards given. National publications have named it one of the top 10 rides. 343-8356.

May

NowhereXNowhere
May 2-5. This is the largest music festival in Northern California, featuring a range of talents. 894-8621.

Garden Tour
May 4, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. in various Chico locations, is an annual event sponsored by St. John’s Episcopal Church. Four or five standout gardens will be visited following a luncheon. 894-1971.May 4, in Bidwell Park’s Cedar Grove. This is the 23rd year of the interactive, educational event hosted by the Butte Environmental Council and the California Office of Education. This year’s theme is “Nature’s Cycles: What goes around, comes around.” 891-6424.

North State Symphony
May 4-5. The final event of the first season will be “Opera’s Greatest Orchestral Music,” featuring works by Strauss, Mozart, Verdi and other. In Harlen Adams Theatre and the Shasta Learning Center. 898-6333.

Celebration of People Parade
May 4, 10am-noon. A downtown procession and competition of floats celebrating Chico’s array of backgrounds, beliefs and people. 898-2623.

Chico Artisans’ Faire
May 4 and 5 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Downtown Park Plaza. More than 50 craft vendors sell their wares amid live music and a parade. 345-9652.

Feather Fiesta Days
May 5-15, in Bidwell Canyon’s Lake Oroville State Recreation Area. It’s a series of events—from a sailboat regatta to a chili cook-off—remembering Gold Rush times. 538-2219.

The Pajama Game
May 8-12. Chico State’s spring musical—a version of the 1954 film comedy—is held in Laxson Auditorium. 898-5666.

Wild Guys
May 10-25, Chico Cabaret presents this musical in which four men seek an isolated cabin as part of a “wildman” weekend. 895-0245.

Charley’s Aunt
May 16-June 8. Theatre on the Ridge presents this farce comedy. 877-5760.

Ninth Annual New Works Festival
May 16-18, 23-25 at the Blue Room Theatre. Original one-acts by local authors. 895-3749.

American Musical Dialogues
May 18, 7:30pm. Chico State’s symphonic band and wind ensemble perform pieces by Gershwin, Copeland, local artists and others. Harlen Adams Theatre. 898-5666.

Hooked on Fishing
May 18. This annual fishing derby for kids 4 to 12 is held at Horseshoe Lake in Upper Bidwell Park, with poles and bait provided. 891-4757.

Red Suspenders Day Celebration
May 18, takes place for the 40th year in Gridley’s Downtown Park with a pancake breakfast, entertainment, crafts, bed races and chili cook-off as part of this year’s theme of “Celebrating Our Heroes.” 846-3142.

Silver Dollar Fair
May 22-27. Chico’s annual community fair at the Silver Dollar Fairgrounds features exhibits, livestock, the rodeo, a carnival midway and concert talent. 895-4666.

Bugsy Malone Jr.
May 31, 7:30pm. A joint project between Chico Performances and Children’s Theatre Workshop, this show is a tongue-in-cheek tribute in 1920s gangster style. 898-6333.

June

References to Salvador Dali Make Me Hot
June 7-29. The Blue Room Theatre presents this play by Jose Rivera. 895-3749.

Micro Brew Fest 2002
June 8, a Micro Brew Fest, with plenty of tasting opportunities, will be held at Manzanita Place (the Chico Elks Lodge). 342-3768.

California Sprint Car Civil War Series
June 14. Another showing at the Silver Dollar Fair Grounds. 891-6535.

The Art of Dining
June 14-July 29. Chico Cabaret presents a satirical comedy about people who own a restaurant. 895-0245.

Cruisin’ Paradise
June 21-22. It’s back to the 1950s for this weekend of rock ’n’ roll, car show, barbecue and peddlars fair held throughout the town.

Bloomsday
June 16, at the Blue Room Theatre, is Chico’s annual celebration of James Joyce’s Ulysses. 895-3749.

Native American Pow Wow
June 22-23. Chico Pow Wow 2002 will be held at the Silver Dollar Fair Grounds. Members of different tribes will attend, with dancing, drumming and crafts. 566-1373.

Relay for Life
June 22-23. A fund-raiser for the American Cancer Society, this 24-hour team event takes place annually. 321-6722.

July

Farm Sanctuary “Pignic”
July 4, The farm animal shelter in Orland hosts a celebration from noon-4 p.m. 865-4617.

Fourth of July celebration
The 37th annual celebration at One-Mile Recreation Area in Bidwell Park. 343-6055.

Fireworks over Lake Oroville
July 4. The name says it all. 538-2542.

Belles
July 11-Aug. 3. This comedy is presented by Theatre on the Ridge. 877-5760.

A Slice of Chico
July 13, is where sidewalk-sale shopping meets free watermelon courtesy of downtown merchants. 345-6500.

August

Butte County Fair
Aug. 21-25, at the Butte County Fairgrounds in Gridley, brings a good-time country fair with a rodeo, booths, carnival, entertainment, destruction derby, Butte County Queen pageant, livestock and agriculture-themed events. 846-3626.

Twain Miners Fair and Old West Celebration
Aug. 31-Sept. 1, in the Feather River Canyon on Highway 70 at Twain, Calif. This Gold Rush era event includes music, crafts, mining activities and more. History displays range from the gunslingers to the Native Americans. 283-2130.

September

Gold Cup Races
Sept. 5-7, at the Silver Dollar Speedway. “A World of Outlaws.” 891-6535.

A Taste of Chico
Sept. 8, is the annual opportunity to sample the fare—food, microbrews and wines—offered by a variety of Chico’s restaurants and businesses. 345-6500.

Morgan’s Heart
Sept. 12-Oct. 5. Theatre on the Ridge turns to drama this time. 877-5760.

Durham Harvest Festival
Mid-September. Local produce is the focal point of this event at Durham Community Park, which also includes a car show, steam engines and crafts.

Pastels on the Plaza
Sept. 14-15, brightens up the Downtown City Plaza for charity, courtesy of the Parent Education Network. 893-0391.

Salmon Festival
Sept. 21, at the Feather River Fish Hatchery and Nature Center. A multicultural event. 533-2473.

Chico World Music Festival
Late September, on the front lawn at Chico State, is the sixth annual celebration of cultures, dance and music that ranges from African high life to new acoustic, Latin rhythms to bluegrass and Irish fiddle tunes to Russian folk. 891-5791.

Days of Living History
Sept. 21-22, at the Gold Nugget Museum in Paradise, is a family festival with exhibits, demonstrations and hands-on activities by which to experience the ways of life on the Ridge from 1850 to 1950. 872-8722.