People + art = party

It’s time to celebrate the arts. At least, that’s what Artober organizers—which include the Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission, Sacramento365.com, and the Sacramento Convention and Visitors Bureau—are encouraging people to do. Artober makes this task easy with a whole month full of events, and a huge party this Saturday is the premier one: the Midtown Arts Festival.

There will be dance groups (Instituto Mazatlan Bellas Artes de Sacramento, Pamela Hayes Classical Ballet, Core Dance Collective), live music (Alex Nelson, Project4Trees, Live Manikins), booths highlighting various arts organizations (Asian Arts Foundation, Sacramento Art Complex, Sol Collective), an arts area for kids (staffed by La Raza Galería Posada, Crocker Art Museum and Sacramento Philharmonic Orchestra) and a craft-beer area for adults (featuring suds from Ruhstaller Beer, Hoppy Brewing Company and Track 7 Brewing Co.).

At last year’s inaugural festival, 1,000 people stopped by, and this year, organizers project that number to triple. Basically, it’s going to be a big outdoor party at the MARRS building in the center of Midtown, with a veritable who’s who of local arts groups and tasty craft beer. That’s pretty much as good a reason as any to celebrate the arts. Noon to 6 p.m. Saturday, October 20. MARRS buildling, 1050 20th Street; (916) 442-1500; www.exploremidtown.org/Midtown
ArtsFestival.