1st Friday

going

'jazzy'

PUTNAM — The 1920s are remembered as a time when jazz music debuted, flappers took to dance floors across the country, and prohibition gave birth to speakeasies and bootlegging. This romanticized era will come alive once again from 6 to 9 p.m. June 5, with Putnam’s First Fridays Festival. The public is invited to enjoy an evening of live music, performances and community art projects. 

Continuing the season-long theme, A Century of Art, this second month of the 2015 First Fridays will explore the Jazz Age of the 1920’s and early 1930’s. Using this era as inspiration, the First Fridays committee is eager to engage visitors with period-related performances and art. The featured band for the evening is The Moldy Suitcases, a tribute to the underground music of the 1920’s. Hailing from New Bedford, Mass., The Suitcases combine covers of Jazz age songs with quirky originals – all blending to create a unique sound. 

Dancing was a big part of the Jazz Age, with men and women enjoying a newly liberated attitude toward music, dance, and fashion. In the Montgomery Ward Building, there will be a jazz-infused Flapper Dress Party for all to enjoy. On Main Street, The Amazing Taylors will provide family-friendly entertainment with a “Silent Film” skit, followed by a 1920s Dance Party. 

The fun continues at the Community Art Table with an art project for all ages. Combining education, art, and whimsy, June’s project includes decorating paddleballs – a toy originally created in the 1920s. Participants are invited to decorate their own paddleball and can even sign up for a paddleball competition. The competition will begin at 7:30 with prizes for the champion.

Above all else, First Fridays remains an art-based festival, and the June 5 event will see a record number of art vendors lining Main Street and Union Square in downtown Putnam. Patrons are invited to peruse the wide variety of artisan wares while enjoying the early summer weather. Coupled with outdoor art vendors, the many galleries of Putnam will also feature openings and exhibitions. Stop by Arts & Framing, The Complex Performing & Creative Arts Centre, The Empty Spaces Project, Sawmill Pottery, and Silver Circle Gallery. Visitors are also encouraged to be on the lookout for Art Attacks during the June event; sponsored by The Putnam Arts Council, Art Attacks are art installations and performances that pop-up, unexpectedly, during each First Fridays event.