Shindig on the Green

Saturday nights at Pack Square Park, downtown Asheville returns to something older than its reputation. This is Shindig on the Green — free, outdoors, running since 1967, and still operating on the same terms: show up along about sundown, find a spot on the grass, and let the music happen.

The stage show runs on the Bascom Lamar Lunsford Stage — bluegrass and old-time string bands, Big Circle Mountain Dancers, clog dancers, smooth dancers, ballad singers, storytellers, with the Stoney Creek Boys anchoring the evening as long-standing house band. Performers go on for two numbers each. But the stage is only part of it. The real action is in the informal jam sessions scattered around the park — loose circles of musicians under the trees, on the sidewalk, pulling the tradition apart and putting it back together. Anyone can join in. Bring an instrument. Bring flatfooting shoes. The Folk Heritage Committee's brief on this is simple: bring your instruments, families, friends, lawn chairs, and blankets.

Between 2,000 and 3,000 people attend on Shindig evenings — locals, visitors from out of state, people who traveled from across the country and around the world specifically for this. The performers are volunteers spanning several generations: young children working on their square-dance steps, great-grandmothers singing ballads passed down through the years. Since 1967, hundreds of thousands of people have come through here. Admission has always been free.

The 2026 season marks the 60th anniversary of Shindig on the Green. Dates run July 18, July 25, August 8, August 15, August 22, and August 29, 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. each evening. Concessions are available. Parking is free after 6:00 p.m. in marked and metered spaces downtown. Leave the dog at home.