Friday, July 3: The 4th will be all about Bar-B-Q, beer and fireworks, so class things up on Friday by taking in some art. It’s our favorite Friday – First Friday! The Portland Public Library (5 Monument Square) will host the Travelling Gallery of the South American Intercontinental Biennial of Indigenous Arts, which will showcase both traditional and contemporary art from Central and South America; the Heron Point Gallery (63 Market Street) is displaying #textmessage, featuring 3 local artists displaying their take on the text, and will include a text sculpture that was made from visitor participation to the gallery over the last month; and angela adams (131 Middle Street) will be displaying their newly released Cave Fantasy collection. Various locations throughout Portland. Free.
Saturday, July 4: This is the one day a year where the action shifts away from the Old Port and to the Eastern Promenade. It’s time to park your car and walk, bike or Uber your way to Munjoy Hill for the annual celebration of booting the Brits out once and for all. ‘Merica! First, get in the spirit of the day by swinging by the Maine Historical Society (489 Congress Street) at noon for a public reading of the Declaration of Independence by former State Rep. Herb Adams, then make your way up the Hill to stake out your piece of grass. Vendors will start hawking food and souvenirs at 2, and the music gets going at 7 with the “Stars & Stripes Spectacular” Opening Ceremony, followed by the PSO “Patriotic Pops Concert.” If you want to really make a night of it, you can grab a seat at a VIP table right in front of the stage. Tickets are $100 per seat or a cool grand for a table. There will be a BBQ buffet dinner for VIPers, or you can BYOP (bring your own picnic). And what we’ve all been waiting for, the fireworks, should start at around 9:20 pm. Eastern Promenade, Portland. FREE, other than the VIP section.
Sunday, July 5: Sadly the rain cancelled last week’s Congress Square Park movie, “North by Northwest,” but the good news is this weekend’s forecast is nothing but sunny skies. So grab your lawn chairs and head over to the Square for a screening of “All the President’s Men,” the classic film starring Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman chronicling how two reporters were able to expose the Watergate scandal and end Richard Nixon’s presidency. 8:30 pm, Congress Square Park, Congress Street. Free.