Hi friends! Our 2019 WaterFire #Art4Impact season has come to end and it was certainly impactful. We are hard at work planning for 2020 and our 25th-Anniversary Celebration Season. We’ll see you soon down by rivers! In the meantime, your support is vitally important to help keep the fires burning!
2019 Season Schedule
Thank you to Bank of America for their sponsorship of the 2019 WaterFire Event Season.
In celebration of 25 years of transforming place and building community in Providence, RI, WaterFire Providence announces its inaugural #Art4Impact series of events. Learn more about the #Art4Impact events on our blog. Get a single-page printable version of the 2019 Season Schedule or subscribe to our iCal feed.
Thursday, May 23
BASIN LIGHTING
Sunset at 8:07 pm; the fires will remain lit until 10:30 pm
Sponsored in part by National Association of State Treasurers Treasury Management Training Symposium
Music Program
Wednesday, June 12
BASIN LIGHTING
Sunset at 8:21 pm; the fires will remain lit until 10:30 pm
Music Program
Saturday, June 22
FULL LIGHTING
Sponsored in part by Cox Business
Arts Fairs, Food Vendors, and Special Performances and Events start at 6:00 pm
Sunset at 8:24 pm; the fires will remain lit until 12:30 am
Music Program
Summer of Science Series || Apollo 11 50th-Anniversary Celebration
Saturday, July 20
FULL LIGHTING
Celebrating the 50th-Anniversary of the Apollo 11 Mission and man’s first steps on the Moon.
Sponsored by NASA/RI Space Grant Program as our Co-Lead sponsor along with Brown University, Providence College, the NASA/RI EPSCoR Program, and the generous support of Textron Charitable Trust.
Apollo Legacy: Rhode Island and Space Exploration starting at 5:00 pm in Market Square – 4 North Main Street
Arts Fairs, Food Vendors, and Special Performances and Events start at 6:00 pm
Sunset at 8:16 pm; the fires will remain lit until 12:30 am
Music Program
Arts and Health Series || C is for Cure: RI Defeats Hep C
Saturday, August 3
FULL LIGHTING
WaterFire Providence is partnering up with RI Defeats Hep C for the 6th “C is for Cure” event.
Sponsored in part by AbbVie and Amica Insurance
Arts Fairs, Food Vendors, and Special Performances and Events start at 6:00 pm
English/Spanish production of Much Ado about Nothing starting a 6:00 pm on the Waterplace Park Basin Stage
Sunset at 8:02 pm; the fires will remain lit until 12:30 am
Music Program
Summer of Science Series || TechFire
Saturday, August 17
FULL LIGHTING
Sponsored in part by Virgin Pulse, Tufts Health Plan, and Bryant University.
The #TechFire Job Fair opens at 6:00 pm on Steeple Street
Grupo Ondas Capoeira Martial Arts Festival starts at 5:00 on the Waterplace Park Basin Stage
Arts Fairs, Food Vendors, and Special Performances and Events start at 6:00 pm
All special events are detailed on the event page
Sunset at 7:43 pm; the fires will remain lit until 12:30 am
Music Program
Sunday, September 1
PARTIAL LIGHTING
Sponsored by the Providence Tourism Council
Sunset at 7:20 pm; the fires will remain lit until 11:30 pm
Music Program
Arts and Health Series || WaterFire for Recovery
Saturday, September 14
FULL LIGHTING
WaterFire for Recovery celebrates the 30th-Anniversary of National Recovery Month sponsored in part by Alkermes; the Rhode Island Department of Behavioral Health, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals; and Rally 4 Recovery RI; in partnership with the RI Department of Health; and the RI Department of Corrections.
National Recovery Month 30th-Anniversary Celebration starts at 4:00 pm in Turk’s Head Plaza
Arts Fairs, Food Vendors, and Special Performances and Events start at 6:00 pm
Sunset at 6:57 pm; the fires will remain lit until 12:00 pm
Music Program
Summer of Science Series || Big Bang Science Fair
Community Heroes Series || Celebrating Educational Excellence in Rhode Island
Saturday, September 28
FULL LIGHTING
The 2nd Annual Big Bang Science Fair presented by Brown University, Brown Physician’s Inc and Citizens Bank
Celebrating Educational Excellence in Rhode Island in partnership with the RI Department of Education
Sponsored in part by Fidelity Investments
The Big Bang Science Fair starts at 4:00 pm with presentations in RISD auditorium and workshops in Market Square (4 North Main Street). Hands-on-activities in Market Square, College Street, and ICERM start at 5:00 pm. Free tickets required for some activities can be obtained via Eventbrite. High School students who get their “STEAM passports” stamped by all activity tents are eligible to enter a drawing to win a “tablet” as a prize!
Salute to Rhode Island Educators starts at 5:00 pm in Memorial Park
Arts Fairs, Food Vendors, and Special Performances and Events start at 5:00 pm
Sunset at 6:33 pm; the fires will remain lit until 12:00 pm
Music Program
Arts and Health Series || Flames of Hope: A Celebration of Life™
Saturday, October 5
FULL LIGHTING
14th Annual Flames of Hope: A Celebration of Life™
Sponsored in part by Gloria Gemma Breast Cancer Resource Foundation
Arts Fairs, Food Vendors, and Special Performances and Events start at 5:00 pm
Sunset at 6:21 pm; the fires will remain lit until 11:00 pm
Music Program
Tuesday, October 22
BASIN LIGHTING
Sponsored by Mutual of America
Sunset at 5:54 pm; the fires will remain lit until 10:30 pm
Community Heroes Series || WaterFire Salute to Veterans
Saturday, November 2
FULL LIGHTING
Honoring our veterans for the 7th Annual WaterFire Salute to Veterans event.
Sponsored in part by National Grid, Starwood Energy Group, the Providence VA Medical Center, The Boston Globe, Citizens Bank, Chisholm Chisholm & Kilpatrick LTD, Arcadia Power, and Pranzi Tents & Events.
Arts Fairs, Food Vendors, and Special Performances and Events start at 5:00 pm
Sunset at 5:39 pm; the fires will remain lit until 10:00 pm
Music Program
Other Upcoming Events
Friday, October 18
FireBall – SAVE THE DATE!
Join us at FireBall, a stellar celebration at the WaterFire Arts Center! Enjoy an exciting evening with dinner, dancing, art, and special surprises.
All Full WaterFire lightings light up over eighty braziers from Waterplace Park to Memorial/South Main Street Park on scheduled evenings throughout the season. Lighting occurs shortly after sunset and the fires will remain lit until half-past midnight (unless otherwise noted).
Basin lightings include the circle of twenty-two braziers in the Waterplace Park Basin and the twelve braziers leading up to the Providence Place Mall. Partial lightings usually include all of the braziers from Providence Place Mall to Steeple Street.
Fire marshal regulations do not permit folding chairs to be set up on any of the riverwalks to assure safe passage for all of our visitors. WaterFire is an event to be explored and savored on foot as you wander around to discover its many surprises, leave your chairs in the car, and start exploring all that our event has to offer.
As support and sponsorships develop, WaterFire will announce additional lightings and programming – check back for updates here and on our Facebook page and Twitter account.
WaterFire Providence would like to thank all of our 2019 sponsors, their ongoing support helped to light up Downtown Providence.
You can help us keep the fires burning by making a donation to keep the fires burning, joining the Brazier Society of WaterFire Providence, or by becoming a WaterFire Providence sponsor.
WaterFire Providence’s Plan Your Trip to Providence web page is the #1 resource for up-to-date details about the event, transportation, parking, hotels, restaurants, and other local attractions.
Each year WaterFire attracts nearly 1 million visitors to downtown Providence to experience art in the city. Annually, WaterFire activity creates $113 million in economic output for local businesses, generates over $9 million of tax revenue for the State of Rhode Island, and supports 1,294 jobs for community residents.
