The Natick Center Cultural District

Healthy Garden Recipes
2025-08-12 18:00 - 19:00 (America/New_York) | Bacon Free Library
It’s time for all that work in the garden to pay off in the kitchen. The experts at Blackstone Valley Veggie Gardens will teach you how to prepare healthy meals with the ingredients from your backyard garden. ​ Fresh is best!
This program is hosted by the Bacon Free Library and will be held over Zoom. Please register to receive the meeting link.

Wine & Design at the Planted Collective
2025-08-13 18:30 - 19:30 | The Planted Collective, 37 S Main Street, Natick, 01760, United States
Join us for a cozy evening learning how to create beautiful floral arrangements with Fireside Floral!

📅 Thursday September 25th🕕 6:30 PM – 7:30 PM📍 37 S Main St, Natick, MA, 01760
Join us for a hands-on guided floral arrangement class in collaboration with the talented team at Fireside Floral!
Whether you’re a seasoned plant lover or just looking for a fun, creative night out, this class is perfect for all skill levels.

What’s Included:
🌸 All floral materials and supplies
🍷 Wine , 🍺 Beer, and snacks
🌿 Expert instruction from Fireside Floral
💐 A beautiful custom arrangement to take home
Come sip, snip, and socialize with fellow Plant Pals in a cozy, welcoming space!

🎟️ Tickets are limited—reserve your spot today!

VIRTUAL: The History of Contagious Disease Hospitals in Massachusetts
2025-08-13 19:00 - 20:00 | Bacon Free Library – 58 Eliot Street Natick, MA 01760 United States
Often located near poorhouses, asylums, and prisons, contagious disease hospitals reveal how fear of contagion intersected with social reform, nativism, and evolving ideas about poverty and public responsibility. Historian and author Dr. Katherine M. (Anderson) Benson, MFA, EdD, will take us on a virtual exploration of the complex history of contagious disease hospitals in Massachusetts from the 19th to the early 20th century. She will highlight their role in shaping public health policy, immigration control, and institutional development. Drawing from historical records and case studies, Dr. Benson will examine how these institutions targeted immigrant and marginalized communities under the guise of care and containment, leaving a lasting impact on the Commonwealth’s institutional landscape.
Dr. Katherine M. (Anderson) Benson, MFA, EdD, is an institutional historian and an award-winning author. She has been a special educator for more than 20 years in residential treatment facilities, juvenile corrections, and therapeutic programs. Dr. Benson has written about and lectured on the history of institutional treatment in Massachusetts. She lives in Western Mass with her husband, a very bitey cat, and a special needs dog.
This program is sponsored by the Public Health Museum, presented with support from the Tewksbury Public Library and the Bacon Free Library.
Please register for the Zoom link

Nick Lowe and Los Straitjackets
2025-08-13 20:00 - 22:30 | The Center for Arts in Natick (TCAN), 14 Summer Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Nick Lowe has made his mark as a producer (Elvis Costello-Graham Parker-Pretenders-The Damned), songwriter of at least three songs you know by heart, short-lived career as a pop star, and a lengthy term as a musicians’ musician. But in his current ‘second act’ as a silver-haired, tender-hearted but sharp-tongued singer-songwriter, he has no equal.

Starting with 1995′s ‘The Impossible Bird’ through to 2011′s ‘The Old Magic,’ Nick has turned out a fantastic string of albums, each one devised in his West London home, and recorded with a core of musicians who possess the same veteran savvy. Lowe brings wit and understated excellence to every performance, leading Ben Ratliff of the New York Times to describe his live show as “elegant and nearly devastating.”
Los Straitjackets are the leading practitioners of the lost art of the guitar instrumental. Using the music of the Ventures, The Shadows, and with Link Wray and Dick Dale as a jumping off point, the band has taken their unique, high energy brand of original rock & roll around the world. Clad in their trademark Lucha Libre Mexican wrestling masks, the “Jackets” have delivered their trademark guitar licks to 16 albums, thousands of concerts and dozens of films and TV shows.
Together Nick & The Straitjackets have toured extensively around Europe and the United States, and are releasing an EP of new songs in June 2017.
Visit: nicklowe.com losstraitjackets.com

Virtual: Q&A with Author Erica Ridley
2025-08-14 19:00 - 20:00 | Bacon Free Library – 58 Eliot Street Natick, MA 01760 United States
We are excited to chat with fantastic historical romance author, Erica Ridley. Since it’s right before her new book, A Waltz on the Wild Side, comes out, we can celebrate early! In addition to her clever, heartwarming novels, like The Perks of Loving a Wallflower, Erica also writes young adult horror and thrillers. What can’t she do??
Bring your questions as this is going to be a rapid fire, AMA (ask me anything) Q&A!
This virtual program will be held in collaboration with the Bacon Free Library and the Ashland Public Library.
Please register here for the Zoom link.

Blood Brothers
2025-08-14 20:00 - 22:00 | The Center for Arts in Natick (TCAN), 14 Summer Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Blues from award-winning guitar masters Mike Zito and Albert Castiglia.
The dynamic duo of guitarists, nine-time Blues Music Award winner Mike Zito, and five-time Blues Music Award winner Albert Castiglia have come together to create the super-group Blood Brothers.
In 2024, their Blood Brothers debut album, produced by Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith, won the Blues Music Award for Blues Rock Album of the Year. In November 2023, Zito and Castiglia released Blood Brothers: Live in Canada, an album with perfectly captures all the excitement and blues/rock energy created by the two during a recent tour. Mike Zito and Albert Castiglia are true “Blood Brothers” in life and in the music they have created both individually and collectively, joining forces in a collaborative effort of songwriting and high-energy performances to create a total listening experience greater than the sum of its parts.
Visit: bloodbrothersband.com

Read-a-Story, Dance-a-Story
2025-08-15 10:30 - 11:00 | Bacon Free Library – 58 Eliot Street Natick, MA 01760 United States
Join us on the lawn of the Bacon Free Library for an outdoor dance class. Perfect for young movers and curious minds, this class blends storytelling, dance, and music for a joyful and expressive experience. Recommended for ages 3-8. No dance experience needed – just bring your imagination!
This class will be taught by Ms. Ashlie from the Community Dance Academy at Walnut Hill School for the Arts.
Registration is required.

Read to a Dog
2025-08-15 15:00 - 16:15 | Bacon Free Library – 58 Eliot Street Natick, MA 01760 United States
New readers can build confidence and practice their reading skills by reading out loud to a registered therapy dog at the Bacon Free Library.
Children ages 5 and older can sign up for a 15-minute reading session with Sophie, a gentle golden retriever who loves belly rubs, stories, and cuddles.
Registration is required for each child attending.

The Dirty Dozen Brass Band
2025-08-15 20:00 - 22:00 | The Center for Arts in Natick (TCAN), 14 Summer Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Celebrating over 45 years since their founding in 1977, the GRAMMY Award-winning New Orleans-based Dirty Dozen Brass Band has taken the traditional foundation of brass band music and incorporated it into a blend of genres, including bebop jazz, funk and R&B/soul. This unique sound, described by the band as a “musical gumbo”, has allowed the Dirty Dozen to tour across five continents and more than thirty countries, record twelve studio albums and collaborate with a range of artists from Modest Mouse to Widespread Panic to Norah Jones. Forty-five plus years later, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band is a world-famous music machine whose name is synonymous with genre-bending romps and high-octane performances.
Roger Lewis – Baritone Sax/Vocals
Gregory Davis – Trumpet/Vocals
Kirk Joseph – Sousaphone
Trevarri Huff-Boone – Tenor Sax/Vocals
Stephen Walker – Trombone/Vocals
Julian Addison – Drums
Takeshi Shimmura – Guitar
Visit: dirtydozenbrassband.com

Natick Farmers Market
2025-08-16 09:00 - 13:00, 2025-08-23 09:00 - 13:00, 2025-08-30 09:00 - 13:00, 2025-09-06 09:00 - 13:00 | Natick Common
The Natick Farmers Market is a year-round program of the Natick Center Cultural District and is open every Saturday from 9 am to 1 pm.

Visit natickfarmersmarket.org for current location and vendors.
Spring and Summer
Natick Town Common
The intersection of Routes 27 and 135
Natick

Fall and Winter
Common Street Spiritual Center
13 Common Street
Natick

Drop-In Plein Air Art Studio
2025-08-18 13:30 - 16:00, 2025-08-25 13:30 - 16:00 | Bacon Free Library – 58 Eliot Street Natick, MA 01760 United States
Join Natick landscape artist Barbara Levine this summer for drop-in plein air (outdoors in natural light) painting on the grounds of the Bacon Free Library.
All levels of painters, and all mediums are welcome. Supplies will not be provided, so please bring your own equipment including: easels, paints, brushes, any solvents or mediums used, painting surfaces, paper towels, drinking water, hats, garbage bags, sunscreen and good humor.
Barbara will be on hand to offer suggestions during this recurring 2-hour program. Come to as many sessions as you like and please arrive by 1:30pm in order to have time to set up. Please register for the sessions you will be attending, so that we have an idea of how many artists to expect each week and so we may contact you if the program is canceled due to inclement weather.
This program is for adults only.
Please register in advance.

Juggling Class for Adults
2025-08-19 17:30 - 18:30 | Bacon Free Library – 58 Eliot Street Natick, MA 01760 United States
Come to the Bacon Free Library to learn some basic juggling skills in this fun outdoor class from our neighbors at Eastern Acrobatics! This session is for adults.
Registration is required.
In case of inclement weather, the program will be held at Eastern Acrobatics (28 Eliot St.).

F1: The Movie
2025-08-19 19:30 - 2025-08-20 19:30 | The Center for Arts in Natick (TCAN), 14 Summer Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Dubbed “The Greatest That Never Was,” Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt) was Formula 1’s most promising phenom of the 1990s until an accident on the track nearly ended his career. Thirty years later, he’s a nomadic racer-for-hire when he’s approached by his former teammate Ruben Cervantes (Javier Bardem), owner of a struggling Formula 1 team that is on the verge of collapse.
Ruben convinces Sonny to come back to Formula 1 for one last shot at saving the team and being the best in the world. He’ll drive alongside Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris), the team’s hotshot rookie intent on setting his own pace. But as the engines roar, Sonny’s past catches up with him and he finds that in Formula 1, your teammate is your fiercest competition–and the road to redemption is not something you can travel alone.
Directed by Joseph Kosinski (Top Gun: Maverick, Tron: Legacy), F1: The Movie is garnering high praise for its intense racing sequences, stunning visuals, and immersive experience, particularly when viewed on a large screen. Hans Zimmer’s score, combined with the realistic engine and track sounds, elevates the racing sequences, creating a visceral and immersive experience.
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Cast: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Javier Bardem, Kerry Condon
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 2 hours 35 mins
Released: June 27, 2025
Format: DCP
Audio: 7.1 Surround
Accessibility: Z-Screen subtitles, Audio Description (headphones), Assisted Listening (headphones)
Visit: f1themovie.com

VIRTUAL: George Boutwell – The Most Consequential American Political Figure You’ve Never Heard Of
2025-08-20 19:00 - 20:00 | Bacon Free Library – 58 Eliot Street Natick, MA 01760 United States
Listen in as historian Jeffrey S. Boutwell discusses his new biography, Boutwell: Radical Republican and Champion of Democracy.
George S. Boutwell is the most consequential American political figure you’ve probably never heard of. For seven decades, George Boutwell sought to “redeem America’s promise” through racial equality, economic equity, and the humane use of American power abroad. During his career from 1839 to 1905, he was Governor of Massachusetts, served in the U.S. House and Senate, was Treasury Secretary for Ulysses Grant, and Commissioner of Internal Revenue for Abraham Lincoln, he also helped create the Republican Party in the 1850s, and challenged the efforts of Presidents McKinley and Teddy Roosevelt to annex the Philippines in 1900 following the Spanish-American war. Boutwell was instrumental in framing the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, initiating the impeachment of Andrew Johnson, and investigating white vigilante violence against blacks in Mississippi in the 1870s.
This virtual program will be held in collaboration with the Bacon Free Library and the Ashland Public Library. It is sponsored by the Friends of the Ashland Public Library.
Please register here for the Zoom link.

Matt Schofield
2025-08-21 20:00 - 22:00 | The Center for Arts in Natick (TCAN), 14 Summer Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
British born and now US-based, Matt Schofield continues to push the frontiers and reshape the boundaries of the British Blues tradition. A multi-award winning guitar virtuoso, singer, songwriter, producer and band leader, after more than 30 years of performing, and 20 years into his solo career, Schofield’s impact as one of the most influential and distinctive guitarists of his generation is unquestionable.
Along with a storied career that has taken him and his band to nearly 30 countries worldwide comes awards, industry and critical acclaim – three time “British Blues Guitarist of the Year,” “British Blues Album of the Year,” and the first guitarist inducted into the “British Blues Awards Hall of Fame”. Mojo Magazine “Blues Album of the Year” and Guitar “Bass Magazines” Top Ten British Blues Guitarist of All Time” alongside Eric Clapton and Peter Green.
Visit: mattschofield.com

Jammin With You
2025-08-22 10:30 - 11:00 | Bacon Free Library – 58 Eliot Street Natick, MA 01760 United States
Be prepared to laugh, dance, sing, and jam your way through 30 minutes of non-stop family fun! This performance is geared toward kids ages 1 – 7, but fun for the whole family. With modern takes on children’s classics and classic original tunes, you’ll be humming and bopping all the way home.
This program will be held outdoors at the Bacon Free Library. If it rains, the program will be moved to the Morse Institute Library.

Sponsored by Middlesex Savings Bank

Clothing Swap
2025-08-23 10:00 - 15:00 | Common Street Spiritual Center
Bring your clean, unwanted clothes in good condition to swap with your neighbors.
If you don’t have any clothes to swap, feel free to come and get some clothes anyway.
Any clothes left over at the end of the swap will be donated. Please bring no more than one bag of clothes per person.
Event hosted by Natick is United and Mutual Aid Natick.

2025 Multicultural Day
2025-08-23 11:00 - 14:00 | Natick Common
The Natick Center Cultural District is pleased to announce Multicultural Day on August 23 from 11:00 AM-2:00 PM on the Natick Common. This event highlights the diversity and cultures in our community.

Enjoy delicious food from Mashal’s Kitchen, Mig’s Dogs, Baha Mexican, and Kona Ice.
The Event Schedule of music and dance performances.

Visit a variety of cultural booths for fun activities and educational opportunities!

Anokh
Association of Romanians in New England
Black Lives Belong
Boston Language Hub
Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation of USA
Framingham Akikai
Horizon of Opportunities
Ming Hui Academy Boston
Morse Institute Library
Natick Health Department/Natick 180
Natick is United
Paper Fiesta
SOAR Natick
SPARK Kindness
Tins, Trunks & Trousseau
Walnut Hill School for the Arts

To be a part of Multicultural Day, please fill out this Google Form here.
.

Stephen Kellogg: Old Friends Tour with Javier Colon
2025-08-23 20:00 - 22:30 | The Center for Arts in Natick (TCAN), 14 Summer Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
A Stephen Kellogg performance is like watching Ted Lasso live. Whether he’s playing music or doing stand-up, his shows leave people inspired and restored. For more than two decades, this wordsmith, TedX speaker, stand-up comic, author, and troubadour, has delighted audiences around the world. Planet Bluegrass calls him “a first-class songwriter with a poet’s gift for fresh imagery,” and Counting Crows frontman Adam Duritz says of Kellogg, “there are few people in rock n’ roll who are just so great.” He has received the Armed Forces Entertainer of the Year award and has had his work nominated for a Grammy.
Rolling Stone magazine describes his sound as “John Prine fronting the Heartbreakers.” The recent “Sit Down & Stand Up” Tour was a one-man show that opened to rave reviews from fans and critics alike, culminating in a two-night filming for a forthcoming one-hour comedy special. A mix of music, humor, and storytelling, each performance paints a unique canvas that covers the full spectrum of human emotions. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, and you’ll go home with a full heart.
Blessed with a stunningly soulful voice, an uncanny songwriting talent, a charismatic personality, and a commanding stage presence, co-headliner Javier Colon has already won the attention of an international fan base that’s embraced his personally-charged, acoustic-textured blend of pop, rock, and R&B, an effortlessly distinctive style that he’s dubbed “acoustic soul”.
Visit: stephenkellogg.com javiercolon.com

Superman
2025-09-03 14:00 - 2025-09-07 16:00 | The Center for Arts in Natick (TCAN), 14 Summer Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
“James Gunn’s new ‘Superman’ film earns a glowing five-star review, revitalizing the iconic character by embracing vulnerability, humor, and hopeful optimism.” – Tom Shone, Film Critic – The Times (UK)
Superman, DC Studios’ first feature film to hit the big screen, is set to soar into theaters worldwide this summer from Warner Bros. Pictures. In his signature style, James Gunn takes on the original superhero in the newly imagined DC universe with a singular blend of epic action, humor and heart, delivering a Superman who’s driven by compassion and an inherent belief in the goodness of humankind.
When Superman gets drawn into conflicts at home and abroad, his actions are questioned, giving tech billionaire Lex Luthor the opportunity to get the Man of Steel out of the way for good. Will intrepid reporter Lois Lane and Superman’s four-legged companion, Krypto, be able to help him before it’s too late?
In 2022, James Gunn and Peter Safran were appointed as co-CEOs of DC Studios, a newly formed division within Warner Bros. Discovery. This is part of a larger overhaul of the DC movie and TV franchises, intended to create a more unified, cohesive cinematic universe, similar to what Marvel Studios has done with the MCU. The shift to DC Studios is a way to reset the franchise under a more strategic and creative direction, with a focus on interconnected storytelling.
Director: James Gunn
Cast: David Corenswet, Rachel Brosnahan, Nicholas Hoult
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 2 hours 9 mins
Released: July 11, 2025
Format: DCP
Audio: 7.1 Surround
Accessibility: Z-Screen subtitles, Audio Description (headphones), Assisted Listening (headphones)
Visit: superman.com
SREENINGS:
Wednesday, September 3, 2025 | 2:00pm
Wednesday, September 3, 2025 | 7:30pm
Thursday, September 4, 2025 | 7:30pm
Saturday, September 6, 2025 | 2:00pm
Sunday, September 7, 2025 | 4:00pm

Robin Baratz Oil Paintings
2025-09-04 08:00 - 17:00 | Bacon Free Library – 58 Eliot Street Natick, MA 01760 United States
Robin Baratz creates oil paintings that depict her instinctive connection to natural land and water and to the people. She motors and sails to reach and capture countrysides, harbors, and cityscapes of the United States, Ireland, Scotland, Europe, and Canada on her canvas. But, no matter what the actual locales, the scenes have broad appeal, reminding us of people and places we remember fondly.
Come to the Bacon Free Library to view her work, which will be on display from August 28th through October 9th. You can also enjoy this collection of oil paintings at The Center for Arts in Natick (TCAN) during the month of November.

Jammin with You
2025-09-05 10:30 - 11:00 | Bacon Free Library – 58 Eliot Street Natick, MA 01760 United States
Be prepared to laugh, dance, sing, and jam your way through 30 minutes of non-stop family fun at the Bacon Free Library! This performance is geared toward kids ages 1 – 7, but fun for the whole family. With modern takes on children’s classics and classic original tunes, you’ll be humming and bopping all the way home.
This program will be held outdoors on the BFL lawn, so bring a blanket or chairs. In case of rainy or cold weather (under 45 degrees), it will be rescheduled.

Instrument Petting Zoo
2025-09-06 11:00 - 12:00 | Bacon Free Library – 58 Eliot Street Natick, MA 01760 United States
The Bacon Free Library is partnering with Bach to Rock (B2R) in Wellesley to bring you this instrument petting zoo. B2R will bring a variety of musical instruments to the Bacon for 60 minutes of instrument exploration to give people of all ages a chance to learn about instruments and experience playing them. This event will be held outdoors at our picnic table.
Please stop by to try out an instrument, or two, that you’re curious about. No registration required.

Virtual: Author Heather Wolf Discusses the Colors of Birds – Beauty and/or Evolutionary Advantage?
2025-09-08 19:00 - 20:00 | Bacon Free Library – 58 Eliot Street Natick, MA 01760 United States
Join Heather Wolf, author of Find More Birds and Birding at the Bridge, as she shares her beautiful images of colorful birds. We’ll discuss the birds, their colors, and the purpose of their colorful feathers, as well as evolutionary advantages they may have because of their plumage. We hope you can join us for another great discussion!
This virtual program is brought to you by the Bacon Free Library in collaboration with a multitude of MA & NH libraries, and is sponsored by the Friends of the Ashland Public Library.
Please register here for the Zoom link.
About the Author
Heather Wolf is a Brooklyn-based birder, photographer, and educator. She works with the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as a web developer, teaches birding classes at Brooklyn Botanic Garden, and gives walks and talks for various organizations in New York City and beyond. Heather started birding on Florida’s Gulf Coast and has been an avid eBirder ever since. In 2016, she published Birding at the Bridge: In Search of Every Bird on the Brooklyn Waterfront, her photographic journey to document every bird in her Brooklyn, New York, patch. And in 2023, she published Find More Birds: 111 Surprising Ways to Spot Birds Wherever You Are.
If you’d like to purchase a signed copy of Heather’s book, you can do so through Aesop’s Fable. In the comment section of checkout, note that you would like your book to come with a signed bookplate.

Note: This program will be recorded and a link will be sent to all registrants soon after the program. It will be available on YouTube for one month.

Virtual: Whole Grains for Everyday with Empty Nest Kitchen
2025-09-09 19:00 - 20:00 | Bacon Free Library – 58 Eliot Street Natick, MA 01760 United States
Whole grains are simple to incorporate into your dinners if you know the tips and tricks to coax out maximum flavor. We’ll be preparing farro bowls and fall harvest quinoa. Whether you’re a seasoned cook or just starting out, this class offers practical skills and tasty recipes to incorporate whole grains into your daily diet. Join us to enhance your cooking repertoire and embrace the wholesome goodness of barley, farro, and oats!
This virtual program will be led by Chef Christine of The Empty Nest Kitchen and is hosted by the Bacon Free Library.
Please register to receive the meeting link.

Latino Night
2025-09-10 18:00 - 21:00 | The Center for Arts in Natick (TCAN), 14 Summer Street, Natick, MA, 01760, United States
Network, Learn, Celebrate!
Join us in celebrating our Hispanic and Latino community in the MetroWest. Hear from Latino entrepreneurs, business owners and experience Latino music performances.
This event celebrates our Hispanic and Latino community, but we invite everyone to attend!
