Things to do in Dayton | Restaurants, Theatre, Music and More
The Menus offer a wild, side-splitting hilarious show combined with musical content profoundly orchestrated. This concert is a crowd pleaser extraordinaire and features adult humor that may be unsuitable for younger audiences.
Concerts are held at the Stubbs Park Amphitheater, 255 W. Spring Valley Road. Concerts begin at 7 p.m., except where otherwise noted. The amphitheater offers lawn seating only, so bring your blanket or chairs.
All concerts are free and open to the public.
June is PRDIE month a celebration to recognize the sweeping impact that LGBT individuals, advocates and allies have on history in the United States and around the globe, according to the Library of Congress.
The month of June was chosen for LGBT Pride Month to commemorate the riots held by members of the LGBT community against a police raid that took place at the Stonewall Inn in New York City on June 28, 1969. The Stonewall riots were a “tipping point” for the gay liberation movement in the United States. The uproar also paved the way for the modern fight for LGBT rights. Dayton Pride is this weekend with a Friday’s Affair at the Square from 6-10pm featuring 3 bands and The Rubi Girls. Saturday starts with a reverse parade down Second Street from 10-11am and food, drink, vendor booths and live entertainment at Courthouse Square from noon-4pm.
Many Dayton area bars are joining together to show their pride, by offering drinks specials that will donate a portion of sales to the Greater Dayton LGBT Center for the entire month of June.
Crystal Head Vodka is proud to be an ongoing supporter of the LGBTQ+ community. and is the official Vodka sponsor of Dayton Pride. They’ve just released a limited-edition Pride bottle. The 2021 Pride bottle release contains our original vodka, distilled 4 times from the highest quality, locally-sourced Canadian corn. Silky smooth with a hint of sweetness and vanilla. Filtered through Herkimer diamonds and blended with pristine Newfoundland water. This pure spirit is completely free from additives and made with pride. As they explain it, “Colour plays a vital role in the world we live in, often used as a powerful communication tool and form of creative expression. Colour evokes feeling and has a direct link to creative thinking. Crystal Head Vodka is proud to bring creative spirits to life in celebration of diversity and equality with our newest limited-edition release. We are committed to supporting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and related communities through our continuous involvement with LGBTQ+ foundations, charities and organizations.”
Billy Cavallo, the East Coast Brand Ambassador for Crystal Head, will be in Dayton this weekend to celebrate PRIDE, and visiting many of the bars supporting the LGBT Center promotion. The following bar have all committed to show their Pride:
Meet Warped Wing’s Pride-a-Rita, a refreshing beer cocktail that blends Milagro silver tequila, passionfruit syrup, Magic Melon Gose, and triple sec. This tasty cocktail is on special for the entire month of June. Show your pride and try one at either Taproom!
Lisa Smith Richards and her husband, Shawn, are busy people! They opened Chaffee’s Brewhouse in Tipp City last year during the COVID epidemic, and they run their own farm. At their Hop Farm at Lock Sixteen, they grow their own hops for use in the Chaffee’s beers and for other customers like Mother Stewart’s brewery in Springfield. Shawn also owns a company that builds draft beer delivery systems for bars and restaurants.
Located just steps from the Great Miami River Recreation Trail, you can find Chaffee’s Brewhouse at 15 S. Second Street in downtown Tipp City. They love to welcome cyclists. “We have a group of about ten cyclists who come in at least twice a month after their Friday ride on the bike trail. Both my husband and I are runners and cyclists and we want to highlight that proximity as a way to grow our business” says Lisa
Named after Sidney Chaffee, who ran a distillery in the 1870’s in the same location where the brewhouse now resides. According to Dayton beer historian Tim Gaffney, Chaffee was an infamous Miami Valley businessman was once charged by the federal government with evading taxes after moving 200,000 gallons of spirits down the nearby Ohio Erie Canal without paying taxes.
According to Lisa, Shawn worked in the brewery industry in North Carolina, and they decided downtown Tipp City was the perfect place for a locally-owned brewery. “We felt like downtown Tipp City needed a brewpub, and we hope it also helps the economic momentum for other businesses as well,” she said. “We started construction in February of last year and then in March everything shut down. But we decided to just keep going, keep moving forward.”
Owners Lisa Smith-Richards and her husband, Shawn Richards. Photo by Tom Gilliam
They built the place themselves. Chaffee’s bar was built with wood sourced directly from Shawn’s local family farm. And given Shawn’s knowledge of draft beer systems, he designed and built the tap system that can handle 18 different beers.
As more people get vaccinated, and life begins to turn toward normal, Lisa says they’ve been able to welcome visitors safely back to the brewery. “We don’t want to be one of those places that packs hordes of people in. We want people to enjoy our beer, wine, and cocktails and be able to talk to each other”.
Tipp City, with the support of the Downtown Tipp City Partnership, recently instituted a DORA (Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area) that includes Chaffee’s. “The DORA is working really well for us and other businesses. It’s a great way for local businesses in Tipp City to draw customers,” Lisa said.
The Great Miami Riverway Brew Trail includes 13 locally-owned craft breweries from Sidney to Hamilton, and Chaffee’s is a great addition to this trail. Congratulations to Lisa and Shawn on the opening of this great new asset to Tipp City.
Find Your Way…to Chaffee’s Brewhouse on the Great Miami Riverway!
15 S Second Street
Tipp City Ohio 45371
Hours:
Monday – Thursday 4 pm to 10ish
Friday 2 pm to 10ish
Saturday 12 pm to 10ish
Artwork by Jason Goad
In every city there is a person who quietly puts together community events that benefit local charities, promotes artists and builds up others. In Dayton, that’s Mary Kathryn Burnside. When I worked for AIDS Resource Center (now Equitas Health) she was always volunteering her time to come up with creative ways to help us do the theme reveal party, coordinating models and costumes. She’s hosted art shows at her Oregon District store Clash Dayton and put together amazing fashion shows launching local designers and models.
Now it’s our turn to support her. Mary Kathryn was diagnosed with breast cancer in January. And like so many entrepreneurs, she did not have insurance. She quickly racked up huge bills for testing and a double mastectomy.
The community that she has spent years nurturing has come together to launch a benefit auction with the an opening tonight at the Circles Art Studio at Front Street from 5-10p. Here’s just a peek at some of the items up for bid:
All artwork and jewelry will be online at https://app.galabid.com/maryclash/items so please register and bid on amazing donated items from our caring community of artists and local businesses! Closing show and auctions on June 19th.
As one of the best-selling bands in history, Queen has been considered a rock ’n’ roll icon since the 1970s. With over four decades of music and 18 number-one albums to their credit, they are recognized as one of the most influential British rock bands of all time. Dayton favorites Jeans ’n Classics joins the Dayton Philharmonic to pay homage to Freddie Mercury and Queen for a Rockin’ Orchestra concert to bring the DPAA Reimagined Season to its “we-will-rock-you” end.
The artists whose work will be up for bid are some of Dayton’s most notable including Zachary Armstrong, Willis “Bing” Davis, Katherine Kadish, Evelyn Mahrt, Mychaelyn Michalec, Richard Malogorski, and Bruce Soifer. Additionally, The Co’s new curator, Michael Goodson, has added an impressive list of work from nationally-renowned artists including Ann Hamilton, Ohio resident and celebrated “sensory” and fabric installation artist; Donald Moffett, New York AIDS-era activist, designer, and celebrated painter; Carrie Moyer, New York artist and Whitney Biennial Alum, best known for her vividly-colored and textured abstract paintings; American photojournalist/photo-anthropologist, Bill Owens, whose 1973 book Suburbia is considered one of the seminal photobooks of the 20st century and features, in newer editions, a forward essay by filmmaker Sofia Coppola; Detroit-based artist Beverly Fishman who creates powerful abstract paintings that address technology and the pharmaceutical industry; and Brooklyn painter, Fred Tomaselli, who is represented by one of his infamous silkscreens in which he colorfully reimagines the events of Hurricane Katrina on the front page of The New York Times. Each of these works will be accompanied by a monographic book signed by each artist.
Willis Bing Davis, Ancestral Spirit Dance #588, 2018, oil pastel, 40 x 32 in. Image: John Sousa
Simultaneously, The Co will present an Online Auction beginning on June 23 through June 27, 2021 with over 60 works of art that represent a curated selection of the most accomplished and compelling artists in the area, as well as a selection of virtual and in-person art encounters. Virtual art encounter packages include a Guided Watercolor Painting Lesson; Wine Tasting with Argentinian and Tuscan Selections; a Q&A with the elite of Broadway’s theatrical professionals; a Coaching-Vocal-Choreography Session; and a Grandmaster Chess Lesson. In-person packages include Glassblowing with Jim DeLange; a Custom Mural by Mural Machine; and Exclusive Columbus and Cincinnati Art Tour with The Co’s Curator. Viewing and bidding on artwork and experiences is available at no cost, but you must register to bid.
Katherine Kadish, Falling Flowers 16, 2012, wax monotype, 41 x 33 in. Image: John Sousa
Additionally, The Co will offer a Grand Prize Raffle for the chance to win the opportunity to host the first Cocktail Party in The Co’s New Galleries for up to 25 guests and includes select wines, craft beers, light bites, and music. Grand Prize Raffle Tickets are available now at The Co’s downtown location or at thecontemporarydayton.org and are $25 each or 5 for $100.
