Calendar of events
Events listed here are for the Local Cleveland Area.
Entertainment is a part of a healthy full life. Those with small children know best, a small time spent focused on something new and exciting goes a long way in building memories.
Cleveland Institute of Music - Free Concerts
Cleveland Institute of Music
11021 East Blvd.
Cleveland, OH 44106
General: 216 791-5000
Free Concerts:
The Cleveland Institute of Music presents over 500 concerts each year, most of them FREE to the public. In addition to student musicians and music groups, past performers have included YoYo Ma, Issac Stern, and Emmanuel Ax. Concerts are held at the Institute as well as other churches, country clubs, and facilities around greater Cleveland.
The Cleveland Orchestra, arguably the "Best Orchestra in the World," makes itself accessible to the citizens of its home town with several free community concerts throughout the year. The most popular of these is the July 4th weekend concert, held annually on Public Square. Hundreds of thousands of Clevelanders come out to sit under the stars and hear the
Orchestra play Tchaikovsky's "1812 Orchestra," among other selections, accompanied by fireworks.
Lions and tigers and bears, oh my! Cuyahoga County residents can see them and more for free each
Monday at the Cleveland Metroparks
Zoo.
Residents should bring a driver's license, state ID, or utility bill with their address. Offer applies to the zoo only, not the Rain Forest, but there's plenty to see at the zoo, including the "Australian Adventure" and the "Wolf Wilderness" exhibits. Parking is always free at the zoo.
Each summer, from mid-June to the end of August, the cultural institutions of
University Circle sponsor a series of free Wednesday concerts, rangings from jazz to big-band to classical. Most of the events are in the evening with a couple of lunchtime concerts added. In addition to music, many of the area's museums offer extended hours and discounted admission and area restaurants offer samples of their cuisine.
The Nature Center at Shaker Lakes, founded in 1966, is a peaceful green space nestled among the gracious houses of
Shaker Heights, just each of Cleveland. The facility features a variety of trails that illustrate six natural habitats, as well as a nature center with exhibits about the Northeast Ohio landscape. Best of all, admission is free.
Cleveland's Rockefeller Park Greenhouse, located just off of Martin Luther King Blvd near
University Circle, is a wonderful collection of exotic and native plants. Admission to the greenhouse is free and highlights include the extensive orchid and tropical plant exhibits as well as the spring bulb and December holiday plants displays.
The Nasa Glenn Research Center is a vital part of the NASA system. Located near the
Cleveland Hopkins Airport on Brookpark Road, the visitors' center features 6000 square feet of exhibit space, with interactive exhibits on the center's namesake,
John Glenn, as well as on the Apollo Era, space flight, and the space shuttles. The center is FREE and open every day. Admission is limited to US citizens (for security reasons) and all visitors age 16 and older must show a government-issued photo ID.
International Women's Air and Space Museum The International Women's Air and Space Museum, located inside the lobby and west wing of downtown Cleveland's Burke Lakefront Airport, celebrates the contribution of women in air and space flight with a rotating schedule of temporary exhibits. The museum is open seven days a week and FREE to the public. Plans are in the works for a permanent exhibit about the aborted Mercury 13 - all women's space program.
Hungarian Heritage Museum
This small, friendly, and colorful museum is located on the second floor of the Galleria, adjacent to the Erieview Tower, on East Ninth St. The museum features changing exhibits about the history, art, and culture of Cleveland's Hungarian community. The museum is free and open Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday from 11am to 3pm, and on Saturday from 11am to 5pm.