FAQ — Middlebury Festival on the Green

The Festival is held on the Middlebury Village Green. We have a tent that seats over 200 and covers a large performance stage. The tent is surrounded by lawn with unlimited seating, perfect for family picnics and relaxed viewing. There’s a state-of-the-art sound system bringing music to everyone inside the tent and throughout the park.

All events are held rain or shine. Some of our most exciting performances have been where the performers and audience are all under the tent while it rained. However, in the event of severe weather, we will use Town Hall Theater for our performances.

Please consult our website on “show day” where will post if an event is delayed, moved to an alternate venue.

The Festival is free to attend, as it has been for over 45 years! But, as you can imagine, there are significant expenses to produce a week of entertainment. Although everyone who works on the Festival volunteers their time, we do pay all our performers and out tech team. So we "pass the hat" at each show and encourage everyone attending to give whatever they can to help support the Festival. We also sell a limited amount of merchandise such as t-shirts and hats. In addition we solicit donations and sponsorships from the community, apply for grants, get “in kind” donations and fundraise so that we can continue to make the festivals free to all who want to come. Check out our “Support” page for more info.

Parking is available on Main Street, Merchants Row, and on Seymour Street and in the municipal parking lot below the Ilsley Library.

More parking info:

Middlebury town parking page

There are chairs available under and around the performance tent. You are also welcome to bring your own blankets and low-profile lawn chairs to pick your unique viewing location around the Village Green.

For festival-goers seeking close by drop-off/pickup, please feel free to access the designated area via Main St near the entrance of St Stephen’s Episcopal Church.

For those with accessibility needs, please contact us in advance via email to make arrangements: info@festivalonthegreen.org

Since the Festival is located downtown, we encourage everyone to visit any one of the many fine restaurants Middlebury has to offer. Check out the Addison Chamber of Commerce Restaurant & Food Guide.

A limited number of vendors will be on hand at the Festival site offering meals, snacks, drinks and desserts.

Mexico in Vermont will be serving authentic sweet and savory Mexican cuisine made right here in Vermont on most evenings.

Middlebury Volunteer Ambulance Association Alumni will be serving snacks, drinks and ice cream.

Picnic, food, nonalcoholic beverages, low-profile lawn chairs, blankets, sunglasses, bug spray, family, friends, and dancing shoes!

Alcohol - The Town of Middlebury prohibits the possession of open containers holding alcoholic beverages on any Town Property. For more information, please refer to the town ordinance.

No Cannabis/Tobacco use - The use of cannabis/tobacco or any derived products is prohibited on the Village Green while attending the festival.

Illegal drugs/substances - The use of Illegal drugs/substances is prohibited on the Village Green while attending the festival.

Please respect these regulations while attending the Middlebury Summer Festival on-the-Green.

Leashed, calm, and quiet dogs are allowed on the green. If your dog is making noise or otherwise disturbing your neighbors’ experience of the music, we do ask that you take your dog home.

Please reference the Town of Middlebury Town Ordinance Regarding the Control of Dogs and Wolf Hybrids.

There are many opportunities to volunteer throughout the year as well as at the Festival. If you are interested, check out the Volunteer page.

To gain better insight on what the Town of Middlebury and Addison County has to offer festival goers, check out the Addison County Chamber of Commerce.