Section
Arts & Culture
Arts & Culture
Free Event at Fairgrounds August 30 Brings Crow Scholar, Cavalry History to Helena
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
The 2nd U.S. Cavalry Association and Humanities Montana are co-hosting a free public event at the Lewis and Clark County Fairgrounds on Saturday, August 30, billed as a celebration of Montana territorial history. The centerpiece of this year's program is a presentation by Dr. Lanny Real Bird, a Crow Nation scholar whose work focuses on Indigenous history and the intersection of Native and settler experience in the Northern Plains and Rocky Mountain West.
Arts & Culture
'Shrek The Musical' Stomps Onto the Grandstreet Stage This Summer
1 source · helenaevents.com · 06:47
Grandstreet Theatre is bringing Shrek The Musical to Helena audiences this summer, staging the Broadway-rooted show based on the Oscar-winning DreamWorks animated film. The production follows Shrek, a solitary ogre, as he sets out to reclaim his swamp and winds up on an unlikely adventure alongside a relentless talking donkey and a princess who isn't exactly what the fairy tales promised.
Arts & Culture
Humanities Montana Brings Crow Scholar to Lewis and Clark Fairgrounds for Free Territorial Celebration Aug. 30
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
A free public event celebrating the history of the Montana Territory comes to the Lewis and Clark County Fairgrounds on Sunday, August 30, featuring Crow Nation scholar Dr. Lanny Real Bird as a special guest presenter. The event is co-hosted by the 2nd U.S. Cavalry Association and Humanities Montana, two organizations that don't often share a stage — and that pairing alone signals something worth showing up for.
Arts & Culture
Free Summer Series Continues at Blackfoot Pathways Sculpture Park in Lincoln
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
Every Saturday through Labor Day, Blackfoot Pathways: Sculpture in the Wild in Lincoln is hosting free live entertainment inside the park's iconic TeePee Burner — the repurposed wood-waste incinerator that has become one of the most distinctive cultural landmarks in the mountains west of Helena. This Saturday, August 29, is the next installment of the Summer Series, which brings music, performance, and family-friendly programming into the sculpture park's outdoor space.
Arts & Culture
Red Ink Players Return to Grizzly Gardens for Second Annual Murder Mystery Dinner
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
Red Ink Players are back at Grizzly Gardens for the second annual Murder Mystery Dinner, running August 28 and 29. This year's production is titled "Fix It In Post Mortem" — a title that suggests the group's sense of humor about the genre is intact. Tickets are $100 and must be purchased in advance; organizers say tickets will not be available at the door.
Arts & Culture
Shrek The Musical Coming to Grandstreet Theatre This Summer
1 source · helenaevents.com · 06:46
Grandstreet Theatre is staging Shrek The Musical this summer, bringing the DreamWorks fairy tale to the Last Chance Gulch stage for audiences of all ages. The production follows the familiar story of Shrek, a grumpy ogre who sets out to reclaim his swamp with the help of a fast-talking Donkey, and along the way encounters a cast of fairy tale misfits including Princess Fiona.
Arts & Culture
Archie Bray Foundation Hosts Annual Brickyard Bash This Saturday with Live Music, Food Trucks
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:46
The Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts is holding its annual Brickyard Bash on Saturday, July 25, with free admission to the historic brickyard campus on Country Club Avenue. The evening event brings together food trucks, beverages, and live music from Helena band Big Sky Mudflaps for what has become one of the summer's more relaxed community gatherings on the Bray's grounds.
Arts & Culture
Shrek The Musical Coming to Grandstreet Theatre This Season
1 source · helenaevents.com · 06:47
Grandstreet Theatre is bringing Shrek The Musical to its stage, giving Helena families a chance to see the DreamWorks story live with a cast of fairy tale characters in full green-skinned production. The show follows the grumpy ogre Shrek as he sets out to reclaim his swamp, accompanied by a fast-talking Donkey and a roster of misfit characters from the animated films.
Arts & Culture
Montana Clay Tour Returns This Weekend with 40-Plus Artists Across Six Helena Studios
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
The 2026 Montana Clay Tour runs Saturday and Sunday, July 25 and 26, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day, with six host studios across the Helena area opening their doors for what has become one of the region's premier ceramic arts events. Admission is free and open to the public.
Arts & Culture
Helena's Arts Scene Is Having a Moment — and It's Not Just One Venue
edition · 09:01
If you felt like there was a lot going on culturally in Helena this week, you weren't imagining it. Grandstreet Theatre's production of Shrek the Musical appeared in no fewer than three separate daily stories this week — a signal that the show is generating real community buzz and that the theater is leaning hard into promotion for what it's billing as a family centerpiece of the summer season. But Grandstreet wasn't alone. The Archie Bray Foundation's annual Brickyard Bash returned Saturday with a homecoming theme, the Montana Clay Tour opened more than 40 artists across six Helena-area studios for a full weekend, the Helena Symphony announced its season opener built around the nation's 250th anniversary, and Grammy-nominated pianist Judy Carmichael is coming to town. Free trivia at Mt. Ascension Brewing, the East Helena Food Truck Festival, a classic car show at AAA Helena, and the ongoing free concert series at Sculpture in the Wild in Lincoln rounded out the calendar. The pattern is hard to miss: Helena's arts and community event infrastructure is firing on all cylinders this summer, offering residents options nearly every day of the week across a wide range of budgets — including plenty of free ones.
Arts & Culture
Montana Clay Tour Brings 40-Plus Artists to Six Helena-Area Studios This Weekend
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
The 2026 Montana Clay Tour runs Saturday and Sunday, July 25 and 26, with six host studios across the Helena area opening their doors to the public from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. The tour is free and features pottery, ceramic sculpture, and installation art by more than 40 artists. No tickets are required.
Arts & Culture
Archie Bray Foundation's Brickyard Bash Returns Saturday with Homecoming Theme
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
The Archie Bray Foundation is hosting its annual summer party on Saturday, July 25, this year under the theme "Homecoming." Dubbed the Brickyard Bash and Auction, the event takes place on the Bray's historic brickyard campus and is one of the Helena arts community's signature summer gatherings. Tickets are $15.
Arts & Culture
Grandstreet Theatre Brings 'Shrek The Musical' to the Stage
1 source · helenaevents.com · 06:46
Grandstreet Theatre is staging Shrek The Musical, the Broadway adaptation of the Oscar-winning DreamWorks film, offering Helena families a chance to see the beloved ogre and his fast-talking donkey companion come to life on a local stage. The production promises the full fairy tale misfit treatment — Shrek, Donkey, Princess Fiona, and the rest — in what the theater is billing as a show for all ages.
Arts & Culture
Free Monday Night Trivia Returns to Mt. Ascension Brewing
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:46
Mt. Ascension Brewing Co. is hosting free trivia every Monday night, with comedian Kaiser Leib running the show. The event is open to the public at no charge and has become a regular fixture on the Helena weekly calendar for regulars who want a low-key reason to be somewhere on a Monday.
Arts & Culture
Grandstreet Theatre Brings Shrek the Musical to Helena This Season
1 source · helenaevents.com · 06:46
Grandstreet Theatre is staging Shrek the Musical this season, bringing the DreamWorks fairy tale to its Helena stage in a production the theater is billing as suitable for all ages.
Arts & Culture
Grammy-Nominated Stride Pianist Judy Carmichael Coming to Helena
1 source · helenaevents.com · 06:46
Judy Carmichael, the Grammy-nominated pianist and vocalist whom Count Basie nicknamed "Stride" for her mastery of the technically demanding style, is scheduled to perform in Helena in an upcoming jazz concert.
Arts & Culture
Helena Symphony Opens Season with American Classics, Marks Nation's 250th
1 source · helenaevents.com · 06:46
The Helena Symphony opens its new season Saturday, September 12, with a Masterworks Concert at 5:30 p.m. built around the 250th anniversary of the United States — anchoring the program with two pillars of American classical music.
Arts & Culture
East Helena Food Truck Festival Returns August 13 at Main Street Park
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
East Helena's Food Truck Festival wraps up its summer run on Thursday, August 13, at Main Street Park, 105 Main Street. The free, family-friendly event is the last of three Thursday gatherings this summer — earlier dates were June 11 and July 9 — and bills itself as the largest food truck gathering in the area.
Arts & Culture
Free Summer Concert Series Continues Saturdays at Lincoln's Sculpture in the Wild
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
Blackfoot Pathways: Sculpture in the Wild in Lincoln is hosting free live entertainment every Saturday through Labor Day as part of its Summer Series, with the next performance set for August 15. The events take place inside the site's iconic TeePee Burner structure — the converted mill burner that has become one of the most distinctive outdoor gathering spaces in western Montana.
Arts & Culture
Shrek the Musical Comes to Grandstreet Theatre This Summer
1 source · helenaevents.com · 06:46
Grandstreet Theatre is staging Shrek the Musical this summer, bringing the DreamWorks animated film to life on the Walking Mall-adjacent stage with what the theater promises will be a production suited for all ages.
Arts & Culture
AAA Helena Hosts Second Annual Classic Car Show August 1
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:46
AAA Helena is holding its second annual Classic Car Show and Backyard Barbecue on Saturday, August 1, at the AAA Helena office. Admission is free for spectators, and registration for classic car owners is also free — though organizers say only a few spots remain for vehicles.
Arts & Culture
Anchor Park Is Becoming Helena's Summer Stage — And the Calendar Is Only Getting Fuller
edition · 09:01
Anchor Park showed up twice in this week's arts and culture coverage, and that's no accident. Montana Shakespeare in the Parks has the venue booked for 'The Merchant of Venice' on August 4, and String & Shadow Puppet Theater brought its free outdoor touring show there just this past Thursday. Add in Grandstreet Theatre's 'Shrek the Musical' — which appeared in two separate stories this week, making it one of the most-mentioned cultural events in the digest — the Myrna Loy's double bill of Sturtz and Heavy Diamond Ring on July 23, the East Helena Rodeo returning Saturday with free admission, and the Myrna Loy's Jazz in the Woods marking its 25th anniversary on August 2 near Rimini, and Helena's summer arts calendar looks less like a handful of scattered events and more like a sustained season. For residents, especially families, the through-line is accessibility: free admission or low-cost tickets anchor most of these events. Grandstreet Theatre and the Myrna Loy Center each appeared multiple times this week, and both are clearly leaning into summer as their highest-visibility programming window.
Arts & Culture
Shakespeare in the Parks Brings 'Merchant of Venice' to Anchor Park August 4
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
Montana Shakespeare in the Parks will perform William Shakespeare's "The Merchant of Venice" at Anchor Park on Tuesday, August 4, with the curtain going up at 6 p.m. Admission is free, and the company is encouraging people to arrive early for a pre-show performance before the main event.
Arts & Culture
Giant Outdoor Puppet Show Comes to Anchor Park Thursday — Free Admission
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
String & Shadow Puppet Theater brings its touring summer show to Anchor Park this Thursday, July 16, with free admission for everyone. The Olympia, Washington-based company has built a following in the Pacific Northwest for large-scale outdoor performances that mix puppetry styles, circus arts and original live music — the kind of show that tends to draw both kids who have never seen a puppet taller than they are and adults who forget they're standing on grass.
Arts & Culture
Sturtz and Heavy Diamond Ring Share the Myrna Loy Stage July 23
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
Two folk acts — Sturtz and Heavy Diamond Ring — will share the stage at the Myrna Loy on Thursday, July 23, for what the venue is billing as the biggest show of the summer. Tickets are $24.
Arts & Culture
Grandstreet Theatre Brings Shrek the Musical to Helena Stage
1 source · helenaevents.com · 06:48
Grandstreet Theatre is staging Shrek the Musical, the DreamWorks adaptation that puts the grumpy, swamp-dwelling ogre at the center of a full-scale Broadway-style production. The show is billed as family-friendly and follows Shrek's quest to reclaim his swamp, accompanied by a fast-talking Donkey and the full cast of fairy-tale misfits Helena audiences will recognize from the films.
Arts & Culture
Jazz in the Woods Marks 25th Year at Moose Creek Cabin Near Rimini
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:48
The Myrna Loy Center is bringing back Jazz in the Woods for its 25th anniversary on Sunday, August 2, at the historic Moose Creek Cabin near Rimini. The free event features the Wilbur Rehmann Quartet joined by guest student musicians — a pairing that has become a signature of the outdoor concert series, connecting working jazz musicians with emerging talent in one of the more scenic settings the Helena area has to offer.
Arts & Culture
East Helena Rodeo Returns Saturday With Free Admission at the Valley Arena
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:48
The East Helena Rodeo kicks off Saturday at the East Helena Rodeo Arena, with gates opening at 5 p.m. and free admission for all. The event carries more than six decades of history behind it — the first East Helena Rodeo was held in 1963, organized by VFW Post 10010, whose members leveled donated land from the American Smelting and Refining Company, built the original arena and facilities, and put on the inaugural show in what was then a working smelter town.
Arts & Culture
Helena's Summer Social Calendar Is Quietly Stacking Up
edition · 09:00
Amid a week heavy with legal disputes and policy fights, a quieter trend took shape across the arts and community calendar: Helena has a genuinely full summer lineup, and much of it is free. The Helena Symphony's Symphony Under the Stars returns to Carroll College on July 18, a perennial anchor of the summer season. Headwaters Craft House is launching free Monday night game nights starting August 3. Young adult author Sonido Reyes visits Montana Book Company on Last Chance Gulch on July 28. The Last Chance Street Dance brought crowds back to the Walking Mall on Wednesday. And out in Lincoln, Blackfoot Pathways: Sculpture in the Wild is running free Saturday concerts all the way through Labor Day. Carroll College logged 19 mentions this week — nearly all tied to the Symphony concert — and Last Chance Gulch appeared 47 times across the week's coverage as the connective tissue of Helena's downtown activity. What the pattern suggests is that local organizers, venues, and arts groups are betting on a summer where Helena residents want to be outside and together, heat advisory or not. Given the turnout at Wednesday's Street Dance, that bet looks like it's paying off.
Arts & Culture
Symphony Under the Stars Returns to Carroll College on July 18
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
The Helena Symphony's annual Symphony Under the Stars concert returns to Carroll College on Saturday, July 18, with gates opening for an 8:30 p.m. performance and a fireworks finale to close the night. Admission is free.
Arts & Culture
Headwaters Craft House Launches Free Monday Night Game Nights Starting August 3
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
Headwaters Craft House is launching a free weekly game night every Monday starting August 3, giving Helena residents a no-cost, low-key reason to gather mid-week. The event is open to all, with the bar supplying its own games alongside space for people to bring their own or play Jackbox party games as a group.
Arts & Culture
Young Adult Author Sonido Reyes Visits Montana Book Company July 28
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
Montana Book Company on Last Chance Gulch is hosting young adult author Sonido Reyes on Tuesday, July 28, for a conversation with Emmon Rogers, the teen services librarian at Lewis & Clark Library. Admission is free.
Arts & Culture
Free Summer Concert Series Runs Every Saturday at Blackfoot Pathways in Lincoln
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
Blackfoot Pathways: Sculpture in the Wild in Lincoln, Montana, is running a free Saturday concert and performance series through Labor Day, with shows held inside the site's iconic TeePee Burner structure.
Arts & Culture
Travis Tritt Coming to Lewis and Clark County Fairgrounds July 22
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:48
Grammy-winning country artist Travis Tritt will play the Lewis and Clark County Fairgrounds on Wednesday, July 22, bringing one of country music's most recognizable catalogs to Helena for a live concert. Tickets are priced between $50 and $85.
Arts & Culture
Helena's Summer Arts Calendar Is Quietly Becoming a Real Thing
edition · 09:01
Three arts and culture stories in a single week might not sound like a pattern, but in Helena, it represents something worth naming: the city's summer entertainment calendar is getting denser, more varied, and more ambitious. Carroll College's Alive at Five series is bringing bluegrass to the Lewis & Clark Tap Room in July, with North Fork Crossing headlining a show that fits neatly into the kind of relaxed weeknight format Helena does well. On Broadway is doubling up with the Vanguard Jazz Quartet and Desperate Electric on the same Thursday night, covering opposite ends of the musical spectrum for anyone who wants to venue-hop. And then there's the Lucha Project's Fourth of July show at the Helena Temple — pro wrestling and live hip hop as an alternative to the fireworks crowds, which is exactly the kind of left-field programming that makes a small city feel bigger than its population suggests. None of these events individually would qualify as a trend. But three in one week, spanning jazz, bluegrass, wrestling, and hip hop, suggests Helena's arts organizers are operating with more confidence this summer than in recent years. If you've been waiting for a reason to get out on a weeknight, the city is making it easier.
Arts & Culture
North Fork Crossing Brings Bluegrass to Carroll College's Alive at Five Series
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
The Alive at Five concert series returns to the Lewis & Clark Tap Room at 1535 Dodge Ave. on Wednesday, July 15, with North Fork Crossing headlining a free evening show on the Carroll College campus.
Arts & Culture
Vanguard Jazz Quartet and Desperate Electric Both Playing On Broadway This Week
1 source · helenaevents.com · 06:47
On Broadway is pulling double duty as a live music venue this week, with two acts on the calendar for Thursday, June 25 that cover opposite ends of the sound spectrum. The venue, located at 106 East Broadway in Helena, has become one of the more reliable spots in the Walking Mall area for live performance outside of the summer festival circuit.
Arts & Culture
Lucha Project Brings Pro Wrestling and Hip Hop to Helena Temple on the Fourth of July
1 source · helenaevents.com · 06:47
If you're looking to skip the fireworks crowds this Independence Day, Lucha Project is offering an alternative: a pro wrestling and live hip hop show at the Helena Temple on Saturday, July 4. The event, billed as Patriot Games, features a 4-on-4 main event and runs under the promotion's two-ring format.
Arts & Culture
Summer Culture Is Winning on Last Chance Gulch — And the Calendar Is Only Getting Fuller
edition · 09:01
If you spent any time near downtown Helena this week, you noticed something: the cultural calendar is stacking up faster than most summers in recent memory. Alive at Five brought a Missoula rock-and-soul band to the Walking Mall. Brothers Tapworks launched a new free Tuesday evening concert series — Tuesdays at the Trolley — right on Last Chance Gulch. Grandstreet Theatre is staging Guys and Dolls Jr. The Lucha Project brought professional wrestling and live hip-hop to town with an all-ages Patriot Games show. And every Monday in July, Pow Wow Indian Tacos are back on the Capitol lawn, with Native drumming and fry bread alongside the fundraising for the annual Pow Wow. The Celtic Highland Gathering hits the East Helena Rodeo Grounds on July 18. Mountain View Park hosted the 11th Annual Fourth of July celebration. SIX: Teen Edition is putting Tudor queens on a Helena stage. That's eight distinct cultural events surfacing in a single week's worth of coverage — a pace that suggests Helena's arts and events community came out of the pandemic years with something to prove. Last Chance Gulch logged 44 mentions this week, and Grandstreet Theatre was the sixth most-cited entity in the entire digest with 23 references.
Arts & Culture
Alive at Five Brings Missoula Rock-Soul Band to the Walking Mall Wednesday
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:48
The summer concert series Alive at Five returns to the Walking Mall this Wednesday, July 8, with Give It To 'Em Florabelle, a Missoula-based rock-and-soul band that organizers describe as known for high-energy, dramatic performances. The show is free and takes place at the Last Chance Street Dance at the corner of Last Chance Gulch and Lawrence Street.
Arts & Culture
Pow Wow Indian Tacos Return to Capitol Lawn Every Monday in July, Raising Funds for Annual Helena Event
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:48
Every Monday in July, the lawn outside the Scott Hart Building across from the State Capitol will be the place to find Pow Wow Indian Tacos and frybread, as organizers raise money for the 27th annual Last Chance Community Pow Wow. The July 20 date is part of the monthly series, running from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. with Native drumming and dancing alongside the food sales.
Arts & Culture
Brothers Tapworks Launches Free Tuesday Evening Concert Series on Last Chance Gulch
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
A new weekly live music series is taking root on Last Chance Gulch this summer. Tuesdays at the Trolley kicked off in June at Brothers Tapworks, running every Tuesday from 5 to 7:30 p.m. and billed as a free, community-focused event built around local live music.
Arts & Culture
Celtic Tradition Comes to East Helena Rodeo Grounds for Highland Gathering on July 18
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
The Helena Valley Highland Gathering returns July 18 at the East Helena Rodeo Arena, bringing together Highland athletics, live music, Irish dance, food vendors, and a mead tasting in what organizers are billing as a free, family-friendly day of Celtic culture.
Arts & Culture
Pow Wow Indian Tacos Return to the Capitol Lawn Every Monday in July
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
Every Monday in July, the lawn outside the Scott Hart Building on Sixth Avenue — directly across from the State Capitol — will host Native drumming, dancing, and a frybread fundraiser running from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., with the next event coming up Monday, July 13.
Arts & Culture
Grandstreet Theatre Rolls the Dice on Guys and Dolls Jr. This Season
1 source · helenaevents.com · 06:47
Grandstreet Theatre is staging Guys and Dolls Jr. as part of its current season, bringing the 1950s New York gamblers-and-showgirls classic to Helena's premier community stage in a junior edition format suited to younger performers.
Arts & Culture
Mountain View Park Hosts 11th Annual Fourth of July Celebration Saturday
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:47
Mountain View Park will host Helena's 11th Annual Fourth of July Community Celebration on Saturday, with free admission and a full schedule running from 3 p.m. through 10 p.m.
Arts & Culture
Helena's Arts Calendar Is Quietly Becoming Something to Brag About
edition · 09:01
Between the Myrna Loy, Grandstreet Theatre, Montana Book Company, and Last Chance Gulch, Helena's arts and culture scene generated more stories this week than any other single beat — and the variety is striking. The Walking Mall hosted a World Cup Fan Fest. The Kindness Project community dance showcase filled the Myrna Loy. A New England composer is booked for July. Montana Book Company has back-to-back author signings and a launch party for Helena novelist Sally Blakely's second book. And then there's SIX — the Tudor queens pop musical appeared in no fewer than three separate stories this week, covering what appear to be at least two distinct local productions. Grandstreet Theatre was among the week's most-mentioned organizations at 21 references, a sign of how central it's become to what Helena does with itself culturally. The pattern here isn't just busy calendars — it's a community that increasingly has enough going on that residents can be selective about where they spend a Friday night. That's a different Helena than it was a decade ago, and it's worth noticing.
Arts & Culture
Walking Mall Becomes Soccer Festival Friday for World Cup Watch Party
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:46
The Walking Mall on Last Chance Gulch is turning into a soccer pitch Friday when Helena hosts a World Cup Fan Fest and watch party for the opening match of the U.S. Men's National Team — an event organizers are calling the Gulch Cup.
Arts & Culture
'SIX' Brings Tudor Queens and Pop Energy to Helena Stage
1 source · helenaevents.com · 06:46
The global musical phenomenon SIX is coming to Helena, bringing its retelling of Henry VIII's six wives as a pop concert-style showdown to a local stage. The show — which turned a mnemonic (divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived) into a full theatrical production — has become one of the most talked-about musicals of the past several years.
Arts & Culture
Kindness Project Returns to the Myrna Loy for Annual Community Dance Showcase
1 source · helena arts & culture · 06:46
The Kindness Project, Helena's annual community dance showcase, returns to the Myrna Loy on Thursday, June 11, bringing together nearly every dance studio in the city for a single night of performance. Tickets run $15 to $22.