Nearly 60 Events Scheduled Through the Summer
Plaza de Las Cruces, 100 N. Main St., will be a very exciting place to be this summer as local organizations and City of Las Cruces departments have scheduled nearly 60 events, so far, through September.
Beginning Wednesday, May 25, the staff of the Rio Grande Theatre will host Swing Dance on the Plaza, a weekly event at 7 p.m. every Wednesday through October. Swing dance lessons will be given from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m., followed by open dancing until 10 p.m.
The Parks & Recreation Department will host the Mayor’s Jazz Fest at 6 p.m. Sunday, May 29. The free-to-the-public event will feature Paula Atherton and The Windup.
June features an expanded First Fridays Downtown on June 3. Additional vendors and live music throughout the summer will highlight the event. Other June events at the Plaza include the Juneteenth Jazz Arts Festival, on June 18 and June 19, hosted by The Branigan Cultural Center. Also, the Juneteenth celebration will include New Mexico Music Commissioner Derrick Lee, the Doña Ana County NAACP and Doña Ana Arts Council; and Make Music Day. featuring live music on the Plaza and at the Rio Grande Theatre. All events will be free to the public.
Thursday Night Music on the Plaza, hosted by the City of Las Cruces Parks & Recreation Department, will begin at 7 p.m., July 14, July 21, August 4 and August 18. The series includes an eclectic mix of performances from local, regional, and nationally recognized artists.
Featured performers for Thursday Night Music on the Plaza include the Border Jazz Orchestra; Mariachi Raices De America, featuring Antonio Reyna; Motley 2; Sloan Armitage; Claudio T Trio; and Austin Jimmy Murphy. All of those performances will be free to the public.
Other summer events include food truck taco Tuesdays every Tuesday through the summer beginning May 31; a food truck competition on June 24; Tequila, Tacos, & Cerveza Fest on July 16; LCPD National Night Out on August 2; Las Cruces Beer Fest on August 13; SalsaFest on September 24, and the Southern New Mexico Pride Festival October 1.
For a complete list of all plaza events, visit; https://www.las-cruces.org/2508/Downtown-Events-Calendar. For information about downtown, contact 575/541-2150, or downtown@las-cruces.org.