ALLENTOWN, Pa. — The free festival known until this year as the International Cultural Festival returns Saturday, Aug. 22, under a new name: Lehigh Valley Culture Fest.
The event runs from noon to 9 p.m. at Cedar Beach Park, 2600 Parkway Blvd. Admission is free and open to the public.
Organizers said the festival’s mission is unchanged. It is billed as a day of music, dance, food, art, fitness and family activities drawn from cultures represented across the Lehigh Valley, with two stages of continuous performances.
This year’s event is the seventh. The fifth annual festival was held Sunday, Sept. 22, 2024, at J. Birney Crum Stadium, and the sixth on Saturday, Sept. 20, 2025, at Cedar Beach Park.
The 2026 festival moves about a month earlier in the calendar and shifts its hours. Last year’s event ran from 2 to 10 p.m.; this year’s runs from noon to 9 p.m.
The festival is hosted by Movement Moves Media and the International Cultural Festival, featuring The Rilyc and InnaStar, according to a news release from organizers.
All four are Allentown-area nonprofits working in youth programming and the arts. Movement Moves Media says on its events page that it produces free events with local artists to support youth empowerment.
The Rilyc, a 501(c)(3), lists the cultural festival among its programs alongside an after-school program focused on social and emotional learning and a community outreach program. InnaStar runs youth filmmaking, confidence workshops and the annual InnaStar Trailblazer Awards.
United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley has awarded grants to all three organizations through its Fund for Racial Justice and Equity. In the fund’s second round, United Way said Movement Moves Media received $15,000, and InnaStar and The Rilyc each received $10,000.
Philadelphia Funk Authority, Sin Limite and Space Kamp are listed as headliners. Also performing are the Indian dance academy Nrutyagarima, belly dancers, poets, a mime, spoken-word artists and youth performers, according to the release.
The published agenda lists a Sifty Dance Contest with Lil C4, presented by the Sifty Association, from 3 to 4 p.m., followed by the InnaStar Community Awards from 4 to 5 p.m.
The lineup also includes an adult field day, Average Joe’s adult basketball tournament and an ISO Games CrossFit showcase, according to the release and the Eventbrite listing.
While admission to the festival is free, the field day requires advance registration and a fee. Teams are six players, and entry is $60 per team, or $10 per player, according to the sign-up form. Team shirts are included, with a $2 charge per player to add a team name.
Teams are asked to check in by 1 p.m. Aug. 22, when shirts are distributed. Registration is not confirmed until payment is received, and captains are sent a confirmation email with waivers and event details, the form said. Organizers said spots are limited.
Organizers said the festival will include 20 food trucks, interactive cultural exhibits, children’s activities and more than 30 community organizations and local businesses, and that more than 40 nationalities will be represented.
“Culture has the power to bring people together in ways that few things can,” organizers said in the news release. The release said the festival is meant to create a space where every family, culture, and individual feels welcome.
Vendor and sponsor registration is open through Aug. 22 on Eventbrite. Vendor tables are $100 and sole proprietor tables are $75. Community organization tables are $55.20 and corporate vendor spaces are $268.61, both including fees. Nonprofit vendors that sell items pay $50, and nonprofit vendors that do not sell items register for free.
Food vendor registration is free, but food vendors must pay 10 percent of total sales, according to the listing. The listing directs questions to info.icfatown@gmail.com.
The park also hosted the city’s Juneteenth celebration on June 20.
