We’re here to help you have a fun-filled start to fall — from upcoming sports games, concerts, and festivals to spontaneous one-day events around the city. Channel your inner social butterfly and make this season one for the books with these 30+ September events.
Pro tip: We update this page monthly with fresh events, so feel free to bookmark it so you can check back throughout the year.
Festivals
The Well Fest | Saturday, Sept. 6 | 10 a.m.-6 p.m. | Main Street Station | $0+ | The Well Collective will curate a restorative atmosphere with movement classes, community conversations, live performances, and local vendors.
RVA Duck Race and Festival of Inclusion | Saturday, Sept. 6 | 11 a.m.-4 p.m. | Brown’s Island | Free | Make your bet on one of 19,000 lucky ducks racing through the canal in support of the Autism Society of Central Virginia and sensory-friendly fun for all.
Black Literature Festival | Saturday, Sept. 6 | 12-3 p.m. | Holiday Inn Express Richmond Midtown | Free | Whether you’re a self-accredited bookworm or have a young writer in your life, dive into the world of publishing with panels, exhibits, and live interviews.
Oktober Forest Fest | Sunday, Sept. 7| 12-6 p.m. | Fine Creek Brewing | Take a drive just outside of Richmond for a September Oktoberfest celebration in collaboration with four local brewers + nature conservancy teams.
Kennanee Native Arts Festival | Sunday, Sept. 14 | 11 a.m.-5 p.m. | Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden | $20 | Art, storytelling, food, and play weave together in a celebration of rooted culture and Indigenous voices across the East Coast.
Maymont Bier-Garden | Saturday, Sept. 20-Sunday, Sept. 21 | 11:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. | Carriage House Lawn | $10 | Toast to a plentiful fall season with two days of German-inspired live music, dancing, games, and a dachshund costume contest, of course.
East End Festival | Saturday, Sept. 27 | 12-7 p.m. | Chimborazo Park | Free | Supporting the arts at RPS is as easy as showing up, shopping vendors, grabbing food, and enjoying performances by local acts, the Richmond Symphony, and RPS’s own talented students.
Community
Shop from local artisans in Manchester.
Photo by Manchester Manifest
Genworth Free Community Day | Monday, Sept. 1 | 9 a.m.-5 p.m. | Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden | Free | Peruse 50 acres of gardens with no admission cost on this holiday.
Regional Recovery Day | Wednesday, Sept. 3 | 4:30 p.m. | Henrico Center, Glen Allen | Free | Richmond’s surrounding counties come together to celebrate people and families in recovery with educational training, mutual aid groups, and a community resource fair.
First Fridays at VMHC | Friday, Sept. 5 | 5-8 p.m. | Virginia Museum of History + Culture | Free | First Friday’s at the museum include free after-hours admission, live music, drink discounts, specialty mocktails, and plenty of kid-friendly activities.
RVA First Fridays | Friday, Sept. 5 | 5-8 p.m. | Arts District | Free | Richmond’s Art District buzzes with open galleries, sidewalk sales, happy hours, and live music.
Manchester Manifest: First Fridays | Friday, Sept. 5 | 5 p.m.-12 a.m. | Manchester | Free | Join this Southside block party for live music, cultural connections, and plenty of good food.
RVA First Fridays: Free Salsa Lessons | Friday, Sept. 5 | 6-10 p.m. | Mambo Bones Salsa Dance Studio | Free | Get your body moving to this Arts District studio, which will host free salsa lessons every half hour from 6 to 10 p.m.
RVA Bike Awards | Friday, Sept. 5 | Thursday, Sept. 25 | 6-8 p.m. | Basic City Beer Co. | Free | Bike Walk RVA is recognizing trailblazers in the local bike scene with a public ceremony and Southside beer + pizza hang.
Sports
River City Roller Derby | Saturday, Sept. 6 + Thursday, Sept. 11 | Times vary | Greater Richmond Convention Center or Richmond Roller Dome | $12 | RCRD is back on track with two home games this month, bringing Chattanooga to the 804 first.
Hartford Yard Goats vs. Richmond Flying Squirrels | Tuesday, Sept. 9-Sunday, Sept. 14 | Times vary | The Diamond | $13 | It’s officially time to bid adieu to our gem of a stadium with nights like Time Capsule Tuesday and Goodbye Diamond Night.
Portland Hearts of Pine vs. Richmond Kickers | Wednesday, Sept. 17 | 6:30 p.m. | City Stadium | $23+ | It’s RVA Community Night, the perfect chance to prove just how loud and proud we can get.
Charlotte Independence vs. Richmond Kickers | Saturday, Sept. 20 | 6:30 p.m. | City Stadium | $23+ | Find a spot under the stadium lights for Herencia Hispana Night.
Spontaneous fun
While the weather’s fair, don’t forget to check the weekly schedule at our nearest drive-in.
Photo by Goochland Drive-In
Flowers After Five | Thursday, Sept. 4, Thursday, Sept. 11 | 5-8 p.m. | Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden | $20 | Enjoy live music among the trees near the garden’s historic Bloemendaal House — food + drink available for purchase.
Oktoberfest Beer Dinner | Friday, Sept. 5 | 6:30-8:30 p.m. | Hanover Tavern | $50 | Order the Swienbraten roast pork with dark beer gravy and the apple pastry twists for dinner + dessert, paired with beer sourced from one of the world’s oldest breweries.
Beginning Birding | Saturday, Sept. 6 | 1-4 p.m. | Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden | $36+ | Want to learn a new skill? Now’s your chance, and with 50 acres of garden grounds as your backdrop.
Black Arts Market | Sunday, Sept. 7 | 12-5 p.m. | The Workshop by T+D | Free | Celebrate the brilliance of Black artisans, performing artists, and wellness advocates, all while boosting the local biz scene.
Historians on Tap | Thursday, Sept. 11 | 6:30 p.m. | Strangeways Brewing, Richmond | Free | No tuition required — just a generous professor giving a free lesson of revolutionary drama to a room full of academic beer drinkers.
Ye Olde Ladies’ Pinball Tournament | Friday, Sept. 12 | 6 p.m. | Wax Moon Records | Free | One year ago, a Ladies’ Pinball club launched at Wax Moon, and now the group is celebrating with a Renaissance-Faire-inspired tournament — non-competing guests are welcome to join the fun as well.
Movie Night at the Stadium | Friday, Sept. 12 | 6:30-9:30 p.m. | City Stadium | $10 | Arrive before 7 p.m. to warm up your “Wicked” singing voice with $3 to $5 beers and wines.
Oddities + Arts Market | Saturday, Sept. 13 | 12-5 p.m. | The Veil Brewing Co. | Free | Over 25 vendors will curate their finest oddities and collectibles, from stained glass and custom knit-wear to vinyl records and vintage trinkets.
Drag Bingo: “Mrs. Doubtfire” | Tuesday, Sept. 16 | 7-9 p.m. | Star Hill Brewery | Free, reservations recommended | You can expect at least one broom and one matronly wig at this iconic movie-inspired drag show.
Theater
See “Conversations with Mothers” at Robert B. Moss Theater this month.
Photo by Richmond Triangle Players
“Natasha, Pierre + The Great Comet of 1812" | Thursday, Sept. 4-Sunday, Sept. 7 | Times vary | Firehouse Theater | $5+ | Join Natasha + Pierre as they navigate lust, loneliness, betrayal, and redemption in Moscow’s high society during the Napoleonic Wars.”
“Conversations with Mothers” | Wednesday, Sept. 10-Saturday, Oct. 4 | Times vary | Robert B. Moss Theatre | $15+ | Immerse yourself in the comedic and heartwarming dynamic between a conventional Italian matriarch and her free-spirited, gay son.
“Murder on the Orient Express” | Thursday, Sept. 11-Sunday, Oct. 12 | Times vary | Virginia Repertory Theatre | $39+ | Secrecy, wealth, motive, and murder are the prime players in this suspect-driven Agatha Christie adaptation.
“Long Day’s Journey Into Night” | Friday, Sept. 26-Sat, Oct. 11 | Times vary | Firehouse Theatre | $40 | This classic American play delivers guests to a single seaside day in August of 1912, where a family grapples with the realities of bitterness, jealousy, and failure.
Concerts
Haven’t made it to a Tiny Porch Concert yet? No worries — plan ahead for this month’s performances on Sunday, Sept. 21.
Photo by Tiny Porch Concerts
Men I Trust | Tuesday, Sept. 2 | 6 p.m. | Brown’s Island | $35+ | This indie-songwriter concert is sure to have you feeling real sad on the riverside — in a cathartic and poetic way, of course.
RuPaul’s Drag Race Werq The World Tour | Tuesday, Sept. 2 | 7:30 p.m. | Altria Theater | $53+ | A star-studded cast of drag queens channels the on-stage personalities of music icons like Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, and Mariah Carey.
Festival of the Arts | Friday, Sept. 5, Saturday, Sept. 6, Friday, Sept. 12 | 8 p.m. | Dogwood Dell, Byrd Park | Free | This month’s amphitheater performances feature local dance groups, a Grateful Dead tribute band, and a musical set by Kia Bennet.
Tell Me Lies: The Fleetwood Mac Experience | Friday, Sept. 5 | 8-9:30 p.m. | The Tin Pan | $35 | Tickets are flying off “The Chain” to see this iconic tribute.
Boot Scootin’ Boogie Nights | Friday, Sept. 5 | Uptown Alley Richmond, Midlothian | $15+ | Pull up your boots and shuffle over to the dancefloor for 1990s country night.
Erin Lunsford Single Release Show | Sunday, Sept. 7 | 5-7 p.m. | Fonticello Food Forest | Free | Help raise money for Fonticello’s food pantry by simply showing up in support or donating what you can while you’re there.
Steve Martin + Martin Short: The Dukes Of Funnytown | Saturday, Sept. 20 | 8 p.m. | Allianz Amphitheater at Riverfront | $62+ | One’s tall, one’s short, but they always reach the same punch line.
Tiny Porch Concerts | Sunday, Sept. 21 | 4-7 p.m. | Woodland Heights | Free | One evening, three front porches, and six concerts by local musicians such as Shotgun Princess, Andrew Rohlk, and Hot Seats.
“Weird Al” Yankovic | Monday, Sept. 22 | 7:30 p.m. | Allianz Amphitheater at Riverfront | $51+ | Known for hits “Like a Surgeon” and “White and Nerdy,” Yankovic aims to live up to his nickname.
Share your event
Have an event of your own you’d like to share with us? Follow these easy steps to add your events to our calendar:
- Go to our Events page.
- Click “Add Event” in the top right-hand corner, below our featured events.
- Be sure to include a link and fill out all the essential details, such as your event’s date, time, location, and price.
- Click “Submit,” and — ta-da — you’ve just added an event to our website calendar.