Porches and patios around Edgartown will transform into stages on Saturday, May 16 as Porchfest, a nationwide musical event, returns to the Vineyard for another year.
Porchfest began in Ithaca, N.Y. nearly 20 years ago, and has since become an annual community event where audiences can find an assemblage of local acts hosted at various local venues.
“[Ithaca] created a blueprint for other communities to replicate [Porchfest] in their own towns, and so we attended [the event] in other locations, and thought it would be a really good fit for Edgartown,” said Erin Ready, the executive director of the Edgartown Board of Trade, which organizes Porchfest.
The event will feature a score of Island musicians performing in over a dozen locations throughout Edgartown.
Porchfest kicks off at 11 a.m. with a performance by DJ Smooth B at the MV Boys & Girls Club and will run into the early evening.
Shows will be hosted throughout the day at 19 Raw, the MV Boys & Girls Club, the Edgartown Library, the Eisenhauer Gallery, the Sea Spa Salon, the Harbor View Hotel, Hob Knob, Town Bar & Grill, Bad Martha’s at Donaroma’s, the Edgartown Inn, the Federated Church, Vintage W&S, Edgartown Books, Kenworthy, Kismet, Salte, Rainy Day and Rosewater Market.
Acts include Phil & Moe, Offshore Blues, Rachel Elion Baird, Agreeable Men, Beacon of Hope, Zea May, Sarah Shaw Dawson, Rose Guerin, Sean McMahon, the Phil DaRosa Band and many others.
“Music helps people feel good, you know, it makes them aware of the life happening around them,” said Mathew Tombers, manager of Edgartown Bookstore. “It’s fun for me to be here at the register and look out and see people playing and hearing the music drift in.”
Once again the Dock Dance Band will close out this year’s Porchfest at 6 p.m. at the Memorial Wharf in Edgartown.
“It’s a really enjoyable community event,” said Ms. Ready. “We’re excited to keep this going, and we’re grateful that it’s been a warm welcome from the community and from everyone who participates.”
The entire list of musicians and locations can be found on the Visited Edgartown website at visitedgartown.org/porchfest.
This article appears in May 15, 2026.