Live music all day long, curated artisans and crafters, food from everywhere, Ferris Acres Creamery ice cream, dance performances, poetry, lantern making, textile presentations and children’s activities are all part of the $5 admission for the 4th Annual Newtown Arts Festival. Children ages 12 and under will enjoy all of this free of charge.

The festival, sponsored by Newtown Cultural Arts Commission, will return to the grounds of Fairfield Hills Saturday and Sunday, September 19-20, 10 am to 6 pm each day. Musical groups, including the Newtown High School Band and chorus, will perform all day long under the big tent.

Also scheduled to perform this year is The Mad Hatter Chorus, My Dad’s Truck, Father Nelson & The Backsliders,  and Grupo Los Santos on Saturday. Sunday’s performances will open with the NHS groups, followed by Darkest Shade, Off The Hook and S-Curl Accident.

Highlighted by the renowned Pilobolus Dance Troupe, dance performances will include Connecticut Dance, Gray School of Dance, NewArts Newtown Musicals, Vitti’s Dance Studio, Newtown Centre of Musical Ballet, and The Graceful Planet.

Poetry from all over the state, including the Gary Glazner Alzheimer’s Poetry Project and Newtown resident Sydney Eddison will also be presented. Mrs Eddison will be reading from recent release, Where We Walk: poems rooted in the soil of New England on Sunday morning.

New this year will be a Beer & Wine Garden for the 21-and-over crowd.

On Saturday evening, Newtown’s inaugural Lantern Parade will step off on the new trail at Fairfield Hills, featuring lanterns and self-made costumes. The parade will commence at the softball fields on Mile Hill Road South and proceed along the new walking/bicycling trail to the arts festival grounds, where a centerpiece lantern will be lighted to cap off the day’s activities.

Lanterns can be constructed during Ben’s Lighthouse Ice Cream Social on September 12 and the REACH Car Show on Sunday, September 13 (both being held at Fairfield Hills), as well as Saturday, September 19, during the arts festival.

The 10 x 10 Play Festival will also take place Saturday evening, beginning at 8. Back by popular demand, guests will enjoy ten 10-minute plays by local playwrights, led by local directors, in an intimate setting for an up-close and personal view of the theater. Each piece will be cast with regional actors, the majority from Connecticut. Q&A with the actors and directors will follow.

Admission is free but reservations are required for this event; visit newtownartsfestival.com/events to make one.

Now in its fourth year, the proceeds of the Arts festival funds two scholarships and two grants administered by the Arts Commission. It invites cultural organizations to take part and attracts artisans from all over New England.

For additional information on the arts festival weekend, including the events schedule, and related events planned for September, visit newtownartsfestival.com.