When the Merchants of Rhythm take the main stage to open the Eighth Annual Newtown Arts Festival on Friday, September 20, it will be the beginning of a weekend filled with music.

The weekend of events will again return to the playing fields at Fairfield Hills, at Keating Farm Avenue and DG Beers Boulevard.

According to band spokesman and guitarist and violist David Wheeler, Merchants of Rhythm was formed several years ago and plays “groovalicious tune offerings.” Other members of the band are Freddie “Fredo” Merrill on lead vocals, harmonica, and percussion; Dave Boyle, guitar, vocals; Butch Bochino, bass, vocals and saxophone; Chris Durham, keyboards and vocals; and John Zulli, drums.

The band’s website adds that their music is full of “nostalgic tunes, funky jams, and great energy.”

Special guest that evening will be Jim Allyn, who is well-known for his part in Flagpole Radio Café as well as The Jim Allyn Music Workshop.

Gates will open at 6, and the music is scheduled to begin at 7 pm. The Newtown Arts Festival Beer & Wine Garden will be open.

Tickets are $15 for lawn seating, $20 for tent seating, and $100 for a table for six. Advance tickets can be purchased at newtownartsfestival.com/entertainment. They will also be available at the gate that evening.

During the two-day Newtown Arts Festival, September 21-22, seven bands will be performing.

Arts Festival Musical Directors Jennifer and Michael Guman, who are well-known for presenting free concerts in the 19th Century barn behind their home on Church Hill Road, see their work for the arts festival “as a sort of expansion of what we’ve been doing in our barn.

“We want to promote musicians and this fits right in,” Mr Guman said.

The 2019 Newtown Arts Festival will also include food trucks, workshops, performances, artisans, and the continued presentation of a wine and beer garden. The festival will run from 11 am to 5 pm each day.

Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for ages 6-12, and free for children age 5 and under. Cash and debit/credit cards will be accepted.

Saturday night there will be a free “Evening of the Arts,” from 6-10 pm, featuring The New England New Music Ensemble as well as a poetry reading and a play reading by members of The Town Players of Newtown. The Arts Festival Wine & Beer Garden will be open.