The summer fun is as hot as the temperatures, with tons of options heading your way in July and August. Mark your calendars now for these can’t-miss entertainment options, including the height of outdoor concert season, community events, film options and much more. Plus, don’t forget to subscribe to the free Brickly and Flavorillo newsletters for my weekly entertainment picks all summer long.
July
Fourth of July: You’ll find explosive fun all over the Texas Panhandle, with community celebrations from Canadian to Plainview, Dumas to Childress. Highlights include the Canyon Fourth of July Celebration in downtown Canyon, billed as one of the state’s largest Independence Day celebrations, as well as Amarillo’s Independence Day +1 party on July 5 in John Stiff Park, 45th Avenue and Bell Street. Other events to watch for include the Will Rogers Range Riders Rodeo from July 4 to 6 at the Range Riders Arena, 8829 Farm-to-Market Road 1541; Sunset Marketown on Saturdays beginning July 5 at Arts in the Sunset, 3701 Plains Blvd.; Nazareth German Fest on July 12 in Nazareth; the Koben Puckett Professional Bull Riding competition on July 12 at the Amarillo National Center on the Tri-State Fairgrounds, 3301 SE 10th Ave.; Sodtown Fest, a music festival benefiting Family Support Services of Amarillo, from July 18 to 20 at Hodgetown, 715 S. Buchanan St.; and the 30th annual Original Harley Party on July 26 at the Amarillo National Center. Plus, don’t miss Amarillo Sod Poodles action against the Frisco RoughRiders from July 8 to 13 and the Wichita Windsurge from July 29 to Aug. 3, all at Hodgetown.
Texas: The outdoor musical continues its 59th season with performances Tuesdays through Sundays through Aug. 9 in Pioneer Amphitheatre in Palo Duro Canyon State Park. The cast and crew also will stage The Taming of the Shrew in its “Shakespeare in the Canyon” performances July 14 and 21, also in Pioneer Amphitheatre. Other arts highlights will include the monthly First Friday Art Walk on July 4 at Arts in the Sunset; Amarillo Little Theatre Academy’s Something Rotten, a musical parody of Shakespearean-era England, from July 10 to 13 in ALT’s Allen Shankles MainStage, 2019 Civic Circle; and West Texas Drums, a Drum Corps International competition, on July 16 at Bain-Schaeffer Buffalo Stadium at West Texas A&M University.
Outdoor concerts: July is the height of Amarillo’s al fresco concert season, with Starlight Theater on Tuesdays in Sam Houston Park, Line Avenue and Western Street; High Noon on the Square at the old Potter County Courthouse, 501 S. Fillmore St., and Music at Wellington Square Courtyard, 1601 S. Kentucky St., both on Wednesdays; and Music in the Gardens on Thursdays at Amarillo Botanical Gardens, 1400 Streit Drive. Other music offerings will include 49 Winchester on July 3 at The Lumberyard, 850 N. 23rd St. in Canyon; the Get Loud TX Block Party with Waka Flocka Flame and Bart Crow on July 4 at 10th Avenue and Madison Street; indie-rock band Brightwire on July 11 at The 806 Coffee + Lounge, 2814 SW Sixth Ave.; country singers Ava Connell on July 11 and Clay Gibson on July 12 at Hoot’s Pub, 2424 Hobbs Road; metal bands ABSU and The Black Moriah on July 14 at Rockwell Event Center, 16301 Interstate 27 in Canyon; Britney Spears tribute act Toxic on July 19 at Shark Beach Burgers, 1505 E. Farm-to-Market Road 1151; Pecos & The Rooftops on July 19 at Azteca Music Hall, 500 N. Farm-to-Market Road 1912; metal bands Gravehuffer, Grindscape and more July 25 at Sunset Underground at Arts in the Sunset; and Evan Boyer at Golden Light Cantina, 2906 SW Sixth Ave.
Superman: The Man of Steel flies back onto the big screen July 11 in this highly buzzed-about reboot from director James Gunn (the Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy). Also scheduled to open this month are Jurassic World: Rebirth on July 2; horror film Skillhouse on July 11; horror legacyquel I Know What You Did Last Summer, a rebooted Smurfs and Ari Aster’s contemporary Western Eddington on July 18; and The Fantastic Four: First Steps and horror flick House on Eden on July 25. Special presentations will include 41st-anniversary screenings of This Is Spinal Tap from July 5 to 7; 50th-anniversary screenings of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest on July 13 and 16; and Studio Ghibli Fest screenings of My Neighbor Totoro from July 19 to 23.
August
Midland: The chart-topping country act teams with Lubbock’s Josh Abbott Band for an Aug. 2 show at The Lumberyard in Canyon. Other must-see concerts include indie singer Bryan Bielanski on Aug. 1 at The 806 Coffee + Lounge; ’70s rockers Bachman-Turner Overdrive and The Marshall Tucker Band on Aug. 3 in the Amarillo Civic Center Complex Auditorium, 401 S. Buchanan St.; The Ty Blackburn Band on Aug. 9 at Hoot’s Pub; KISS tribute band Rock and Roll Over on Aug. 9 at Shark Beach Burgers; singer-songwriter Luke Bulla on Aug. 10 at Chalice Abbey, 2717 Stanley St.; Dallas country singer Cory Cross on Aug. 14 at The Lumberyard; metal band HED PE and others on Aug. 15 at Rockwell Event Center; Americana singer-songwriter Adam Hood on Aug. 16 at The Western Horseman Club, 2501 E. Interstate 40; the Let the Good Times Rock Tour with Warrant, Lita Ford and Firehouse on Aug. 23 in the Civic Center Complex Auditorium; brother act The Deltaz on Aug. 23 at Golden Light Cantina; George Thorogood & The Destroyers with Loverboy on Aug. 24 at The Lumberyard; Texas country singer Josh Weathers on Aug. 27 at The Western Horseman Club; and indie rock faves The Toadies with Vandoliers on Aug. 28 at The Lumberyard. Plus, the outdoor concert season will continue with Starlight Theater on Tuesdays through Aug. 12 in Sam Houston Park and Music in the Gardens on Thursdays through Aug. 28 at Amarillo Botanical Gardens.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest: Amarillo Little Theatre kicks off the fall arts season with a stage adaptation of the searing Ken Kesey novel, with performances Aug. 14 to 24 in the ALT Adventure Space, 2751 Civic Circle. Other arts events to enjoy will include the season-ending performances of Texas through Aug. 9 in Pioneer Amphitheatre and First Friday Art Walk on Aug. 1 at Arts in the Sunset.
Ama-Con: Amarillo Public Library’s annual celebration of all things pop culture will return Aug. 2 and 3 in the Amarillo Civic Center Complex. Other events to watch for include the 2025 Summer Melt Car Show at Contagion Athletics, 8210 W. Amarillo Blvd., followed by the Polk Street Cruise; Lavender Fest on Aug. 16 at Creek House Honey Farm, 5005 Fourth Ave. in Canyon; and the Amarillo Crime Stoppers Car Show on Aug. 30 in the Civic Center Complex. Plus, Sod Poodles action continues with games against the Corpus Christi Hooks from Aug. 12 to 17 and the Northwest Arkansas Naturals from Aug. 16 to 31.
Freakier Friday: Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan reteam Aug. 8 for another legacy-quel, this time for the beloved Disney comedy. Also opening this month are a new version of The Naked Gun and animated sequel The Bad Guys 2 on Aug. 1; a re-release of Shin Godzilla on Aug. 14; musical drama Clika and action sequel Nobody 2 on Aug. 15; black comedy Honey Don’t on Aug. 22; divorce comedy The Roses, comedy-thriller Caught Stealing and horror reboot The Toxic Avenger on Aug. 29. Special engagements will include 75th-anniversary screenings of Sunset Boulevard on Aug. 3 and 4; Studio Ghibli Fest screenings of Grave of the Fireflies from Aug. 10 to 12; RiffTrax Live screenings of Timecop on Aug. 14 and 19; and Studio Ghibli Fest screenings of Ponyo from Aug. 23 to 27.
