Louisville, Kentucky Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.Anti-spam check. Do not fill this in! ===Annual festivals and other events=== {{See also|List of attractions and events in the Louisville metropolitan area}} [[File:Kentucky Derby Festival, Great Balloon Race.jpg|thumb|The Great Balloon Race, part of the [[Kentucky Derby Festival]]]] Louisville is home to many annual cultural events. Perhaps most well known is the [[Kentucky Derby]], held annually during the first Saturday of May. The Derby is preceded by a two-week-long [[Kentucky Derby Festival]], which starts with the annual [[Thunder Over Louisville]], the largest annual [[fireworks|fireworks display]] in North America.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Lammers|first1=Braden|title=Distinguished service awards presented to the men behind Thunder Over Louisville|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/louisville/news/2014/04/11/distinguished-service-awards-presented-to-the-men.html?page=all|access-date=October 16, 2014|work=Louisville Business First|publisher=[[American City Business Journals]]|date=April 11, 2014|archive-date=October 25, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141025061258/http://www.bizjournals.com/louisville/news/2014/04/11/distinguished-service-awards-presented-to-the-men.html?page=all|url-status=live}}</ref> The Kentucky Derby Festival also features notable events such as the [[Pegasus Parade]], [[Great Steamboat Race|The Great Steamboat Race]], Great [[Hot air ballooning#Competition|Balloon Race]], a combined [[marathon]]/[[mini marathon]] and about seventy events in total. [[Esquire (magazine)|Esquire magazine]] has called the Kentucky Derby "the biggest party in the south". The summer season in Louisville also features a series of cultural events such as the [[Kentucky Shakespeare Festival]] (commonly called "[[Shakespeare in the Park festivals|Shakespeare in Central Park]]"), held every summer from May to August and presents free [[Shakespeare]] plays in [[Central Park, Louisville|Central Park]] in [[Old Louisville]]. [[File:Arcade Fire, Forecastle 2018.jpg|thumb|left|[[Arcade Fire]] appearing at the [[Forecastle Festival]] in 2018]] In July, the [[Forecastle Festival]] draws 75,000 visitors ({{as of|2022|lc=y}}) to [[Louisville Waterfront Park]] in celebration of the best in music, art and environmental activism. Past performers include [[The Black Keys]], [[The Flaming Lips]], [[Widespread Panic]], [[The Smashing Pumpkins]], [[The Avett Brothers]], [[The Black Crowes]] and hundreds more. The [[Kentucky State Fair]] is held every August at the [[Kentucky Exposition Center]] in Louisville as well, featuring an array of culture from all areas of Kentucky. In places, the African American community celebrates [[Juneteenth]] commemorating June 19, 1865, when enslaved African Americans in the western territories learned of their freedom.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.juneteenthlegacytheatre.com/Jamboree.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130509184359/http://www.juneteenthlegacytheatre.com/Jamboree.html|archive-date=May 9, 2013|title=The 11th Annual Juneteenth Jamboree of New Plays|access-date=July 16, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hellolouisville.com/event/juneteenth_jamboree_runs_june_319/200835/ |title=Juneteenth Jamboree runs June 3–19—Louisville, Kentucky |access-date=July 16, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320175241/http://www.hellolouisville.com/event/juneteenth_jamboree_runs_june_319/200835/ |archive-date=March 20, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.juneteenth.com/0kentucky_us.htm|title=Juneteenth—Kentucky|access-date=July 16, 2010|archive-date=June 24, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100624133054/http://juneteenth.com/0kentucky_us.htm|url-status=dead}}</ref> The [[Jeffersontown, Kentucky|Jeffersontown neighborhood]] is also the home of the annual [[Jeffersontown Gaslight Festival|Gaslight Festival]], a series of events spread over a week. Attendance is estimated at 200,000–300,000 for the week.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.louisville.com/content/what-do-louisville-gaslight-festival-week|title=What to Do in Louisville: Gaslight Festival Week|date=September 10, 2015|website=Louisville.com|language=en|access-date=March 22, 2019|archive-date=March 22, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190322213143/https://www.louisville.com/content/what-do-louisville-gaslight-festival-week|url-status=dead}}</ref> The month of October features the [[St. James Court Art Show]] in [[Old Louisville]]. Thousands of artists gather on the streets and in the courtyard to exhibit and sell their wares, and the event is attended by many art collectors and enthusiasts. The show typically brings in a crowd of over 150,000 people and $3 million in sales.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.topslouisville.com/Read/9411/62nd+Annual+St.+James+Court+Art+Show+Returns+October+5-7|title=Louisville, KY|website=topslouisville.com|language=en|access-date=March 22, 2019|archive-date=March 22, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190322213136/https://www.topslouisville.com/Read/9411/62nd%2BAnnual%2BSt.%2BJames%2BCourt%2BArt%2BShow%2BReturns%2BOctober%2B5-7|url-status=live}}</ref> Another art-related event that occurs every month is the [[First Friday (public event)|First Friday Hop]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.firstfridayhop.com/|title=Republic Bank First Friday Hop|website=firstfridayhop.com|access-date=June 3, 2016|archive-date=June 9, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160609024243/http://www.firstfridayhop.com/|url-status=live}}</ref> A free [[Transit Authority of River City|TARC]] bus takes art lovers to many downtown area (especially [[East Market District, Louisville|East Market District]]/NuLu) independent art galleries on the first Friday of every month. 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