Panoply is this weekend – April 28 – 30!
To get you prepared for a weekend of fun, check out this handy Insider’s Guide.
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All information is from personal experience or directly from Arts Huntsville, so you know it’s good advice!
The Best Tips & Info
Hours:
- Friday, April 28, 5:00 – 9:00 pm
- Saturday, April 29, 10:00 am – 9:00 pm
- Sunday, April 30, 12:00 – 7:00 pm
Admission:
- Daily admission is $10.00
- Weekend passes are $18 (available until Friday at 4:00 pm)
- Children 12 and under are free
Purchase tickets online in advance, or pay at the gate.
Military Salute Night: Friday, April 28 is Military Salute Night. All active duty military, Armed Forces reserves, and their dependents are free for the evening.
Good To Know Stuff:
- Check out the schedule in advance so you don’t miss any of the performances you want to see.
- Wear sunscreen & sunglasses. You can get a sunburn in an hour on a nice day in late April. Trust us!
- Wear comfortable shoes. This is not the time to break in new sandals.
- Stay hydrated.
- Speaking of beverages, Straight to Ale just debuted a specially brewed Panoply beer. Look for it and other craft beers in the beer tent.
- Bring an umbrella or rain poncho if it looks cloudy. If you have to plan for a day outdoors in late April, it just makes sense.
- Bring your appetite and cash. There is plenty of festival food and it’s good eats!
- Festival seating means bringing chairs or blankets to sit in/on to enjoy the performances. Note: New this year, Panoply chairs will be available in the Panoply store.
- Parking? Be prepared to park and walk to Panoply. Have cash for paid parking if desired ($5 is the average).
- Have a question, stop any Panoply person wearing a light purple shirt – they can help!
Fireworks:
- On Friday & Saturday nights, there will be Fireworks at the end of the Panoply day. The best view is at the Showcase stage behind Huntsville Museum of Art. The fireworks launch behind the VBC/Embassy Suites, so anywhere along the water facing that direction is optimal.
Tips for Enjoying Panoply With Children
In addition to the good to know info above, here are few extra ideas for enjoying Panoply with small children.
- Stop at the gate and ask for a child’s wristband. Write your cell number on the inside of the wristband. In the event a child is lost, volunteers will check the child’s wristband for parent info.
- Bring your stroller or wagon! Not only is it a necessity for smaller kids, but it’s a great place to store your stuff too.
Read all about how to get the most out of Panoply with your kids from Rocket City Mom: 2017 Panoply Arts Festival Must List for Kids
Shopping Tips
- Most of the artists in the Art Marketplace accept credit cards. But bring cash too! Some transactions are just more convenient that way. If you need cash, there will be a Redstone Federal Credit Union ATM on site.
- Many of the artists will also hold your art purchase so you don’t have to carry it around. Just go back and pick it up on your way out.
- There will be 2 locations of the Panoply Store. Don’t miss getting that Panoply t-shirt or poster souvenir.
Music Tips
Performances at Panoply this year include – Blind Boys of Alabama, The Secret Sisters, Humming House, The Wolves of Chernobyl, Amelia Eisenhauer, Amy McCarley, Unknown Lyric, and the U.S. Army Materiel Command Band, just to name a few.
- Festival seating means you must bring your own chairs and/or blankets to sit on. You can always leave them in the car when you’re enjoying the festival activities, then go get them and come back when it’s time to sit down for your favorite performance.
- Don’t forget to stay until the end of the performances on Friday and Saturday nights for the fireworks.
Huntsville UNITY Project
Panoply attendees are invited to participate in an interactive public art project! UNITY is a “larger-than-life structure that simultaneously celebrates our uniqueness and strengthens our ties to each other.”
Use string to link together all of the things that make you who you, and together, the community will form a “web of interconnectedness.”
Now Go!
Have fun.
Try something new.
Listen to a new band.
Bring a friend.
Enjoy !
Event Information: Panoply 2017
Dates and Times:
- Friday, April 28 from 5-9 pm
- Saturday, April 29 from 10 am-9 pm
- Sunday, April 30 from 12-7 pm
Location: Big Spring Park
Cost: $10 at the gate; children 12 and under are free

If you are reading this – this is an older article published by Our Valley Events. The information may be out of date – be sure to check for new info!
Thanks for including our tips in your article! Panoply is a Huntsville tradition and there’s so much to do for all ages!
Thank you!
Can you take your camera?
Hi Charles, thanks for asking. We verified with ARTS Huntsville and they said that yes, cameras are allowed. If you are taking pics in general, they just ask that you be respectful of families with children who may not want their children’s photo taken.
Have a fun weekend!!
Hi Amy,
Do you know if there is there handicap parking nearby? If it’s in different places, I hope to park as close to the stage as possible. I’m mainly coming to see the “Blind Boys of Alabama”. I have a folding chair, but want to leave it in the car, so I can comfortably walk around for a bit. I probably won’t come until after 4 pm on Saturday. However, I don’t want to walk around with chair (walking is already difficult for me). So I want to park close enough to get the chair before the concert/fireworks start.
Hope you see this before I leave in morning, so I can figure out where to park. I just moved here several months ago & am not familiar with downtown parking & such.
Thanks much, blessings many!
~ Deb ~
(Madison, AL)
Hi Deb,
My recommendation is to park in the Monroe Street parking garage ($5 fee). It’s very close to a Panoply entrance and would be the easiest to get to. There may be handicap parking spots available at the VBC Monroe Street parking lot as well. Again, very close to an entrance. There are street parking spots along Church Street near that entrance, but there are so few, it might be hard to snag one.
Good luck and have fun at Panoply.