MEDIA RELEASE: Hartford Bonanza 2025, the Capital City’s Independence Day Tradition: Saturday, July 5!
Hartford Bonanza: The Capital City’s Independence Day Tradition
Free Celebration featuring Hartford-centric art, music, food, fireworks, and more
First Night Hartford, Inc. is excited to present Hartford Bonanza 2025, the capital city’s free Independence Day celebration featuring Hartford-centric entertainment in Bushnell Park. Come celebrate Independence Day Weekend with us on Saturday, July 5, 2025, from 4-10 p.m. in Hartford’s iconic Bushnell Park. Located in the heart of the city, the celebration is within walking distance to the train station, the Capitol building, and a wide variety of local restaurants and businesses.
Hartford Bonanza is a free festival that features live music, artistic performances, local vendors and artisans, food trucks, a beer garden, family-friendly recreation, attractions, and the region’s largest fireworks display. Hartford Bonanza is a community-powered celebration of the Hartford region’s civic joy, community pride, and social cohesion made possible through shared arts & cultural traditions.
Building on momentum from the previous years, Hartford Bonanza 2025 features even more art, activities, collaborations, and partnerships. This year’s celebration will include four live performances and our annual improvisational Bonanza Jam, 50+ local vendors, over 20 food trucks, a beer garden, and a cross-section of community partners and small businesses from all over the state. The Civic Marketplace showcases volunteer opportunities and other engagement invitations for residents of all ages, and our new Home in Hartford Expo features organizations and businesses for home improvement and home purchasing. Talented Hartford DJs Connie Carmona and Eric Otero will be turning up the energy with their fine selection of music, while live musicians BODHI and Dwayne Keith & Friends will feature original compositions and danceable numbers. The Bushnell Park Carousel will be open from 3-9 p.m. Hartford Bonanza 2025 kicks off at 4 pm and culminates in the talented musicians all jamming on stage to herald in the region's biggest fireworks show at 9:45 pm. The event has drawn large crowds in the past, and we are expecting over 15,000 attendees for this year’s celebration.
This annual celebration returns in partnership with the America 250 CT Commission, who are co-hosting our VIP Tent for sponsors, partners, and other collaborators. The Bonanza Beer Garden and the VIP Tent are made possible through a renewed partnership with Hartford-based Wood ‘n’ Tap. Hartford Bonanza, independently produced by 501(c)(3) nonprofit First Night Hartford, Inc., is sponsored this year by the Connecticut Office of the Arts, CT Humanities, Roberts Foundation for the Arts. Ensworth Charitable Foundation, J. Walton Bissell Foundation, the Betty Knox Foundation, the Hartford City Council’s Community Engagement Fund, and donors to our current fundraising campaign. Key partnerships include the Bushnell Park Conservancy, America 250 Connecticut, SoundGuyz, Comma Vintage, and Breakfast Lunch & Dinner. Media sponsors for this event are Hartford Courant, The Hartford News, Cafeteria Media, and Full Power Radio. The Home in Hartford Expo is brought to you by the Greater Hartford Regional School Choice Office.
Inspired to make a donation in support of this work? Give via our summer campaign: https://givebutter.com/RgurG1
Interested in working with us as an event sponsor? Contact Jeff Devereux at jeff@bld.email.
Want to volunteer? Sign up using this form.
To learn more and keep in touch, visit hartfordbonanza.org or instagram.com/hartfordbonanza
About First Night Hartford, Inc.
First Night Hartford, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1989, independently produces two beloved community celebrations in Bushnell Park with art, music, food, and fireworks--First Night Hartford (New Year's Eve tradition) & Hartford Bonanza (Independence Day Weekend festival)--that showcase our capital city's arts and cultural ecosystem and promote civic joy, social cohesion, and community pride. These inclusive annual gatherings bring together thousands of Hartford residents and visitors of all ages in our downtown public park for shared creative and cultural experiences.
For more information contact:
Jeffrey Devereux
jeff@bld.email
(860) 251-9651