Pro Portsmouth's Market Square Day Festival Goes Virtual

PORTSMOUTH, NH — The Market Square Day Festival begins Friday but like a lot of events this year, it will be held virtually. The event, organized by Pro Portsmouth and in its 43rd year, is usually held in June. The event was postponed to Sept. 26 due to the new coronavirus pandemic.

But now, in what organizers are calling an abundance of concern for the health and safety of participants, volunteers and staff, the festival and road race will be held virtually.

"This decision was one that we never imagined having to make, but COVID-19 has impacted everything we do, and how we do it," Barbara Massar, the org's executive director, said.

The marketplace part of the festival will open Friday afternoon and continue through Sunday.

Between noon and 4 p.m., virtual events, including performances by River Sister Trio and Ambulate As Tolerated, will be livestreamed here, on the org's website.

Seacoast Road Race, which organizes a lot of road races, has held all of them virtually in 2020, Massar said. The org is also adding a virtual 5K road race. While the results will not count toward Seacoast Road Race results, she said it was another way to get more folks involved and support Pro Portsmouth, too. Road race registration is still open online here.

Fundraising opportunities for this year's event are limited due to the pandemic but individuals and companies can still make donations to Pro Portsmouth so it can continue organizing events during these difficult times at the org's website here.

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