Know Before You Go: DMPA’s Free Outdoor Family Events

Know Before You Go: DMPA’s Free Outdoor Family Events

With summer comes another series of Des Moines Performing Arts’ Free Outdoor Family Programming. But before you go to any of these events, there are a few things to keep in mind:

Events for the Whole Family
Who are these events intended for? There’s something for everyone to enjoy at our Free Outdoor Family Programming! Whether you are looking to relax, listen to music or get on your feet, there is an event for you this summer.

What to Bring

• Sunscreen: All our events are outdoors so you’re bound to get some sun. We recommend bringing enough sunscreen suitable to both you and your family.
• Lawn Chairs or Picnic Blankets: Our summer events take place at either Cowles Commons or various community parks throughout the metro. Feel free to bring your own lawn chair or picnic blanket to sit back, relax and enjoy the show. But be warned, some of our events like Yoga or Dancing on Cowles Commons will encourage you to get up on your feet.
• Food & Snacks: We encourage attendees to bring their own sack lunch, snacks or visit a nearby food venue before or after the scheduled performances.
  • On Friday, July 21, the Fair Food Friday Food Truck will be at Cowles Commons from 11 a.m. – 2: p.m., just in time for both the 12 p.m. and 1:15 p.m. performances of SWAY’s Bloom!
• Water: Like any Iowa summer, it will be hot! We want all attendees to stay hydrated. Be sure to bring your own water to any of the outdoor performances.

Restrooms
Access to restrooms will depend on location. Most of the parks will have public restrooms to use.

Parking
At any of the public parks, parking will be free! To avoid any delays, plan to arrive early for the most convenient spots. For our Cowles Commons events, you might want to bring a few extra dollars to park in a neighboring garage. If you park on the street, make sure you have the ParkDSM app downloaded and ready to go on your mobile device.

Accessibility
We encourage and welcome attendees of all abilities to attend any of our free outdoor events. We also recognize that planning for these events can be a challenge. Information about the individual performances can be found here. We encourage all attendees to research the locations prior to the events for individual accessibility needs.

 A full list of events, times and locations can be found here.