Fair St. Louis is bringing fireworks and free music back to the Gateway Arch next week. After being held at Forest Park for four years due to construction, the $380 million renovations on the Arch and the surrounding park are complete just in time for this year’s Fourth of July festivities.
On Friday’s St. Louis on the Air, host Don Marsh spoke with James Boldt, general chairman of Fair St. Louis 2018, about the celebration and its downtown return.
“We’re back where we started. We started this back in 1981,” Boldt said. “We’re happy to celebrate this renewed, beautiful, iconic park that we have.”
Fair organizers are expecting as many as 300,000 visitors over the course of the fair from July 4-7.
Boldt said that fairgoers should come prepared to deal with hot weather but noted that it should be easier to get around since the St. Louis Cardinals aren’t in town.
Here’s the current schedule:
Wednesday, July 4
- 9:30 a.m.: 136th America’s Birthday Parade (VP Parade) begins at Union Station in downtown St. Louis
- Noon: Fair St. Louis opens
- 12:30 p.m.: Boeing Air Show
- 5:30 p.m.: Performance by Amelia Eisenhauer
- 6:45 p.m.: Boeing Air Show
- 8:30 p.m.: Performance by the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra
- 9:35 p.m.: Fireworks
Friday, July 6
- 4 p.m.: Fair St. Louis opens
- 4:45 p.m.: Performance by Dirty Mugs
- 6:30 p.m.: Performance by Andy Grammer
- 8:15 p.m.: Performance by Jason Derulo
- 9:35 p.m.: Fireworks
Saturday, July 7
- Noon: Fair St. Louis opens
- 1:15 p.m.: Performance by Fire for Effect of the Missouri Air National Guard
- 2:45 p.m.: Performance by Danielle Bradbery
- 4:15 p.m.: Performance by Raelynn
- 5:30 p.m.: Salute to the Troops ceremony
- 6:15 p.m.: Performance by Michael Ray
- 8:00 p.m.: Performance by Martina McBride
- 9:30 p.m.: Fireworks
To view the fair’s most updated schedule, view its website, Facebook, Twitter or Instagram pages.
St. Louis on the Air brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. St. Louis on the Air host Don Marsh and producers Mary Edwards, Alex Heuer, Evie Hemphill, Lara Hamdan and Caitlin Lally give you the information you need to make informed decisions and stay in touch with our diverse and vibrant St. Louis region.
