DANBURY, CONN. — After an enormously successful debut last year, the Ives Concert Park will host the second annual free Family Fair on Sunday, Sept. 21, at the outdoor venue on the Westside campus of Western Connecticut State University.

The gates will open at 2 p.m. for the festivities designed to entertain guests of all ages and ethnicities at Ives Concert Park, Lake Avenue Extension in Danbury. Parking and admission will be free and the public is invited. A variety of food and beverages will be available for purchase.

The celebration will culminate with a 4 p.m. performance by the Ives Festival Orchestra, under the direction of WestConn Professor of Music Dr. Fernando Jimenez. The orchestra will perform the score for the Connecticut Ballet’s performance of “Peter and the Wolf.” Local I95 radio deejay Ethan Carey will narrate. The orchestra will then perform Beethoven’s rousing Fifth Symphony.

Activities throughout the afternoon will appeal to all segments of the community, with local multicultural and children’s performers on a satellite stage. Among the acts scheduled to appear are the Alay Philippine Cultural Group, the Jay Bardoli Salsa Dancers, the Sons of Portugal Folklore Dance Group, Ecuadorian folk dancers, Middle Eastern belly dancers and Polynesian dancers from A Common Ground, the Southbury Cultural Drummers, Los Trovadores de Puebla mariachi band and the Merry Ploughboys.

On hand to entertain the children will be the Shalamazoo Players, characters derived from the children’s book of the same name written by Danbury native Joe Shaboo; performer John Farrell and strolling Civil War re-enactors. Additional highlights will include Hull Landscaping’s giant scarecrow, hay rides and a huge obstacle course Moon Bounce.

Vendors who sell a variety of items ranging from sand art to Russian handicrafts also will be at the Family Fair.

Sponsors include Savings Bank of Danbury, the City of Danbury, Union Savings Bank, Western Connecticut State University Foundation Inc., Donald and Pat Weeden, the News-Times and Charter Communications. For more information, call (203) 837-9226 or visit www.ivesconcertpark.com.

Western Connecticut State University offers outstanding faculty in a range of quality academic programs. Our diverse university community provides students an enriching and supportive environment that takes advantage of the unique cultural offerings of Western Connecticut and New York. Our vision: To be an affordable public university with the characteristics of New England’s best small private universities.