Some popular fall festivals make their return this weekend, and a pair of Hollywood names bring theater for a cause to the region.
Here’s The Morning Call’s best bets for weekend fun.
Celtic Classic and Highland Games return to Bethlehem
The Celtic Cultural Alliance brings back the Celtic Classic Highland Games & Festival, the largest free Celtic festival in North America, for its 39th year this weekend in downtown Bethlehem.
Performing this year include crowd favorites On the Lash, Cúlra, The Ogham Stones, Pilgrims of Deep Run, Seamus Kennedy, Gerry Timlin, the Dave North Trio and the O’Grady Quinlan Academy of Irish Dance. The U.S. National Highland Games Championship will see the top pro highland athletes in the country competing for the title of National Champion.
The event kicks off Friday with Haggis Bowl 2026, to see who can eat a pound of haggis the fastest. The Showing of the Tartan Parade kicks off from Bethlehem City Hall at 11:30 a.m. Saturday.
Enjoy children’s activities at Celtic Heritage Hollow located in the Colonial Industrial Quarter, historical and genealogical presentations, lectures at the Heritage Stage, Celtic food and dozens of merchants.
If you go: The 39th Annual Celtic Classic Highland Games & Festival runs from Friday through Sunday in Historic Downtown Bethlehem. For a full schedule, visit celticfest.org or facebook.com/CelticClassic.
Popular Lehigh Valley Fiber Festival in Allentown
Fiber artists return to Allentown this weekend for the ninth annual Lehigh Valley Fiber Festival, at the Allentown Agri-Plex.
The festival features an expansive selection of hand‑dyed yarns, finished fiber work, upcycled fiber pieces, and everything in between, as well as glass buttons, wood‑turned tools, stitch markers, fiber‑inspired watercolors, shawl pins, jewelry, and a wide array of additional handcrafted artisan goods. The Fleece Sale also returns with raw fleeces that showcase the story of each animal and can be purchased for personal processing.
Attendees are invited to donate unwanted yarn, inherited stashes, or ready‑made hats, scarves, and squares, which will be used by volunteers to create warm items for community members in need and distributed to Allentown Rescue Mission and Turning Point of the Lehigh Valley.
Vendors include Bitsy’s Knits, Create Yarn Works, Cape May Fiber, Northeast Wood Workz, Quilter Emily, and Shakespeare’s Peddler.
If you go: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Allentown Agri‑Plex, 1998 Liberty St., Allentown. Admission is $5 per day, $8 for a weekend pass. lvfiberfest.org.
Emily Gargiulo of High Point Homestead takes the fur and spins it into yarn during the Lehigh Valley Fiber Festival in 2021. (Rick Kintzel / The Morning Call)
Pickles, peppers — and bacon?
Hungry? Have we got some fun events for you this weekend.
First up is the Easton Farmers’ Market’s annual Hot Pepper Showdown, beginning at 11 a.m. Saturday at Scott Park. Fifteen contestants will test their tolerance by eating a progressively hotter lineup of locally grown peppers, supplied by Easton Garden Works.
As competitors battle through the increasingly spicy lineup, spectators can join in the excitement with pepper trivia, audience prizes, entertainment and plenty of unforgettable moments.
Also in Easton on Saturday is a Taste of Bacon Fest preview, for those who can’t wait for the beloved November festival.
The evening, scheduled for 6-8 p.m. at the Acopian Room at the State Theatre, will give bacon lovers exclusive preview bites, drinks, giveaways and live music from The After Hours.
Also Saturday is the return of Pickle Me Poconos, a festival filled with fun, flavor, and plenty of pickles, celebrating its seventh year in downtown East Stroudsburg. Enjoy food and craft vendors, live performances, games and prizes and more in a celebration of the savory snack. From the classic dill pickle to pickle-flavored ice cream, there is something for everyone.
If you go: Hot Pepper Showdown begins at 11 a.m. at Easton Farmers’ Market in downtown Easton; eastonfarmersmarket.com/hotpeppershowdown/. Taste of Bacon Fest is 6-8 p.m. Saturday at the Acopian Room at the State Theatre, 453 Northampton St., Easton; tickets are $35 for general admission; $60 for VIP; eastonpartnership.ticketspice.com/taste-of-bacon-fest-2026. Pickle Me Poconos is noon-6 p.m. Saturday, Crystal Street, East Stroudsburg. PoconoChamber.org.
Kara Plesic of Steelton enjoys bacon-on-a-stick during BaconFest on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025, at Centre Square in Easton. The festival which features music, family-friendly fun and, of course, bacon, continues Sunday. (Jane Therese/Special to The Morning Call)
Theater for a cause
Actor Dan Lauria, known for his work on “The Wonder Years,” “Sullivan & Son” and “Pitch,” brings the play “Just Another Day” to the Colonial Theatre in Phoenixville, for a three-day engagement benefitting Alzheimer’s awareness.
Written by Lauria, the two-person play centers on a man and a woman who meet daily at a park but can’t remember how they know each other.
The play is coming to the region thanks to a longstanding friendship between Lauria and James “Doc” Ogden, chair of the board of directors of the Council for Retail and Sales at DeSales University and professor emeritus at Kutztown University.
“Just Another Day” has played off-Broadway, internationally, and in regional theaters, and approaches memory loss with humor, humanity and compassion. Lauria stars along with Patty McCormack, known for “The Bad Seed,” “Frost Nixon,” and “The Sopranos.” Both actors will perform free of charge, and profits will benefit the Alzheimer’s Association and the Colonial Theatre.
If you go: Shows are 7 p.m. Friday, and 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the Colonial Theatre, 277 Bridge St., Phoenixville. $40-$60. Tickets: thecolonialtheatre.com
Have an event for us to consider? Email us at goguide@mcall.com.