Ignite Festival Celebrates Spicy Foods and Fire Performances

Somerville, September 22, 2025

News Summary

The Ignite Festival will take place at Union Square Plaza, featuring delicious international cuisines, cooking demonstrations, and fire performances. Attendees can participate in a curry-eating contest and enjoy various cultural entertainment throughout the evening. This free festival encourages visitors to support local vendors, with its grand finale featuring a spectacular fire show. A rain date is set for September 29, ensuring the fun will continue even if the weather doesn’t cooperate.

Somerville

The Ignite Festival will take place on September 27, from 3:30-7:30 p.m. at Union Square Plaza, Somerville. The festival is free to attend and will feature food vendors, live performances, and family-friendly activities. The event is known for its celebration of spicy foods and fire performances and is organized by the Somerville Arts Council.

What to expect

Attendees can expect mini cooking lessons from local chefs from 4-5:30 p.m., featuring cuisines such as masala spice mix and Haitian griots. The lessons are small demonstrations meant to showcase techniques and ingredients used by local cooks. In addition to lessons, a curry-eating contest hosted by Somerville’s Masala Square will occur, where participants compete to finish a bowl of curry rice to win a prize.

The evening program includes visual and physical performances. The evening will conclude with a fire show performed by the Boston Circus Guild at 7 p.m. Earlier in the festival, attendees can see a range of cultural and dance presentations organized to highlight local and international artists.

Food and vendors

The festival promotes various restaurants and chefs who will set up food vendors at the event. Featured international cuisines will include Peruvian dishes from Machu Picchu, fire samosas from Masala Square, and Japanese udon from Nagomi Bento. The event also encourages sharing community food stories with a dedicated space: the festival encourages individuals to share global food stories at the Nibble table.

Organizers advise that although the event is free to attend, festivalgoers are encouraged to support local vendors and businesses by purchasing food and crafts on site. The festival will also include a visual surprise presence in the form of a 10-foot-tall cat performer named Lima Bean at the festival.

Entertainment highlights

Live and cultural performances are scheduled throughout the afternoon and early evening. Entertainment will include performances from Samba Viva, Chinese dragon performance by Wah Lum Kung Fu and Tai Chi Academy, and a Dominican dance troupe called Cofradia Cultural. The mix of music, dance, and theatrical performance aims to reflect the neighborhood’s cultural variety.

Organizers have prepared for weather issues with a backup plan: The festival has a rain date scheduled for September 29, 2023. Visitors should check local signage and official postings the day of the event for any last-minute scheduling changes.

Other area events, Sept. 22–28

Several additional free and ticketed events are scheduled in the region during the week of September 22-28. These include:

• Zone 3’s Test Print Tuesday on September 23 for screen printing enthusiasts.
• Art-Making After Dark at the Institute of Contemporary Art on September 25, focused on watercolor techniques featuring local foods.
• Free outdoor screening of the 1979 sci-fi film “Time After Time” on September 26.
• Seaport Spectacular on September 26 with carnival games, live music, and face painting.
• World premiere of the opera “White Raven, Black Dove” by White Snake Projects from September 26-28 at Strand Theatre.
• The Alamo Drafthouse Cinema offers discounted movie tickets at $7 every Tuesday for various new releases.

Practical details

Admission to the Ignite Festival is free. Organizers and vendors recommend arriving early to find seating and to allow time to sample food and watch performances. Public transit, nearby parking, and street access vary by block; attendees are encouraged to plan travel in advance and consider walking or transit where possible.

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Additional Resources

• Boston Globe: Free Things to Do in Boston
• Wikipedia: Somerville, Massachusetts
• Cambridge Day: Week of Events in Cambridge and Somerville
• Google Search: Ignite Festival Somerville
• Somerville Times: Ignite Festival Coverage
• Encyclopedia Britannica: Cultural Festival
• Wicked Local: Somerville’s Ignite Festival
• Google News: Events in Somerville
• Patch: Somerville Events Calendar

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