The Potomac Jazz & Seafood Festival, one of the mid-Atlantic’s signature jazz events held along the shores of the beautiful Potomac River and in the charming Town of Leonardtown in St. Mary’s County, Maryland, will feature fantastic jazz artists during the three day jazz weekend in 2021.
This popular, annual festival, which has become known in the past two decades for showcasing local culinary delicacies of Maryland’s Mother County in addition to renowned, national jazz talent, will be a bit different from past years when nearly 1000 people attended. The event, canceled in 2020 due to COVID-19 restrictions, will occur in 2021 with safety guidelines. A limited number of tickets will be available, so visitors are encouraged to purchase soon.
On Friday, July 9, 2021, the festivities kick off with a free, jazz era concert/kick-off party in historic Leonardtown with jazz music and performances from 6 p.m. – 9 p.m. along Fenwick Street. The evening will be a celebration of jazz throughout the 20s (jazz age), the 30s-40s (swing era), and the 50’s-90s (modern and Latin jazz). Attendees are urged to come in their choice of period costume from the 20s, 30s, 40s or 50s. There will be raffles and prizes awarded.
Saturday, July 10, 2021, the “Main Event” of the Potomac Jazz & Seafood Festival will begin on the grounds of St. Clement’s Island Museum in Colton’s Point, 20 short minutes from Leonardtown. Two nationally acclaimed jazz acts, opening with local favorite Latrice Carr at 3 p.m. and ending with the headlining act, Marion Meadows, at 6 p.m., will perform during the afternoon and evening. A plethora of local food vendors offering a wide variety of seafood and other Southern Maryland fare will be available throughout the day. Free water taxi rides around picturesque St. Clement’s Island, the first landing of English settlers in Maryland in 1634, will be offered to all eventgoers, as well as free admission to the museum. Special memorabilia commemorating the festival, including the ever-popular music poster with this year’s design, will be on sale.
Sunday, July 11, 2021, the Town of Leonardtown once again will be the host of various jazz-themed activities, including jazz brunches at several in-town restaurants, jazz events at Port of Leonardtown Winery, and much more. An exclusive jazz cruise on Breton Bay will round out the weekend for those looking to end the festival in style.
Tickets and discount packages are now available on the festival’s website, www.PotomacJazzandSeafoodFestival.com, as well as on the event’s Facebook page. There, those interested can find more information about everything happening that weekend. The public is encouraged to check the website and Facebook page information is updated weekly.
Visitors from out of town are encouraged to stay the entire weekend to enjoy all the festivities by purchasing special discount festival hotel packages, including amenities like hotel room stays, festival tickets, brunch, other dining tickets, wine tastings, and much more.
Proceeds from this event go toward funding the nonprofit Friends of St. Clement’s Island & Piney Point Museums’ mission of supporting the museums and historic sites under the care of the St. Mary’s County Museum Division. The event’s major partners include the Friends of St. Clement’s Island & Piney Point Museums, St. Mary’s County Museum Division, Town of Leonardtown and Visit St. Mary’s MD. For more information regarding the festival, to see promo videos, or to purchase tickets or packages, please visit www.PotomacJazzandSeafoodFestival.com.
