Perinton Amphitheater 2026: The Complete Guide to Rochester's Best Outdoor Concert Season
The Short Version
- Little Feat's farewell stop on May 30 is one of only two dates on the entire tour where Molly Tuttle joins them — making Perinton the place to see this specific show.
- Rochester Events has booked four ticketed national acts in 2026: Little Feat, Tash Sultana, moe. + Umphrey's McGee, and JJ Grey & Mofro.
- Hoochenanny Festival returns August 14–16 with My Morning Jacket and Modest Mouse headlining — Friday general admission is free.
- The free Center Stage Sunday evening series runs all summer, presented by Wegmans, including an RPO performance.
- The amphitheater is tucked behind the Perinton Community Center in a 49-acre park, with free overflow parking and shuttle service for major events.
Why Perinton Amphitheater Is Rochester's Best-Kept Secret
Why Perinton Amphitheater Is Rochester's Best-Kept Secret
There is a 49-acre park in Fairport, about 20 minutes from downtown Rochester, with an amphitheater tucked behind the community center that most of the region hasn't found yet. That's changing fast. What started as a free concert series on Sunday evenings has quietly become one of the most compelling summer music destinations in upstate New York — drawing national touring acts, a growing festival footprint, and audiences from across state lines and Canada.
The Perinton Amphitheater at 1350 Turk Hill Road in Fairport sits within Center Park West, a sprawling green space with sightlines, room, and the kind of relaxed energy that makes a concert feel like an evening rather than an event. Bring a lawn chair. Pack a blanket. The venue rewards that approach.
The 2026 season is the most ambitious yet — four ticketed national touring shows, a three-day festival, and a full slate of free community concerts running all summer long. Here is everything you need to know.
The Ticketed Shows: Four Nights Worth Planning Around
The Ticketed Shows: Four Nights Worth Planning Around
Rochester Events has been booking nationally touring acts at Perinton since 2023, and the 2026 lineup is their strongest yet. Four shows, four distinctly different audiences — and all of them worth the drive.
Little Feat: The Last Farewell Tour — Saturday, May 30, 7:00 PM This one is what it says it is. Little Feat, formed in Los Angeles in 1969 at Frank Zappa's suggestion, is winding down after more than five decades on the road. The band's keyboardist and co-founder Bill Payne described the tour as "a long passionate kiss, a prolonged warm hug" — a retirement from the grind of touring, not an immediate cutoff. Special guest Molly Tuttle, the two-time Grammy-winning bluegrass guitarist and the first woman ever to win the IBMA Guitar Player of the Year award, joins the band for the Fairport date specifically. If you've seen Little Feat before, you know how good this is going to be. If you haven't, Perinton on May 30 is the moment to fix that.
Tash Sultana North American Tour — Wednesday, June 10, 7:00 PM The Australian multi-instrumentalist who builds entire sonic landscapes live on stage, layer by layer, loop by loop. Tash Sultana is one of the most singular live performers working today — genre-bending in a way that doesn't feel like a gimmick. Support from Daisy the Great.
moe. + Umphrey's McGee: moe.mentUM Tour — Friday, June 19, 6:00 PM Two of the jam band world's most enduring acts co-headlining the same outdoor stage on a Friday evening. For the Rochester jam community, this is the show of the summer. Umphrey's McGee and moe. have each built decades-long followings on exactly the kind of extended, improvisational live performance that an outdoor amphitheater is made for.
JJ Grey & Mofro + The Wood Brothers — Saturday, August 1, 6:00 PM A late-summer double bill that earns its place on the calendar. JJ Grey brings swamp-drenched Southern soul-rock from Florida; The Wood Brothers match him with their own roots-deep Americana. Both acts are beloved in the genre and rarely share a stage. This is the quiet one that people who know these artists will not miss.
Tickets for all four shows are available through rochesterevents.com. One sealed bottle of water is permitted inside. Outside food, drinks, and alcohol are not. Food vendors and alcohol booths are on-site.
Hoochenanny 2026: A Full Festival Weekend on the Same Grounds
Hoochenanny 2026: A Full Festival Weekend on the Same Grounds
The same Center Park West grounds are hosting Hoochenanny 2026 — a three-day music and whiskey festival running Friday through Sunday, August 14–16. This year's headliners are My Morning Jacket, Modest Mouse, Lit, and Toadies. The festival drew over 8,000 people in 2025 and has expanded its footprint for 2026.
Hoochenanny runs two stages: the High Ball Stage for national headliners and the Fermenter Stage for regional and local acts. There's a Whiskey Auction beginning Friday evening, and GA+ and VIP passes include entry to the World of Whiskey with up to 20 tastings. Friday general admission is free. The festival benefits Make-A-Wish, the Friends of Perinton Recreation, and the Lou Gramm Foundation.
Parking is paid and on-site, with a free overflow lot at Center Park East off Ayrault Road and free shuttle service from Fairport High School and Martha Brown Middle School.
The Fairport Music Festival has raised over $3.2 million for Golisano Children's Hospital. That context is worth holding as you watch My Morning Jacket play an outdoor stage in August.
The Free Center Stage Series: Sunday Evenings All Summer
The Free Center Stage Series: Sunday Evenings All Summer
Before any of the ticketed shows existed, Perinton was running one of the best free concert series in the region. The Center Stage Summer Concert Series — presented by Wegmans — brings live music to the amphitheater on Sunday evenings throughout the summer, free and open to everyone. Lawn chairs are encouraged. The Lion's Club, Casa Larga Vineyards, and MollyV's Ice Cream typically vendor on-site.
The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra performs as part of the series, with the Fairport High School Band opening at 6:00 PM and the RPO taking the stage around 7:30. It is, quietly, one of the best ways to spend a summer Sunday in Monroe County.
The 2026 Center Stage lineup is expected to be announced on the town's website at perinton.gov — worth checking regularly as summer approaches.
What does it mean to have a free, world-class community concert series in your backyard? Not every community builds something like this. Perinton has been building it for years.
Everything You Need to Know Before You Go
Everything You Need to Know Before You Go
Getting there: The Perinton Amphitheater is at 1350 Turk Hill Road, Fairport NY 14450 — behind the Perinton Community Center. Center Park West's main entrance is off Turk Hill Road.
Parking: Paid parking is available on-site in limited numbers at the community center and Town Hall lots. A free overflow lot is accessible at Center Park East off Ayrault Road. Free shuttles run from Fairport High School and Martha Brown Middle School for Hoochenanny and large events.
What to bring: Lawn chairs and blankets are encouraged for the free series and festival. Ticketed Rochester Events shows: one sealed water bottle is permitted; outside food and alcohol are not.
Accessibility: The pathway from the North parking lot to the amphitheater seating area is ADA accessible.
Tickets: All Rochester Events ticketed shows are available at rochesterevents.com. Hoochenanny passes are at the festival's website. Center Stage concerts are free — no ticket required.
If you've driven past a summer concert in this region and thought I should do that more — this is the summer to actually do it. The lineup is there. The venue is there. The only thing left is to show up.
