Marietta events this week are built around one very busy Friday and one very productive Saturday morning. Between August 24 and September 1 the Square hosts the August installment of a concert series now in its 40th year, the Strand screens a Disney classic on the same night, and the Mill Street markets run their usual weekend double act. Add a mixology class midweek and the nine days shape up. Four picks below.
The Art of the Martini at The Third Door
Why It Stands Out
A hands-on class rather than a demonstration. Participants shake, stir, mix, and build all three cocktails themselves under the direction of beverage manager Kat. The lineup covers a classic dry gin martini, a dirty gin martini with olive or tomato options, and a tequila espresso martini. No bartending experience is expected.
Timing and Planning
Wednesday, August 26, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at 131 Church Street, a short walk off the Square. Tickets are $55 and are purchased in advance through the venue's booking page. Ages 21 and up, and seating is explicitly limited.
Best For
Couples, and small groups who would rather do something than watch something. The ticket covers all three cocktails, personal cocktail-building tools, a charcuterie spread, guidance throughout, and a take-home mixology item, which makes the price read differently than a bar tab would.
Glover Park Concert Series with Kasper and The 911 Band
Why It Stands Out
The series is in its 40th anniversary year, presented by the Downtown Marietta Development Authority and the City of Marietta with Wellstar Health System as sponsor. It runs the last Friday of the month from April through September, and the August date brings Kasper and The 911 Band playing R and B and pop. It is free, it is outdoors, and it puts a few thousand people in the middle of the Square.
Timing and Planning
Friday, August 28, from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. at Glover Park in the center of Marietta Square. Free to attend. A limited number of front-row tables can be reserved for a fee if you would rather not bring chairs.
Insider Tip
Free two-hour parking rings Glover Park but turns over fast on a concert night. The Marietta City Hall deck is free on the upper level after 5:00 p.m. on weekdays and all weekend, and the Cobb County Lawrence Street deck is open to the public around the clock. Bring chairs or a blanket and arrive before eight if you want to be anywhere near the front.
Mary Poppins at the Earl and Rachel Smith Strand Theatre
Why It Stands Out
The Strand screens the 1964 Julie Andrews original, and the draw is not only the film. A live pre-show concert on the Mighty Allen Theatre Organ begins thirty minutes before the picture starts, which is a genuinely rare thing to experience in a restored 1935 house on a town square.
Timing and Planning
Friday, August 28, from 8:00 to 10:30 p.m. at 117 North Park Square. Tickets are $15.44. Runtime is 2 hours 19 minutes and the film is rated G. The box office runs Tuesday through Thursday noon to 4:00 p.m., Friday noon to 6:00 p.m., and two hours before showtime, at 770-293-0080.
Insider Tip
Note the collision. This starts at 8:00 p.m., the same moment the Glover Park concert begins roughly a hundred yards away. If you want both, you cannot have them. Families should take the Strand, since the organ pre-show is the real event and the G rating suits the audience. Groups who want to be outside should take Glover Park. Either way, park once and walk, because the Square will be at capacity that evening.
Saturday Morning on Mill Street
Why It Stands Out
Two markets run back to back on the same block. The Marietta Square Farmers Market fields roughly 64 vendors, with heirloom tomatoes, produce the grocery store does not carry, cut flowers, local honey, herbal soaps, whole grain breads, preserves, and live plants. Directly across from it, the Marietta Square Artisan Market runs an open-air showcase of locally made art from regional makers.
Timing and Planning
Saturday, August 29. The Farmers Market runs 9:00 a.m. to noon at 41 Mill Street and operates year round. The Artisan Market runs 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Mill Street and holds an extra hour at the end, which makes the order obvious: produce first, art second.
Neighborhood Angle
Peak crowd runs between 9:30 and 11:00. Free two-hour Square parking fills early on a Saturday morning, and the Lawrence Street deck is the dependable fallback. If you want a fuller morning, the Marietta History Center at 1 Depot Street is open 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. showing a 30th anniversary exhibition that covers the Kennesaw House itself, built in the 1840s as a cotton warehouse and later the Fletcher House hotel. Admission is $10 for adults and $7 for students and seniors.
Event Q&A
Which event is best for families?
Mary Poppins at the Strand. A G rating, a 2 hour 19 minute runtime, and a live theatre organ prelude that most children will never have seen. At $15.44 it is also the most economical ticketed option in the window.
Which is the best date night?
The Art of the Martini on Wednesday. Ages 21 and up, limited seating, and a format that has you doing something together rather than sitting side by side facing a stage. The Glover Park concert is the free alternative if you would rather be outdoors.
What is the single busiest time to be on the Square?
Friday, August 28 at 8:00 p.m. A free outdoor concert and a Strand screening start simultaneously. Arrive by 7:00 p.m., use the City Hall or Lawrence Street deck rather than hunting for street parking, and plan to walk.
Which event gives the best sense of the community?
The Saturday markets. Sixty-four produce vendors and an artisan market on the same block is not a tourist setup; it is how Marietta actually shops on a Saturday. It also happens to be the easiest way to see the Square without a crowd around it.
Is the Art Walk happening during this window?
No. The Marietta Square Art Walk runs first Fridays from 5:00 to 9:00 p.m., which puts the next one on September 4, just outside this range. Worth putting on the calendar for the following week.
The Agency Atlanta works across Marietta and Cobb County. The Square is one of those places where a single Saturday morning tells you more than a stack of listings, and we are glad to walk it with you.
