With District 203 and 204 backpacks coming back out next week, this is pretty much the last wide-open weekend of the summer — and the calendar clearly got the memo. It’s a nostalgia bonanza out there: Naper Nights wraps its season with tribute bands doing Van Halen, Taylor Swift, and Toby Keith, while RiverEdge Park runs an all-80s new-wave festival that could double as the soundtrack to your middle-school years.

So it’s a loaded one — concerts across the decades, a romance-author night out, a wine dinner, and free STEM and foam parties for the kids. Here’s everything worth leaving the house for.

In today's issue:

Let's get to it.

🎶 Naper Nights closes out its summer concert run at Naper Settlement with two nights of tributes — JUMP doing America’s Van Halen on Friday, then Sparks Fly (Taylor Swift) and Made In America (Toby Keith) on Saturday. Gates at 5, food trucks on the grounds, kids’ area — bring your own seat.

🍷 Wine & Art Walk takes over the Morton Arboretum both Saturday and Sunday, 10 to 5 — a self-paced stroll through the trees with local artists, makers, and wine tastings along the way. It’s included with admission, and members get in free.

🛍️ Wheaton All-Night Flea Market runs from Saturday afternoon straight through to 1 a.m. at the DuPage County Fairgrounds — 500-ish vendors, antiques, oddities, and food booths under the lights. It’s $10, kids 12 and under are free, and it’s the good kind of treasure hunt.

🎨 Axolotl Fiesta Painting

A kid-friendly “Little Brushes” class at Pinot’s Palette — your young artist paints a bright little axolotl, no experience required (ages 7+).

10:00 AM · PINOT’S PALETTE · $42

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😂 Funny Friday at Lennon’s

A stand-up showcase with a lineup of local comics right downtown — grab a drink, grab a table, and laugh your way into the weekend.

7:30 PM · LENNON’S · $15–$25

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🥂 The Summer Soirée featuring Chandon

A multi-course sparkling-wine dinner at Morton’s — think Chandon paired with lobster ravioli and a porcini-crusted filet. A proper date-night splurge.

6:00 PM · MORTON’S THE STEAKHOUSE · $149

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🔬 Alive STEM Exploration Day

An afternoon of hands-on science, robotics demos, and build-it-yourself engineering at the Alive Center — free, and genuinely fun for curious kids and their grown-ups.

1:00 PM · ALIVE CENTER · FREE

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🫧 Back to School Bash

Goldfish Swim School sends summer off with a foam party, water games, ice cream, and giveaways — a no-cost way to burn off some end-of-break energy.

1:30 PM · GOLDFISH SWIM SCHOOL · FREE

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📚 Anderson’s After Dark

Our beloved downtown bookshop throws an after-hours Bookstore Romance Day party — romance authors, games, food, drinks, and giveaways for grown-up book lovers.

7:00 PM · ANDERSON’S BOOKSHOP · $25

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🎸 Poi Dog Pondering

The beloved Chicago collective brings its horn-driven, genre-hopping live show to RiverEdge Park on the Fox River. Gates at 6; bring a chair and settle in.

8:00 PM · RIVEREDGE PARK · $46

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🪂 STEM Family Sundays at iFLY

Kids dig into hands-on science, then everyone floats in iFLY’s indoor wind tunnel — a genuinely memorable Sunday outing (session runs 4:00–6:30).

4:00 PM · IFLY NAPERVILLE · $52–$71

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😂 Danish Sait Live

The wildly funny actor-comedian brings his solo storytelling-meets-improv show — voices, characters, and a little onstage chaos — to the Yellow Box.

4:00 PM · THE YELLOW BOX · $45–$88

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🎭 All the Best (Marathi Natak)

A fast-paced Marathi-language comedy play at North Central College’s Pfeiffer Hall — witty, warm, and a hometown night out for the area’s big Marathi community.

4:00 PM · PFEIFFER HALL · $40–$65

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🎶 Naper Nights summer concert

A local headliner on the historic grounds, with food trucks and a beer garden open till 10.

6:00 PM · NAPER SETTLEMENT · $20

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🎹 Totally Tubular Festival

An all-80s new-wave blowout at RiverEdge Park — A Flock of Seagulls, Thomas Dolby, Men Without Hats, Animotion, Tommy Tutone, and more. Gates at 5; dust off the neon.

7:00 PM · RIVEREDGE PARK · FROM $45

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🍦 Dumont Creamery opened its first Illinois store at Block 59 — an Indian-inspired ice cream and café spot with 50-plus globally flavored scoops, plus a weekend-long grand-opening celebration (with BOGO cones) coming Aug. 21–24.

🏆 Janelle Finch, a Naperville native and Neuqua Valley grad, won her first Emmy at the 40th Heartland Regional Emmy Awards for a 9NEWS Denver report titled “I’m not a hero, I’m Bridger.”

🤸 Big Air Trampoline & Adventure Park is bringing its first Illinois location to Bolingbrook — a 25,000-square-foot playground of trampolines, slides, a zip line, and foam pits, opening late this month.

🧒 The Naperville Young Innovators Market, dreamed up by Naperville Central senior Sophia Joo, gathered more than 25 young entrepreneurs (ages 3 to 17) to sell their creations — with 10% of proceeds going to the Naperville Police Foundation.

🍛 Bombay Eats got the Tribune’s “Down to Business” spotlight — owners Ali and Falguni Dewjee are making Mumbai-style street food fast and casual (wraps, brioche rolls, rice bowls) on Freedom Drive.

Get your business, service, event, or announcement in front of engaged Naperville readers — locals who actually open every Thursday.

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