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🗞️ Akron Dreams of Sushi

🗞️ Akron Dreams of Sushi

April 04, 2025

Good Morning, Akron!

Ever realize that your car keys have traveled farther than your car? Let that marinate.

Anyway, here's your weekend guide—packed with Akron news, events, movies, and live tunes.

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The Digest

All-American Akron

Akron, Ohio, just got one step closer to civic bragging rights, landing a spot among 20 finalists for the prestigious 2025 All-America City Award. Organized by the National Civic League, the annual competition spotlights communities that excel in civic innovation, inclusiveness, and collaborative problem-solving. Akron, celebrating its bicentennial this year, previously snagged the honor in 1981, 1995, and 2008.

The theme for 2025? Strengthening Environmental Sustainability through Inclusive Community Engagement. Akron Mayor Shammas Malik says the city's nomination reflects its forward-thinking spirit and engaged residents. Akron now heads to Denver in June to compete against other finalists—including cities like Austin, Seattle, and Memphis—for one of ten coveted spots as an All-America City.

Teens, Meet Paychecks 💼

The Summer Youth Employment Program is back, and it's more than just a way to avoid teen boredom. The Summit County initiative is connecting local youth ages 16–18 with jobs that pay $15/hour for up to 20 hours per week. Starting June 9th and lasting 8 weeks, participants will work in government agencies, nonprofits, and other workplaces.. Bonus: they’ll get resume help and work gear too. For young Akronites eyeing a summer of growth and a bit of cash, this program checks all the boxes. You can find out more about the program here.

What’s Happening

Here is our list of hand-picked events around the area:

From Boudoir to Boujee: Matt Mathews Brings Laughs to Akron 🤣

TikTok’s favorite farm-dwelling, boudoir-shooting, secret-spilling comedian is hitting the road again—and Akron’s on the map.

Matt Mathews brings his Boujee On A Budget stand-up tour to the Akron Civic Theatre this Saturday at 7 PM. The Live Nation-produced tour spans 53 cities nationwide, riding the high of his sold-out debut run, When That Thang Get Ta Thang’n, which racked up 150,000 tickets across 100 dates.

Known for blending southern sass with painfully relatable life stories (plus the occasional pig update from his farm), Mathews keeps the energy high with live versions of his viral Confessions with Matt series—where brave audience members hand over their juiciest secrets for real-time roasting.

Get ready, Akron—this boujee budget comedy is about to bring the house down. Info and Tickets Here

Celebrate Spring at the Sakura Festival 🌸

Pink petals, sushi samples, and sake sips—spring is officially blooming in Akron. The 2025 Downtown Akron Sakura Festival takes over the Towpath this Saturday from 1–7 PM, with events stretching across Locks 2 and 3, the Ohio & Erie Canal Park, and more. It’s free, open to all, and packed with family-friendly culture, crafts, and cherry blossom vibes.

On the docket: origami workshops, live performances, a Japanese tea ceremony, guided walks with horticulturalists, and even a sake and sushi tasting for the 21+ crowd. Local artists and food trucks round out the lineup, alongside a “Paint in the Park” guided art session if you’re feeling creative.

Feeling helpful? Volunteers are still welcome. Feeling worried? The fest is rain or shine, with indoor events still rolling even if Mother Nature throws a curveball. Sakura season waits for no one—Akron’s giving you one day to soak it all in. Info Here.

Sit, Stay, LOL 🐶

Need a Sunday plan that guarantees “awws” and belly laughs? Puppy Pals Live is rolling into town on Sunday at 3 PM—and it’s bringing the fur-filled chaos to the stage.

Straight from America’s Got Talent, this action-packed stunt dog show features adopted and rescued pups performing flips, jumps, and surprisingly coordinated comedy. Think high-flying frisbee catches, obstacle course races, and more wag-worthy antics—all with a heartwarming rescue message behind it.

Held at the Goodyear Theatre, the show is perfect for families, dog lovers, or anyone who appreciates a good tail wag with their weekend entertainment. The four-legged stars aren’t just adorable—they’re showstoppers. Info and Tickets Here.

Egg-stra Wild Egg Hunt at the Akron Zoo 🐣

Spring’s cutest tradition just leveled up—Egg-stra Wild Egg Hunt is back at the Akron Zoo, beginning this Saturday (8:30–10 AM), and it's bringing more pastel-colored chaos than ever.

Kids will search high and low for hidden eggs (and hidden candy), snap pics with the Bunny, and get hands-on with crafts—all before the zoo opens to the general public. Age groups are split for maximum fun and minimal toddler stampedes: 0–4, 5–8, and 9+.

New for 2025: the Zoothing Egg Hunt, a sensory-friendly option for guests who prefer a quieter, crowd-free egg-venture. Limited tickets are available for this chill twist on the classic chaos.

Each egg-hunter leaves with a goodie bag, and your ticket includes full zoo access after the hunt—because what's better than eggs and elephants in the same day?

🐣 $18 per egg hunter
🐣 Observers: $10 (free for zoo members)
🐣 Babies under 2 are free (but no treat bag—sorry, babies)

Ready, set, hop. Info Here.

Akron Weekend Movie Action 🎬️ 🎥

Nightlight Theatre

A Nice Indian Boy
When Naveen brings his fiancé Jay home to meet his traditional Indian family, they must contend with accepting his white-orphan-artist boyfriend and helping them plan the Indian wedding of their dreams.
Rotten Tomatoes: 100%
Showtimes

Highland Theatre

A Minecraft Movie
"A Minecraft Movie" is a 2025 fantasy adventure comedy directed by Jared Hess, featuring Jason Momoa as Garrett "The Garbage Man" Garrison and Jack Black as Steve. The plot follows four misfits—Garrett, Henry (Sebastian Hansen), Natalie (Emma Myers), and Dawn (Danielle Brooks)—who are transported through a mysterious portal into the Overworld, a cubic realm thriving on imagination. To return home, they must master this blocky world and embark on a quest with the expert crafter Steve, confronting various challenges and adversaries along the way.
Rotten Tomatoes: 52%
Showtimes

Live Music Breakdown

Here is a summary of live music happening all around Akron this weekend:

Friday

Saturday

Weather

Today

58 🌡️ 50 | ⛅️ | 25% 🌨️

Saturday

68 🌡️ 34 | 🌧️ | 97% 🌧️

Sunday

40 🌡️ 31 | 🌧️ | 60% 🌧️

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Talk to you next Friday!