News
Too hot. Canton symphony performing off-site for America 250 event due to heat
July 1, 2026
Canton Repository
Updated July 1, 2026, 2:34 p.m. ET
- The city of Canton’s America 250 celebration July 2 at the McKinley National Memorial will start at 4 p.m.
- Due to the heat, the Canton Symphony Orchestra will not perform at the McKinley Monument.
- However, the orchestra will perform off-site indoors, and the concert will be broadcast and livestreamed via speakers and video screens at the celebration.
CANTON − The Canton Symphony Orchestra has canceled its live performance at the city’s America 250 celebration due to the intense heat in the weather forecast.
But that doesn’t mean the July 2 event at the McKinley National Memorial will be a dud.
The orchestra has done a hard pivot and will perform off-site at the Zimmermann Symphony Center. The indoor performance of patriotic music and iconic movie songs will be broadcast via speakers and on large video screens for the audience at the McKinley monument.
Rachel Hagemeier, CEO of the local symphony, said the decision was made for the safety and health of the 60 musicians and so instruments wouldn’t get damaged.Sizzling temps: How hot is it going to feel in Stark County? And what’s the all-time heat record?Need a news break? Check out the all new PLAY hub with puzzles, games and more!
Hagemeier also noted there’s a clause in the contract of the union musicians that says strong consideration should be given to canceling outdoor concerts when the temperature exceeds 85 degrees.
“85 is the cutoff … so there’s zero chance that it’s going to be below 85 anytime tomorrow,” she said. “It would just be irresponsible to have the musicians outside with their instruments.
July 2 will be in the throes of a sizzler of a week.
The peak real-feel temperature of 105 degrees is expected early in the evening of July 2, according to the National Weather Service.
The Monumental Fireworks event starts at 4 p.m. at McKinley National Memorial, featuring stilt walkers, food trucks, live music, the EN-RICH-MENT drumline, children’s activities and other activities.
Jimmy and the Soul Blazers will perform at 6 p.m. The symphony will perform 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. Fireworks are scheduled for 9:40 p.m.
What about the instruments?
Heat is hazardous to the orchestra instruments.
“A lot of these instruments in these temperatures (and humidity), it’s really dangerous,” Hagemeier said, referring to violins, violas, cellos and other “delicate instruments made out of wood.”
She added that “even metal, you’re going to start to see issues with the instruments themselves, and these are really expensive instruments that the musicians have spent a lot of money on … and also just musicians playing (in severe heat) is really difficult.”Big celebration: ‘Going all out.’ Canton marking America 250 with fireworks, symphony
Team effort
Hagemeier said it took a collective effort to coordinate the off-site indoor performance within a couple of days.
“Having to plan for these types of things, you have to pivot,” she said. “It was definitely a pretty intense pivot we had to make, but we had all the right people to make it happen and it’s great.”
The symphony’s audio technician, the city of Canton, WHBC 1480 and Mix 94.1 and others have pitched in to ensure the show goes on. Staff at Canton City Schools, which has a television production program, also have helped out, Hagemeier said.
The symphony’s performance will be livestreamed through the Canton City School YouTube channel.
“If for some reason the livestream goes down, we’ve got (the radio stations) as a backup for audio, so we feel really confident, and I think it will be a really nice experience for everyone,” she said. “This is obviously way better than having to cancel (entirely).”
The symphony will perform live at Umstattd Hall at Zimmermann Symphony Center at McKinley High School. That performance is not open to the public.
Mayor William V. Sherer II said he supported the decision to move the symphony indoors.
“I was actually worried at the beginning whether it was going to rain because (the symphony is) not going to be able to play in the rain, and should we set up a tent,” he said.
Sherer credited the symphony, Canton City Schools and others for adapting to the weather. He said his staff, including mayor’s assistant Tammy Diener, also have been instrumental in planning the event.
Sherer said his cousin Jimmy Mascetti and his Norton-based business Game Craze Party & Event Rentals are providing two 20-foot-wide video screens to show the symphony’s concert.
The city contributed roughly $23,000 to the fireworks; a donation takes the fireworks budget to about $40,000, Sherer said.
Excluding the fireworks, the entire celebration, including costs for entertainment and the symphony, will be around $80,000, the mayor said. Donations from local foundations, businesses and organizations are making the America 250 celebration possible, he said.
Free water and cooling buses
Free bottled water will be available while the supplies last, Sherer said. The Stark Area Regional Transit Authority is also providing cooling buses.
“Our safety forces are going to be all hands-on deck,” he said. “I think it’s going to be a good turnout.”
A cannon from the Korean War also will be fired at the event.
“It’s like the real deal,” Sherer said. “When they shoot it off, the trees will be moving back and forth. We’re going all out for America 250.”
Reach Ed at [email protected]. Follow on Instagram at ed_balint and TikTok @edwardbalint.
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