Aparna Dhulipala, Contributing Photographer

The sound of salsa music and the scent of popping kettle corn filled the air Friday evening as crowds of people explored the New Haven Night Market downtown. 

Launched in 2018, the biannual market showcases local businesses, restaurants and organizations. Friday’s event, held in the Ninth Square neighborhood, featured over 130 vendors, ranging from jewelrymakers to vintage clothing curators to ceramicists. 

The event also featured food trucks and stalls offering a variety of cuisines, including Indian, Ethiopian and Italian. Other tables promoted Yale organizations, such as the Yale Center for British Art and the Yale Repertory Theatre, and community groups, including the Elm City Dog Project and Creative Arts Workshop.

“The event has grown in size from about 60 vendors at our first market in 2018 to now more than 130 vendors,” Winfield Davis, the executive director of the Town Green District, the organization behind the event, wrote in an email. 

Davis outlined three main goals for the event: first, “to bring vibrancy and fun to our district for visitors and residents;” second, “give local vendors and makers an opportunity to sell in downtown New Haven for an evening;” and third, “increase foot traffic and positive perception of downtown.”

Skye Victoria, a Shelton resident and vendor at Friday’s event, sells one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces made out of recycled materials for her brand Cielv. Her favorite part of selling her jewelry at markets like New Haven’s is the sense of “connection” she gets when talking to customers and watching them take her pieces home, she said. 

Some visitors participated in interactive events, such as a tie-dye station at the New Haven Pride Center’s table, henna sessions with Henna by Jada and screenprinting demos with the Creative Arts Workshop.

Friday’s events also featured half a dozen community organizations, including A Place to Nourish Your Health, which provides New Haveners services related to sexual health, especially for those in the LBGTQ+ community. 

Another of the evening’s main attractions was live musical performances. In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, which concludes Oct. 15, the market showcased Hispanic bands and musicians, such as The Cosmic Jibaros, Mariachi Voces De México and Fuselaje. 

Among the crowd of people dancing were Nathan Lange ’27 and Sunny Vuong ’27, co-captains of the Yale Ballroom Dance Team. The duo said they saw a flyer for the event and were drawn to the salsa music. Vuong complimented the variety of vendors and the “endless labyrinth” of activities to do. 

“I am proud of the entire endeavor and certainly proud of our amazing Town Green District staff and our downtown Ambassadors, who make it all happen,” Davis wrote to the News. “They pop up and break down this multi-block event space in less than 24 hours and host what has become a marquis event for the city.”

The New Haven Night Market is free to attend.