| Best Festivals | |
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"There are two seasons in Edmonton: snow and rain." That is a joke about Edmonton that long-time residents can certainly appreciate. However, there is a third season the creator of that joke forgot: Festival Season!
There is a lot to look forward to this Spring and Summer in terms of festivals. In fact, most of these upcoming events are in the planning stages right now, so if you are interested in volunteering for one of the many great city festivals, please visit the Web sites linked here to find out who to contact. The Northern Alberta Children's Festival is worth the drive to St. Albert. Especially for kids -- and kids at heart -- performers from around the world come to entertain. There are jugglers, clowns, musicians, magicians at both indoor and outdoor venues. One of my personal favorite events in the city, hands down, is the Edmonton International Street Performers Festival. The best buskers in the world perform in Winston Churchill square. A lot of people think they perform for free -- wrong. After each performance, the members of the audience are encouraged to give what they felt the show was worth. Believe it or not, most of the buskers here make a full time living "passing the hat." Heritage Days is a three day celebration of cultural diversity that takes place the August long weekend in Hawerlak Park. Pavililions representing over fifty countries and cultures draw huge crowds eager to sample ethnic recipies and view live performances of dance and music. When it is time for Jazz City, all of downtown knows it -- you can hear the music taking place at Winston Churchill Square echoing through the streets. The shows in the Square are free, but there are many top-name acts who come to town to perform at venues around the city. The Edmonton Folk Music Festival is by far one of the most popular events in the city. Every year in Gallagher Park tens of thousands of folkies come to see the likes of Emmylou Harris, Blue Rodeo, and other Canadian and international acts perform on the main stage, and also at workshops held throughout the day. Another major event is the Fringe Theatre Festival, featuring a plethora of independentally written and produced plays. Most of the performances take place in the Old Strathcona area, and go from the mid-afternoon until well into the wee hours. A sometimes-overlooked, yet vibrant vibrant cultural group has a festival that highlights their importance in the multi-cultural fabric of the city. The Caribbean community has CariWest, featuring a parade through Jasper Avenue -- those colorful costumes are blinding! Finally, a festival that has evolved in recent years is Harvest Moon, a one-day celebration of Christian music. Some of the acts that have performed include Hokus Pick, Cindy Morgan, and local talent The Splendourbog.
