Back to the Streets
Buskers Festival to Bring Music, Performance, to Bay and Algoma
By Justin Allec
During the summer of 2011, the City of Thunder Bay reimagined what the Bay and Algoma neighbourhood could become. They widened the sidewalks and pushed the streetscape to become more pedestrian-friendly, in effect making the area a walkable shopping and eating destination. Once (and hopefully again) home to the distinct Finlandia Hall and the Hoito Restaurant, the area was already popular thanks to that iconic destination and an array of restaurants, unique shops, and inspired entrepreneurs.
The next year, in 2012, the neighbourhood business association realized they had an unconventional venue available. Putting out a call to local performers and running with the casual atmosphere of a lazy summer day, the first unofficial festival—a “sidewalk sale on steroids”—took over the street. Not surprisingly, people crowded the area for two days of low-key fun, music, and food. Knowing that they had something valuable worth sharing, the organizers decided to go for it again the next year. In 2013, the two-day festival was christened the Bay & Algoma Buskers Festival, with dozens of artists and vendors lining the street. The festival was born!
With a focus on the unusual and the unconventional, the festival quickly garnered a reputation for unforgettable experiences over subsequent years. As interest grew and people flocked to the neighbourhood with regularity, the organizers began thinking bigger. The festival was something special, something that could help anchor the neighbourhood and become an event people marked on their calendars. In addition to local artists performing and expanding the number of craft and food vendors, the festival started bringing in international buskers. Suddenly, it wasn’t just a collection of musical acts, but something closer to a circus display: fire-eaters, jugglers, clowns, one-man bands, dancers, and contortionists all took to the street to entertain and delight.
“The festival space is organized into eight ‘pitches,’ where each pitch acts as a stage area, and acts will rotate throughout the weekend,” says Brook Dallaire, a member of the festival’s organizing committee. “There will be a schedule set ahead of time to help people catch the acts they want to see.”
What’s fun about the festival is that everything happens at street level: there is no stage. As such, “spectator” is a loose term, and it's not uncommon for performers to get right in the thick of the crowds, especially if they’re looking for volunteers. Feel free to participate, or hang back a little if you just want to enjoy the show. That closeness and proximity was something that has been missing the last few years as the festival was forced to take a hiatus thanks to the pandemic. Returning this year and newly minted as the Thunder Bay Buskers Festival, the organizers are hoping for a smashing good turnout with some of the best acts they’ve been able to feature to date. In addition, the festival will also be featuring food vendors and lots of crafters who will have their wares displayed. What started as a simple idea to showcase the area’s businesses has transformed into an event and a celebration of the community.
For more information, visit buskersfestival.ca or find them on Facebook at facebook.com/tbaybuskers.