Music
About 15-years ago, I had a dream to create a world music festival in my hometown of Victoria, BC. I spanked my credit card with a $25,000 hit to get the vision moving, but got a little derailed when the City of Victoria took me to BC Supreme Court because I wanted to use Beacon Hill Park as a staging venue. After an unfavourable ruling from the court, I found a better home at Royal Roads University, site of the School for the Gifted in the X-Men movies.
Bounded by Japanese Gardens on one side, a protected forest on the other, and with sightlines from the main stage through the Esquimalt estuary, Juan de Fuca Strait and the Olympic Mountains, it was one of the finest festival sites in the entire world. The castle acted as the green room for the performers.
I assembled 20-staff, including a brilliant volunteer co-ordinator named Jocelyn Turner who marshalled 900-volunteers together and we put on a show to die for: 200 musicians, 40-bands, 4-simultaneous daytime workshop stages and a mainstage that showcased Blue Rodeo, Great Big Sea, Joan Armatrading and a dozen others.
A bit of rain dampened the revenues but not the spirit and after two years, in a classic Canadian case of cultural hubris, my board decided they could do better and fired me.
The board of directors moved the festival to a race track where the deficit tripled and the show finally came to an crashing halt a year later.
But for those of us that parented this offspring, we had a marvellous time creating indelible memories.
- Blind Boys
- Alejandro Escoveda
- crowd
- kick dancing
- Open for music
- Baka Beyond
- Blue Rodeo
- workshop stage
- gorgeous sunset
- Willie and Lobo
- main stage
- horn section
