For the first time in decades, there won’t be much activity on Guelph Lake Island this weekend, but a virtual festival offered by the organizers of the annual Hillside Festival offers something you could never do before: a chance to watch at home.
Hillside Homeside goes online Friday at 6 p.m. and features different virtual stages — each featuring lineups tied to different video playlists, said executive director Marie Zimmerman.
People can watch whatever they want whenever they want — at least until it all disappears from the web on Monday, she said.
“Some people are gathering a few friends together in their backyards for a physically distanced watch party, and we love that idea,” Zimmerman said.
“Then they’re curating their own schedule. You know, ‘In the morning, we’re going to do this workshop and that workshop, and then we’re going to listen to these songs, and then we’re going to go over to the youth showcase and listen to all of those pieces.'”
The dozens of performers for this year’s event include legendary Indigenous artist Buffy Sainte-Marie, 2020 Juno winner Celeigh Cardinal, 2019 Juno winner Donovan Woods and 2019 Polaris Music Prize winner Haviah Mighty.
The virtual main stage will feature a project called 37 Songs for a New World, which features artists performing songs about what they want to see more of in the world.
There will also be a traditional Sunday morning virtual gospel stage featuring some special performances that will only be online that morning.
Virtual dance, food workshops
Festival organizers have tried to capture the community spirit of the in-person event by providing space for people to comment on performances online, Zimmerman said.
There will also be lots of workshops people can participate in from home from Caribbean dance, Soca and belly dancing to food workshops:
“We’ve got food vendors who will teach you, you know, how to make salsa, nachos and bread,” she said. “There is a sense of community that’s created, but so much of this depends on the self-reliance and the creativity of the individual member of the audience.”
The festival is free, but Zimmerman encourages people to donate to the organization — which is currently getting by with the help of funding from municipal, provincial and federal governments.
Hillside Homeside starts Friday at 6 p.m. at hillsidefestival.ca
