The English festival has just announced its first-ever international event, which will be taking place on Toronto Island on June 12 and 13 2015. What exactly is the Bestival you ask? Well, according to the Web Magazine Plaid Zebra, “if Salvador Dali and Dr. Seuss had a child born out of wedlock, it would have been conceived at Bestival.” [1] The bestival is “an annual festival of freedom” that is held in the Toronto Islands, “a nature sanctuary and nude beach completely estranged from the jagged city skyline.” [1] The Festival has been running in the UK since 2004. After the success of Bestival in the UK, Rob da Bank decided that an island that stands as such an oxymoron to city life, while still being so close to it would be the perfect place to expand the sublime mandate of Bestival. [1] This Canadian instalment is being presented along with Embrace and SFX Entertainment, with the fun taking place at Hanlan’s Point Beach on Lake Ontario. [11] The goal of the festival which is described as a “left-field creative wonderland” is to “inspire peace, love, dancing and of course, the creativity to express your individuality through eccentric outfits.” [8] People dress up, get on a ferry and take on a different persona,” Rob da Bank, a co-founder of the festival, told The Globe and Mail recently. [4] In other words it means that the place will be loaded with hippies, trannies, hipsters and all kind of degenerates drunk and stoned beyond recognition and that most of them will probably be either naked or dressed like complete dumbasses. The multi-award winning, independent festival is best known for mingling electronic music with indie rock, hip-hop, and pop while encasing its attendees in an outdoor, judgment-free zone full of zany costumes and activities. [7] Bestival’s founder and curator Rob da Bank said in a statement:
We have waited 12 years to decide to launch another Bestival outside of the UK and our beloved Bestival, on the Isle of Wight, which has grown into one of the most important festivals in the global calendar. It took a really special city, and an even more exciting site, with Toronto and Toronto Island, to make us take the leap. So, the waiting is over and we are so excited to be launching in North America in June, with a classic Bestival line-up waiting to thrill, intrigue and party! I’d like to thank all our partners, friends, new and old, and supporters in Toronto, for making this happen. We cannot wait! [11]
Those who have attended the event confirms that the Canadian edition kept as many ties to the original festival as it could, in both music and aesthetic. The “fancy dress” code Bestival is famed for in the UK was widely received by Canadians, who took every chance to don dated Halloween costumes and elaborate headwear. [7] Bestival’s white inflatable church, with the nauseatingly pink roof, was one of many familiar pieces flown in from Bestival’s home on the Isle of Wight in England for the event in Toronto. [7] As repoted by the magazine Thump, throughout the day, the air pumped church held make-believe weddings that quickly became enclosed dance parties where everyone involved—man or woman—dressed in borrowed gaudy bridesmaid gowns. [7] The Bollywood stage’s temple structure was also shipped over and rebuilt on site by its original architects from Oxford. Complete with life-sized bubblegum pink elephants and the occasional burst of flames—from stage to stage, the grounds looked like it were ripped from the pages of a Lisa Frank felt colouring book. [7] This is how Nylon describe this ridiculous modern days Woodstock:
The whole thing was a wonderful, kaleidoscopic freak fest; kids taking ectasy for the first time mingled with the families there for babies first rave, electronica warmed up a crowd for hip-hop, and free love suddenly didn’t seem so old fashioned. [6]
The web magazine Plaid Zebra was there to capture this complete lunacy on camera.
