WOW FACTOR IN WALKERVILLE
Buskerfest makes successful return
Aerial acrobats, jugglers and daredevils crowded the streets of Walkerville on the weekend for the 2017 Walkerville Buskerfest.
Kyle Sipkens, artistic director of the Walkerville Buskerfest, said attendance was great as the streets were crowded with people watching the performers, shopping at the numerous vendors or partaking in some of the different activities offered.
“Windsor still loves its buskers,” Sipkens said.
“It’s grown a lot in terms to my personal expectations. We had fantastic numbers and were able to get off a ton of shows. Even (Sunday) as you look around the streets, they are still packed with people.”
Buskerfest was brought back last year after a five-year hiatus and was moved to Walkerville from the previous site at the Riverfront Festival Plaza.
Sipkens said the tradition and history of buskers is important to this area. There’s even a Busker Hall of Fame gallery with mementos, including the first guide from 1995.
“We knew we needed to bring Buskerfest back to Windsor,” he said. “We knew it was needed for exactly the reason you can see this weekend. People remember when they were kids seeing the amazing buskers, like Butterfly Man, and now they get to bring their kids.”
Sipkens said Walkerville was the ideal location because it’s already a tourist destination. People flock to the area for the patios, the restaurants and the incredible nightlife.
“The fact it has a bootleg history doesn’t hurt,” he said. “It links perfectly to buskers. Buskers are the people’s performers, they are a little on the risque side and it just fits perfectly ... to see someone on a 20-foot pole right in the heart of a Victorian neighbourhood.”
David Aiken, known as the Checkerboard Guy, performed in Windsor years ago when it was at the waterfront. He applauded the decision to move the festival to Walkerville.
“The venue is great,” he said. “Buskers really want to go were the people are. When it was down at the river it was great, but people really had to make that the destination, so they had to go down to get there.
“Whereas here, people are here wanting to have fun already.”
The Vancouver performer has been a busker since he was 13 and has travelled the world for 36 years. His performance as the Checkerboard Guy includes a comedy juggling routine that he concludes on a unicycle.
“I’m a bit of a junky for the adrenalin rush you get from the connection with the audience,” he said. “It’s just fun. I think I’ve got another 10 years in me.”
Sipkens said performers travelled from as far away as Australia, the U.K. and various places in Canada.