Musikfest goes virtual: What you need to know
Faced with an impossible choice thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, ArtsQuest has decided Musikfest 2020 will be virtual, while holding out hope that a few performances could be held in-person if the Lehigh Valley shifts to green phase.
We break down all the details about this year’s Musikfest and share a few other bits of information about how you can help ArtsQuest, a nonprofit arts and cultural organization hit hard by the pandemic:
When is it?
Musikfest will still run July 31 to Aug. 9
Music
At this point: All virtual, 80 performances scheduled, split between:
■ Virtual Musikfest, which will be streamed on www.musikfest.org and its social media platforms. Among the artists confirmed to perform as part of the lineup: KT Tunstall, Igor & The Red Elvises, Betcha, The Accidentals, Mike Mains & the Branches, Hollis Brown, Making Movies and Craig Thatcher & Nyke Van Wyk. Additional artists will be announced as they are confirmed in the coming weeks.
■ Service Electric, which will host and broadcast live concerts on its TV2. Artists slated to perform and air live from Service Electric include The Sofa Kings, Philadelphia Funk Authority, Jimmy & the Parrots, Boat House Row, The Large Flowerheads, Fritz’s Polka Band and more. Patrick Brogan, chief programming officer and manager of the ArtsQuest Center, said the center has gone to great length to line up bands that perform well in a virtual format. They have also worked out a system to do sound checks to ensure optimal sound.
■ Possible: Should the Valley move to green, it’s possible that ArtsQuest could host some small in-person performances, limited to 250 people who would be seated in a socially distanced way.
Main stage next steps
All Wind Creek Steel Stage main stage performances, with the exception of The National, have been postponed.
■ The Darius Rucker show has been rescheduled to Aug. 7, 2021, while the Kelsea Ballerini concert will now take place Aug. 12, 2021. ArtsQuest is working to reschedule the Willie Nelson, Poison, Rob Zombie and Shinedown shows to Musikfest 2021. Ticketholders should hold on to their tickets for those shows until the new dates are confirmed and announced. All tickets will be honored at the new 2021 dates.
An email will be sent to all ticket-purchasers once a new date has been established for the shows not yet rescheduled. You’ll have options including exchanging your ticket price for a gift card, a refund or donating the price of the ticket to ArtsQuest.
■ ArtsQuest will contact those who bought tickets to see The National, whose concert has been canceled. An email will be sent outlining options, including refunds or the opportunity to donate the cost of their tickets back to ArtsQuest.
Questions, info: tickets@artsquest.org 24/7 or 610-332-3378, 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
Food
■ Here’s one part of Musikfest you will still be able to do in person. You can head down to the SteelStacks campus and get food from Musikfest vendors, who will be on hand throughout the 10 days of the festival. About 10 vendors will take part in offering a “taste” of the Musikfest midway with a variety of food and beverage options.
Everything offered will follow all state and city health and safety regulations in place at the time of Musikfest. (Stay tuned for more announcements on what food will be available, but organizers are promising to feature some Musikfest favorites.)
But what about the mugs?
■ 2020 Musikfest souvenir mugs are available at http:// store.artsquest.org and during curbside pick-up at SteelStacks.
How to help
While Musikfest has been reimagined this year, the lost revenue will hit ArtsQuest hard. The nonprofit has already suffered from months of being shut down.
Festival and Bethlehem officials annually host about a million people for Musikfest, an event that provides opportunities for more than 425 artists and performers, as well as 125 local and regional small businesses. According to ArtsQuest, the festival and its patrons had an economic impact of $77 million on the Lehigh Valley in 2019.
With no ticket sales and drastically reduced food and beverage revenues from Musikfest 2020, this year will be devastating for ArtsQuest.
■ “Together We Will Fest Again’” is a new fundraising campaign. With your donations, you’ll earn Musikfest merch and more. Info: https://www.musikfest.org/together/
■ You can also donate through ArtsQuest or become a member: https://www.artsquest.org/donate/
■ Enter the Virtual Musikfest 5K starting in July.
■ Order from the ongoing SteelStacks Curbside Pickup to Go Service, featuring Musikfest food vendor favorites. We rely on the support of our subscribers to fund our journalism as we continue to cover the coronavirus crisis. If you’re not already signed up, we hope you will consider subscribing. Already a print subscriber? If you haven’t already, please activate your digital access.