It's Penticton's unofficial spring kickoff party, and it all goes down this weekend at multiple venues scattered throughout the downtown core.
The action begins Friday evening at 6 and ends Sunday night at 10, stopping only for sleep breaks along the way.
There'll be 200-plus shows in all, running the gamut from music (rock, folk, electronic, international, jazz, ambient, hip hop and more) to dance to theatre to art to straight-up weirdness and all things in between.
And giant puppets twice the size of a typical human. But more on that later.
It’s called Ignite the Arts and 2025 represents its fourth annual iteration. Conceived in late 2021 and debuting less than a year later, the highly inclusive event is a product of the Penticton Art Gallery and more specifically curator Paul Crawford and wife (and serial festival organizer) Julie Fowler.
It seeks, suggests Fowler, to close gaps and bring people together under an artistic umbrella.
"We need more opportunities to celebrate and come together," said Fowler last week, "and art and music are such beautiful ways to do that.
"These days, there are so many divisions and we’re often isolated from each other, especially since COVID. So that's a driving force for me – bringing people together in a positive way to help strengthen our community."
Fowler tells us festival attendance has grown every year since inception. And after strong "early bird" ticket sales this year, she believes that trend will continue.
Leading off Ignite 2025, as has been the case since inception, is the "Parade For No Reason," a colourful, bubbly one-hour community procession through the downtown streets that's made up, primarily, of anyone who shows up.
This year, like always, it assembles just before 6 PM at the Elk's Lodge parking lot at 343 Ellis St. and will be led by wild and wacky horn-heavy Vancouver-based band Balkan Shmalkan. But unlike prior years, it'll be marshaled for 2025 by noted singer/songwriter and diehard Ignite fan Yanti.
And yes, this is where you'll also get your first glimpse of those giant puppets.
They're made locally, essentially from scratch, by a group of crazed puppet artisans calling themselves the "Puppet Brigade," and they're really quite awesome.
Immediately following the parade is an outdoor "fire spinning" routine where live flame is magically thrown about, twirled and juggled in the darkening sky. Simultaneously, the festival kicks into high gear at five different venues – Elk's Lodge upper floor, Elk's Lodge main floor, Dream Café, BritBar and Legacy Den.
At 8 PM, Tempest Theatre comes on board.
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Saturday the roster swells even more when Cannery Brewing and Hwy 97 Brewing join in full-time and more eclectic spots like Hillside Winery, CFUZ Radio, BE Hive Yoga, the Penticton Art Gallery and the PAG Tea Room take on part-time duties.
The action picks up again Sunday morning at nine venues and will continue at several of them 'til the evening.
To say it’s the most up-tempo weekend of the off-season for the Penticton downtown core is a major understatement.
"When you think about it, we have an amazing downtown for this – so tight and close together," said Fowler.
"And at this time of year, there's so much availability of accommodation, there's great restaurants, the weather's just getting nice, the wineries are opening. It's the perfect event for the time."
But she believes Ignite's biggest strength is its variety.
"It's about showcasing incredible talent, people who you may not be exposed to," she said. "And that's the great thing about having so many venues. It allows us to bring lots of styles and genres and appeal to all audiences.
"Here, you can choose your own adventure. Hop from one stage to another. You could easily hit a couple dozen performances without even trying."
And Fowler does have some recommendations.
Like the experimental stage at Legacy Den, where the spacey vibe and cool retro gear grabbed a ton of attention in its 2024 debut.
"Friday at Legacy is 'Garbanzo and Gandhaar: Bansuri Conversation,'" she said. "The bansuri is a traditional Indian flute, and Garbanzo and Gandhaar are players. One comes from Toronto, one comes from New Denver. Friday they play together and put it to electronic music."
But electronic music also has a home at BritBar.
"At the other end of the electronic music spectrum," said Fowler, "we have dance music at BritBar. Some of our musicians will also bring in live instruments as accompaniment. Like 'Lady of the Mist,' who's one of the curators for that stage. She's an incredible flautist.
"One of the BritBar highlights is Vancouver's 'shmani.' She sings live to her electronic music. She'll be playing Friday night only then heading to Vancouver for Juno Fest."
Fowler's also a big fan of Jack Garton, a rockabilly-meets-folk singer/musician playing Friday night at the Dream Café.
"He's the quintessential entertainer," she said. "He's like a new Elvis, just oozing with talent. He plays accordion, he plays trumpet, sometimes at the same time, he's a storyteller, a poet and a great singer.
"He's the last performer Friday night at the Dream, which is just a fantastic listening space."
Also of note, says Fowler, is a band playing Friday at the Elks' Lodge and again Saturday at Dream Café. They're called 'High Society' and Folwer calls them "kind of a supergroup."
"Last year, we had talented (trans non-binary) singer Leo D.E Johnson," she said. "Leo is the lead singer of High Society. Adam Farnsworth is an incredible keyboard player. Ashton Sweet, also with Balkan Shmalkan, is a great baritone sax player.
"There are more players than that and they're essentially a supergroup who re-assembled at last year's Ignite. And now they're bringing the band back together again."
For comedy, Fowler suggests spending some time at Tempest Theatre.
"If you want weird," she said with a laugh, "try the absurdist performance troop 'Snake in the Grass: Moving Theatre' Saturday afternoon at Tempest. They've been together since the 1980s. One of the members is 80 years old. And Saturday they're doing a 15-minute performance called 'The Rock on Which."
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Later than night, festival favourite "One Minute Play Festival," where regular peeps attempt to impress judges and a sold-out crowd with one-minute performance pieces of their own creation, makes its Ignite return.
"But this year," said Fowler, "Paul Crawford will be hosting along with Charles Ross. The two of them created the One Minute concept 26 years ago for Arts Wells in Wells, BC. Charles was an actor on the streets of Barkerville, Paul was a Barkerville waiter.
"Charles has since gone on to tour the world with his one-man Stars Wars and Lord of the Rings shows, but now the two of them will reunite as judges for the first time in 26 years. It'll be hilarious."
Weekend passes to Ignite the Arts, which get you into everything all weekend long and come equipped with nifty $15 vouchers, are still available. They're $125 each. Day passes are $50 for Friday and $75 each for Saturday and Sunday.
To purchase any of the above, head here. To learn more about the event, and check out a full schedule and artist lineup, check out the Ignite the Arts site here.
