Victoria Skafest (July 10-14, 2012)
Another highly anticipated festival that puts Victoria on the map returns as Skafest, the largest and longest running festival of its kind in North America, takes place at various music venues throughout downtown Victoria.
This year’s Ska Fest will continue to showcase local talent, while also hosting a bill of performances that is more international and diverse than ever before. The festival will host over 30 artists; from Jamaica, New Zealand, Mexico, the US, and across Canada.
The legendary Toots and the Maytals will kick off the festival on July 10 with their own brand of ska/reggae/soul at Ship Point Inner Harbour from 5.00pm until 10.00pm. Others performing at their years 13th Skafest will be Katchafire, The Pietasters, Step Back Dave, and many, many more!
In additional to the musical performances, there will also be a number of workshops, such as one on horn arrangements in ska ensembles and another by Adham Shaikh entitled “Music That Inspires Social Change”.
The festival wraps up on July 14 with Ska Fest Family Day and Ship Point, free for everyone to attend.
Tickets to all shows can be purchased individually (prices available here) For those who want to see more of the festival for better value there are two options:
1) The All Fest Pass, which gives access to all shows, is available for $125 + HST
2) The Harbour Pass, which gives access to all Ship Point shows but not the late night shows, is available for $75 + HST.
Tickets available in Victoria at: Lyle’s Place, Ditch Records, and The Reef In Vancouver at: Highlife Records, Redcat Records and Zulu Records. If you are up island, you can purchase tickets at Fascinating Rhythms in Nanaimo & Area 51 in Duncan Tickets also available online at ticketweb.ca.
For a complete line up of shows and workshops, please visit Victoria Skafest. Check out this SkaFest 2012 teaser video below!
Category: Events
