Buskers Take Over Sparks Street

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Photo by Kat Walcott

The city was bustling with music, acrobatic acts and more over the past five days for the annual Ottawa BuskerFest!

The annual event, celebrating its 26th consecutive year, brings together top street performers from around Canada and the world to perform along five blocks of Ottawa’s gorgeous Sparks Street. With the beautiful weather we got these past few days, crowds were out in the masses to see all the fun and interesting talent that was on display.

The festival proved to have a bit of something for everyone, young and old, whether you were into music, acrobatics, circus performances, face painting or balloon art. With a variety of different performances happening non-stop from 10 AM to 11 PM each day of the festival, it was an absolutely jam packed event.

Some standout sights included the gorgeous human statue duo “Daughters of Midas.” Painted head-to-toe in gold and silver respectively, these ladies can hold a pose for so long that they truly looked like gorgeously sculpted Greek statues! So many people were lined up to snap a pic with this cool act.

There were also so many kid-friendly acts, including a rapping DJ who invited kids to come up and dance to his beats and a local musician that had an open box of instruments, allowing young ones to come up and form an impromptu band!

All in all, BuskerFest once again showcased the diversity and uniqueness of street performance – one of the earliest forms of entertainment, around for centuries before the invention of theatres, recorded music and internet. It still holds the power to draw crowds and doesn’t seem to be going anywhere soon.