Pictured is a May Pole from the 2019 Arcata Fairy Festival, which returns to the Arcata Plaza today. (Submitted)
The third Arcata Fairy Festival is taking place today from noon to 10 p.m. on the Arcata Plaza. All ages are welcome and there’s no charge to attend.
This “fun and fabulous” celebration of community and creativity — hosted by the nonprofit Redwood Raks Collective and Shoshanna, who created the event a few years back with former Arcata Main Street director Jeanette Todd — features art installations, live and DJ music, a May Pole dance, an evening fire show with Lost Coast Fusion, three performances by Emerald Aerials, dance sets, juggling, magic shows, bubbles, a silent auction, gnome dome, food, craft libations, a Synapsis Drum Brigade at 3:30 p.m. with a dragon-led procession, a costume contest, fundraisers for school groups and nonprofits, body art, art and craft vendors and a Humboldt Live Action Role Playing boffering area. (Some pool-noodle covered PVC pipe swords will be available to rent or buy, and those who bring a boffer from home will need to pass a safety inspection before it can be used).
“We (the Fae Council organizing team) really believe in creating a festival downtown that is all about art, saying ‘yes’ to people who want to try out a creative idea and to design an event that isn’t all about drinking alcohol — we do have a bar, but it’s a much smaller presence than most plaza events — that is actually fun and engaging for all ages. With areas to hang out, a variety of music across the arc of the day and lots to see and do, we try to find a balance of offerings for adults and kids in things to buy, make and do. … There’s just so much happening all the time, there has to be something for everyone at any given time.”
The Arcata Fairy Festival has been put together by a small team of volunteers, Shoshanna said. “(It) is a total labor of love,” she noted.
“We are so grateful to our sponsors, all the creative people making little special spaces across the event and to our families who help out even when it ends up being a lot,” Shoshanna said. “People have been asking for this event to try making a comeback for three years, so we hope they dress up, come and enjoy.”
Shoshanna — who founded the world dance studio Redwood Raks in Arcata in 2008 — says she’s been interested in “the whimsical” her whole life.
“It just takes over more and more each year,” she said. “… Doing so many birthday parties and camps from 2008 to 2020 (at Redwood Raks) made me want to live in the ‘Fairy Camp’ worlds that kids created with me. There it was ‘free choice’ all day with crafts, dance parties, dress up and play time happening all day. That was an ideal happy-place energy I try to bring to events as much as possible. I think people need it.”
Since late 2019, Redwood Raks has been a nonprofit and now, Shoshanna said, “It’s run by a dedicated group of dancers from many styles keeping the magic alive. I still teach there, have storage so I can do events like (the festival) for the community and sometimes am able to offer birthday parties here and there.”
In the past year, Shoshanna was hired as the youth services outreach coordinator for Humboldt County Library, where she tries to “bring as much sparkle and magic to the libraries across the county as I can within that role.”
Also available at the Arcata Fairy Festival this year are lounges and interactive creation stations with areas to play, relax and connect with each other.
“We are delighted to have a lot of vendors, artists, and community folks host lounges all across the event with different intentions,” Shoshanna said. “On Eighth Street, there will be a ‘Mama and Baby Lounge’ with a rug, rocking chair and a soft, fluffy space for resting and nursing. On H Street, artist Ruthie Creates Art will have the ‘Dragon’s Horde of Arts & Crafts’ with art projects kids can do. On the grass near H Street, there will be the Do Nothing Society, a group that hosts hammock lounge events up at Redwood Park and tries to encourage conversation offering simple art projects and games. I am hosting a Fairy House play area on the Ninth Street side where kids can enjoy playing with upcycled fairy dollhouses and wooden building blocks. There is also a Rainbow Lounge, a second Dragon Lounge and even a Dark Fae Lounge. Some are just for hanging out and getting out of the sun, while groups such as the Playhouse Arts Wonder Wagon, Humboldt County Department of Child Support Services and our Info/Welcome Corner booths will have great crafts and projects for all ages.”
To avoid a traffic crunch on the Plaza, a Bike Valet service is being offered to festival-goers by members of Girl Scout Troop 70181, she said. “It’s free, but the teens hosting it are raising funds for a trip next summer and would gladly accept donations,” Shoshanna said.
The first two years the Arcata Fairy Festival was a fundraiser for CASA of Humboldt, she said. This year’s event is raising funds for the Redwood Raks Collective.
Folks attending the event are reminded to bring their own cups for beverages at the festival and to leave their dogs at home. For more information, visit www.arcatafairyfestival.com or call Shoshanna at 707-616-6876.