ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Highland Park will once again be full of live music, food, games, and the fragrant scents of lilacs. The 128th annual Lilac Festival kicks off at 10:30 a.m. on Friday.
The festival runs for 10 days in a row, featuring some nationally touring artists as music headliners. This year, the Lilac Festival was voted as the country’s second-best flower festival in a USA Today readers’ choice poll. News10NBC’s Kristi Blake was live from Highland Park with how organizers are preparing and what’s new.
Look at what’s new
This year’s festival will feature the first-ever Lilac Table, a tasting event featuring local restaurants and craft beverage producers. It will take place from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 16, behind the Lilac Adventure Zone. The space will include tents, lounge areas, a DJ, and a surprise-guest MC as people enjoy their food and drinks. You can get tickets here.
Jenny LoMaglio, executive producer of the Lilac Festival, said she’s proud that the festival is still offering new features 128 years after its debut. That includes the launch of a new environmental sustainability initiative.
“We are offering a great partnership with Impact Earth to make our festival more green and sustainable. And we are also offering some other cool little things within the festival, like a mother’s tent sponsored by Highland Hospital, where someone can go just to sit and relax,” she said.
More details on the schedule
This year’s festival will once again feature the Lilac Parade, Art in the Park, the Small Business Circle, the Lilac Run, and more. There will also be free walking tours of the lilacs each day, which you can sign up for here. Here’s what to know about the schedule:
- Saturday, May 9: The Lilac Parade will march through the streets around Highland Park starting at 10:30 a.m. It will feature marching bands, dance troupes, and cars. Art in the Park & Small Business Circle will also make its return on Reservoir Avenue, up the hill from the main festival groups. Artists from across the region will be selling their work. It’s happening from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Sunday, May 10: Art in the Park & Small Business Circle continues from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Monday, May 11: The Lilac Local Farmer’s Market kicks off, bringing fresh fruits and vegetables, along with handmade art and other goods to the festival. There will also be dairy products, dried meats, olive oil, microgreens, seafood, nuts, honey, maple products, soap, candles, and more for sale. It’s happening on Reservoir Avenue from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Tuesday, May 12: The Lilac Local Farmer’s Market continues from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Wednesday, May 13: Seniors’ Day returns to the festival. It aims to celebrate older adults in the community with lunch specials, specially curated music, and parking for buses and vans arriving from senior homes. In addition, the Lilac Local Farmer’s Market continues from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Saturday, May 16: The first-ever Lilac Table, a tasting event featuring local restaurants and craft beverage producers, kicks off. The ticketed event is happening from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. behind the Lilac Adventure Zone. In addition, Art in the Park & Small Business Circle continues from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Sunday, May 17: The 47th annual Lilac 5K and 10K is taking place on the final morning of the festival. Both races start and finish on Highland Avenue near the purple crosswalk. The 5K begins at 8 a.m., and the 10K begins at 9:30 a.m. You can register and see a course map here.
The music lineup
Some nationally touring artists are coming to the KeyBank Center Stage in Highland Park. There will be a different headliner for each of the 10 days, along with supporting acts. Here’s the lineup:
- Friday, May 8: Cimafunk (plays funk, soul, and Afro-Cuban). Support from Zahyia.
- Saturday, May 9: Lee Fields (soul and classic R&B). Support from Lady Wray.
- Sunday, May 10: The Lone Bellow (folk, country, and Americana). Support from Claudia Hoyser.
- Monday, May 11: Cruel Summer (country, Americana, and pop). Support from Roses & Revolutions.
- Tuesday, May 12: Scott Mayo & Prime Time Funk (part of the Rochester Music Hall of Fame Takeover). Support from The Dawgs, Stoney Lonesome.
- Wednesday, May 13: Mikaela Davis (indie, alternative, and Americana). Support from Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad.
- Thursday, May 14: Joe P (Part of the 94.1 The Zone Takeover). Support from The Demos.
- Friday, May 15: Anees (R&B, pop, and fusion). Support from Chi TheRealist.
- Saturday, May 16: JD McPherson (rock & roll, R&B, and blues). Support from Prime Time Brass.
- Sunday, May 17: Eggy (jam, funk, and Psychedelic). Support from High Fade.
The festival will also feature music for kids at the Bach to Rock stage and a 21+ viewing area that offers premium sightlines, a private bar, and comfortable lounge seating.
Local artists are also set to perform at the festival. You can see the full schedule here. Dave Drogo, director of the KeyBank Center stage, said the festival showcases the diversity of music talent in the Rochester area.
“It’s a long process. We start about a year out usually, get our amazing national closing acts, and then it’s actually really not that difficult to go from there because there are so many original amazing bands in Rochester that honestly, I have to say no to so many and say next year,” he said.
You can become familiar with the headliners using this playlist on Spotify. Drogo says he’s enjoyed listening to the playlist.
“There’s about two or three songs from each band on a Spotify playlist. We put it on shuffle, and we can hear all over the festival and get excited about stuff,” he said,
Behind-the-scenes look at the dive bar
Kristi Blake got a behind-the-scenes look at the dive bar in Highland Park, which includes games, a patio, a DJ spinning records on Saturdays, and all kinds of drinks.
“We want to try to give that old feel, that dive bar feel, to give our guests something new and exciting to do,” said Geoff Russo, head of beverage at the Lilac Festival.
Last year, the festival started offering mocktails and non-alcoholic beer and wine through its Zero Proof Social Club. It’s back again this year by popular demand.
History of the Lilac Festival
The festival all started with a local horticulturist, John Dunbar, planting lilacs in Highland Park in the 1890s, and thousands of people showing up to see them. It expanded over the decades and now draws over 500,000 visitors. The festival features the most extensive lilac collection in the northeast.
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