Sunfest London, Ontario

history

Sunfest is Canada's Premier Celebration of the Global Arts, held without admission fee in beautiful Victoria Park, London, Ontario. Every summer since 1995, Sunfest has brought together thousands of people of all ages and cultures for four days of exemplary music, dance, crafts and cuisine from around the globe. This unique, high profile event features over 30 top professional world music & dance and jazz ensembles based in Canada and abroad. Over the years.

Sunfest has showcased international headliners from nearly every corner of the planet, including:

• Africa
• Asia-Pacific
• The Americas (North, South, & Central)
• The Caribbean
• Europe
• The Middle East
• First Nations Territories.

Each year, Sunfest continues to build on its phenomenal following by adding new food and craft vendors (totaling more than 220 in 2008!), and a range of unique entertainment options for families of all backgrounds and traditions.

Over the past decade, Sunfest has:

• Been selected a Top 50 & 100 Ontario Festival (Festivals & Events Ontario) and received Tourism London’s "2001 Spirit of Excellence Award," which recognizes the Forest City’s top event of the year.
• Received major Ontario Trillium Foundation (2006) and Celebrate Ontario (2007 & 2008) funding
• Established one of the best known and most clearly defined brand names of any organization in Southwestern Ontario.
• Seen annual attendance in Victoria Park balloon from 10,000 in its first summer to over 200,000 since 2005.
• Become one of London’s major summer tourist attractions, drawing a burgeoning number of patrons from Windsor/Detroit and the Greater Toronto Area – in fact, each year, bringing loyal fans from as far away as Dayton, Ohio.
• Consistently delivered an artistic lineup praised as one of the strongest in the country, and on the strength of that programming has secured multi-year sponsorship from TD Canada Trust (title sponsor), Big Rock Brewery and WestJet.
• Expanded its run from three days to four, and increased the number of performance venues to two main stages and two side stages for its world music & dance offerings, with a separate stage for jazz.
• Forged a long-term sponsorship relationship with CBC Radio One and Radio-Canada, who are impressed by the festival’s stellar music offerings, and ability to assemble the most culturally diverse audience of any event in the region.