For those who have wished live entertainment would come knocking right on their front door, Porchfest Fort Langley will be fulfilling that dream this month.
Held for the first time last year, RE/MAX Little Oak sponsored the community music event by wrangling together Langley porches and local musicians to provide a day of free entertainment.
Lindsay Aplas, Porchfest’s administrator, said the event is still very new, but rapidly growing.
“It was great! We had nine porches and got such great feedback last year. We have 15 this year, with quite a few more businesses included,” Aplas explained.
Porchfest officially got its start in Ithaca, New York a little more than ten years ago in an attempt to bring neighbourhoods together through live music.
The idea gained instant traction, with hundreds of Porchfest gatherings taking off across the United States and Canada – all run on a volunteer and donation basis.
After getting wind of a Porchfest outside of Ottawa from a friend, staff at RE/MAX Little Oak Fort Langley saw a local opportunity.
“We went door knocking and got a lot of ‘maybe next year’s’ and then a lot of repeat offenders from the year before asking if they could do it again and offer up their porch,” Aplas said about the response.
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Businesses like the Little Donkey, Reward Fitness, Little White House, Watermelon Tree, TWU House, Beatniks Bistro, and Trading Post have donated their doorways this year, additional to about 10 residents throughout the village.
As for the actual acts themselves, Aplas said all of the performers are local, consisting of bands, students, up and comers, and musicians that don’t receive a regular platform to play.
Genres range across the musical map, including jazzy blues, rock and roll, acoustic duos, instrumental, and electronic.
“Concerts will be going simultaneously,” Aplas said, “but take your time. We’ve tried to work out a schedule that isn’t competing with other similar performers. Just walk around…push your stroller…carry around a lawn chair. You can’t drive to the porches so be ready to walk.”
Porchfest organizers will be handing out maps at Fort Langley Community Hall (9167 Glover Rd) from 12 to 1 p.m.
Performances will run on Sept. 21, from 1 to 4 p.m., with a wrap up at the Hall to follow. Aplas said they are hoping to bring in a couple of food trucks to spice up the day, but will also be handing out popcorn, balloons, and even Porchfest t-shirts.
“It’s a grass roots event that is fun for the whole community. We are excited to see how much it is going to grow over the years,” Aplas added.
With Porchfest Fort Langley still a few weeks away, musicians and porch owners can still offer up their homes and talents by filling out a form at www.porchfestlangley.ca.
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Email: ryan.uytdewilligen@langleyadvancetimes.com
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