The Downtown Victoria Buskers Festival will take over stages throughout the downtown core from August 30 to September 3. One behind-the-scenes change that those watching the performers won’t necessarily know is that last year’s talent organizer, Michele Montgomery, has stepped into the position of festival organizer, a role that includes talent scouting.
As is the tradition, buskers don’t get paid to come here; Montgomery says that the festival does cover their travel, but once they get here, they are working for donations. There are 11 acts coming from all over the world for the festival.
“I think quirky, unique, world-class talent is the best way to describe it,” says Montgomery. “It’s fun and there’s something for everyone. These acts are world-class. They have been seen on Australia’s Got Talent and [at] the World Buskers Festival. They’ve toured the world, and they’ve never been here before, so it’s something fresh.”
Toronto’s Rhythm Works are performing at this year’s fest; led by Troy Sexton, they’re a drumming group that uses a mixture of percussion, dancing, and comedy in their shows.
“Previous to doing a bunch of busking, I performed with the Broadway group Stomp for about 12 years,” says Sexton. “I toured the world playing with Stomp. Since 2010, I’ve had my own company, which is Rhythm Works, and we do busker festivals all over Canada for the summertime, and then during the school year we perform in schools and do a bunch of outreach work all over the country within the youth prison system, and then up in reserves and in schools. We try to promote good mental health through the arts.”
Sexton says that because he spent many years with Stomp, he was used to a theatre audience, but street performers always mesmerized him.
“It’s an amazing form of theatre,” says Sexton about busking. “You have to work a little bit harder as a performer to keep the audience, and keep them entertained, and hope they pay you at the end. I took it on to learn how to do it and just threw myself in the deep end a few years ago and put an act together. I watched the veterans and learned as much as I could. Also, with our show, we like to show that you can make music with everything… We use whatever’s around us. If there’s a street sign, we might jump on the pole if it sounds good. We use the space in different ways, and it makes it super fun.”
Audience members should prepare to get involved—Sexton says that drumming is a very contagious way of engaging young people, and the group sells drumsticks with hopes that people will keep playing after the show.
“Everyone loves to make noise,” says Sexton, “and I try to organize it so before they know it, it sounds good. It just goes to show that anybody can learn.”
Downtown Victoria Buskers Festival
Various times, Thursday, August 30 to Monday, September 3
Free, various venues
downtownvictoria.ca