Locust Street Festival

Locust Street Festival is held one day every year during the first half of June – usually the same weekend as Milwaukee Pridefest and the Bead and Button Show, and in 2010 it fell on the same weekend as the Milwaukee Air Show.

I hadn’t attended Locust Street Festival before 2010 because I was so busy with the other “happenings” around the city, but I’ll definitely be back!!

As far as street festivals go, there’s not too much different here – lots of food, beverages, local artisans and music.

Of course, there is the infamous Beer Run which many will site as the Claim to Fame of the festival...as you may have guessed, the “Beer Run” is literally going from one bar to another in a certain amount of time. Good for some, but not really my style.

For me, the best part about this festival was the Drumming Circle! It was scheduled to go from 1:00pm to 2:30pm, but it was more like 12:30pm to after 3:00pm. I can’t tell you how much fun it was to watch and be part of the energy that this created!

For those of you who don’t know what a Drumming Circle is...it is literally a bunch of people, sitting in a circle, playing individual drums. Each of the beats feed off of each other and together a collective beat emerges.

The circle is led by a group from the Milwaukee Public Theater, and anyone present can join. Many people bring their own drums to play, however there were several drums there for people to join in on the fun even if they didn’t have their own drum. All ages are welcome and encouraged to join in, and there were lots of dancers in the center of the circle. (And by “dancers” I mean people from the festival crowd who were moved by the spirit!)

If you’ve never experienced a Drumming Circle before, I highly recommend it! There’s just something about that tribal beat that brings people together! You can see from the pictures how much fun everyone had.

I didn’t drum myself, but I did bring a chair and sat with my beverage right behind the drummers. Not only did I get to enjoy the music and the great weather, but the Milwaukee Air Show was nearby, and many of the planes flew right overhead...AWESOME!

Locust Street Festival runs along Locust Street (go figure! :) between Humboldt Avenue and Holton Street. It is one of the many ways that the Riverwest Neighborhood keeps itself energized and the businesses thriving.

Add this event your list of Summer Activities!

To read more about the festival, and see the full schedule, visit the festival website (opens new window).

Thanks for visiting this site! Enjoy the summer and all of the festivals Milwaukee has to offer!

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