Culture
Boogie on the Bricks Returns This Weekend
By: Emily Votaw
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This Saturday marks the 12th annual Boogie on the Bricks, a free community-uniting event during which the brew (and wine) flows freely and boogie-ing is to be had to national and local musical acts alike, all the way down Court Street.
The event kicks off at 12 p.m. and will rock steady until last call at 10:45 p.m., with headliners the Chicago Afrobeat Project closing their set at 11 p.m. The event is brought to Athens this year by Jackie O’s, Courtside Pizza and the Southeast Beverage Company.
Event coordinator Judith Wymer said that the 2016 edition of the event will feature two stages of live music: the main stage positioned on Court Street between Carpenter and West State and the acoustic Summer Shandy stage at the intersection of Court and Washington.
“When I’m booking bands for Boogie on the Bricks, I always try to get acts that play a lot of high energy music,” said Wymer, mentioning that Woody Pines and the Devil Doves are both acts that she is particularly excited to see perform. “The acoustic stage should be a lot of fun for Athenians as well, we’re having all local musicians play there.”
Some of those local acts include The Paranormals, Tony Adami, Four Mile Stone, Julia Martin, Megan Bee and JJ & Tracy.
Although live music, beer and wine might be best suited for the over-18 crowd, there will also be plenty for the younger set to enjoy throughout the day, including the Kids Zone (with many various activities provided by the Dairy Barn Arts Center,) and a special movement class provided by Wolftree Collective. The Kids Zone will be operating from 12:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Wymer said that Wolftree Collective is also opening the doors of their facility, 74 East State Street, from 4 p.m. to 5:15 p.m. to provide a little relief from the heat for families that decide to make it out to the event. The organization will provide snacks, activities and more.
Another new addition to the event is the $10, 22-ounce beer stein reusable cup. The beer stein is an alternative to the 16-ounce $1 reusable beverage cup; which means that on top of supporting the non-profit event just a little bit more, purchasing the beer stein means that one can enjoy an additional six ounces of brew at no added cost.
Wymer emphasized that Boogie on the Bricks is working with Rural Action to try and make the event as close to being zero waste as possible, the aforementioned eco-friendly cups being a part of that effort.
Perhaps one of the most unique and beloved aspects of Boogie on the Bricks is the fact that patrons can enjoy their alcoholic beverage on the bricks of Court Street. That being stated, Wymer mentioned that is it very important that festival-goers do just that: keep the alcohol on the bricks.
“Drinking outside is a nice experience, I know that if I go to a brewery or a winery, I want to enjoy myself outside,” said Wymer. “But it’s very important that people understand that the permit that we have to serve alcohol only allows drinking within the caution lines. Basically, Court Street will act as a bar, so there can’t be any outside alcohol, and from stage to stage the beer must remain.”
Being that the event is non-profit, Wymer noted that there will be donation jars throughout the festival to allow people to contribute to the continuation of the summertime Athens tradition. For more information on the festival and for a complete list of the events slated to take place Saturday, visit boogieonthebricks.com.