On behalf of the City of Burlington, I want to welcome you to the Festival of Fools!
This free three-day festival offers residents and visitors alike an accessible showcase of local, regional and global talent, including musicians, comedians, circus performers, and buskers.
Now in its seventeenth year, the Festival of Fools continues to remind us of the power of performance art to cultivate community, and contribute to the vibrant atmosphere that makes Burlington a truly special place.
This fun and joy-filled weekend is made possible by the hard work and support of many City staff and community partners, and I am so grateful for their effort.
We hope you enjoy the festivities and all that Burlington has to offer.
—Emma Mulvaney-Stanak Mayor of Burlington
Fools on Parade!
Welcome to the Festival of Fools, a weekend devoted to the finest in offbeat and unexpected live arts experiences. With the world’s best buskers, internationally renowned musicians, and extraordinary local artists coming together to entertain and delight, the Festival of Fools showcases the communitybuilding power of performance.
THE FESTIVAL OF FOOLS IS FREE AND EVERYONE IS WELCOME!
In the event of inclement weather, performances will be paused and/or canceled. When the weather clears, we will continue performances following the published schedules. Missed shows are generally not possible to re-schedule. In the event of a complete rain out, some performances may be moved into Contois Auditorium. Please visit vtfools.com, consult our festival app, or visit our information tent for real-time updates during the festival.
ALL PERFORMANCS AND ACTIVITES
Are Free!
Friday, August 2
12-10 pm
BUSKING ON CHURCH STREET & CITY HALL PARK
12:30 pm | City Hall Park SUMMER CONCERT SERIES: MOIRA SMILEY
1 pm | Leunig’s Pitch OBLIQUESTRA
2:30 pm | Ben & Jerry’s Pitch SCHOOL OF FOOLERY SHOWCASE
2:30 pm | Community Bank Pitch MOON HOOCH
4-10 pm | City Hall Park HENDRICK’S TWILIGHT LOUNGE
5:30 pm | City Hall (Church St.) KICKOFF PARADE
Schedule at a Glance Busking Schedules
5:45 pm | Ben & Jerry’s Pitch KICKOFF CELEBRATION
6 pm | Leunig’s Pitch FERN MADDIE
6:30 pm | City Hall Park TWILIGHT SERIES: MOON HOOCH w/ OMEGA JADE
Saturday, August 3
11 am-10 pm
BUSKING ON CHURCH STREET & CITY HALL PARK
11 am-3 pm | City Hall Park BTV MARKET
11 am – 1 pm | Ben & Jerry’s Pitch LAKE MONSTER PUPPET CREATION
12 pm | Leunig’s Pitch OBLIQUESTRA
1 pm | City Hall Park
SPLASH DANCE: DJ RON STOPPABLE
1:30 pm | Community Bank Pitch JUPITER & OKWESS
3:30 pm | Community Bank Pitch ALL OF THE RIVERS
4-10 pm | City Hall Park HENDRICK’S TWILIGHT LOUNGE
6 pm | Leunig’s Pitch OBLIQUESTRA
6:30 pm | City Hall Park
TWILIGHT SERIES: JUPITER & OKWESS W/ ALL OF THE RIVERS
Sunday, August 4
10 am | City Hall Park SUNDAY CLASSICAL: ZAUBER MAGIC FLUTE ENCHANTEE
11 am–5 pm BUSKING ON CHURCH STREET & CITY HALL PARK
11 am | Leunig’s Pitch OBLIQUESTRA
5 pm | City Hall Park THE HOKUM BROTHERS
5:30 pm | City Hall Park THE LAST LAUGH VARIETY SHOW
will be posted on our website and app. During the Festival, we will have daily schedules available as handouts at our information tent and on our chalkboard in front of the BCA Center. Download our Fools App here!
RESTROOMS
COMMUNITY BANK PITCH
PET FOOD WAREHOUSE PITCH
RESTROOMS
HENDRICK’S TWILIGHT LOUNGE
AARP PITCH
LEUNIG’S PITCH
BEN & JERRY’S PITCH
CITY HALL PARK
LIGHT CLUB LAMP SHOP
SpecialEvents
School of Foolery Showcase
FRIDAY, AUGUST 2, 2:30 PM
BEN & JERRY’S PITCH
Behold the buskers of tomorrow! This special youth showcase features young performers from BCA’s School of Foolery, a week-long summer camp preceding the festival. Each year, professional circus artists teach street performance, building confidence while engaging in a cherished and historic artform. This year, Circus Smirkus’ renowned Rob Crites leads the pack in a relaxed showcase of amazing students demonstrating their amazing work.
Kickoff Parade
FRIDAY, AUGUST 2, 5:30 PM, CHURCH ST.
Fools on parade! Join performers and friends of the festival as we officially kick off an incredible weekend. Join our ragtag processional up Church Street, with paraders lining up at City Hall. March to the music of Moon Hooch toward the Ben & Jerry’s Pitch, where Arc Bender’s Circus Opera and Obliquestra perform. Come dance in the street!
Hendrick’s Twilight Lounge
FRIDAY & SATURDAY, AUGUST 2 & 3, 4-10 PM CITY HALL PARK
Sip on a refreshing beverage in a secret garden under the stars while our Twilight concerts light up City Hall Park. Presented by our friends at Hendrick’s Gin, the Radio Bean bar will be serving up top-shelf drinks to pair with the top-shelf view of the City Hall Park stage.
Twilight Series: Fools Edition
FRIDAY-SATURDAY, AUGUST 2-3, 6:30 PM
CITY HALL PARK
Twilight Series is BCA’s summer-long evening concert series in City Hall Park. For Fools, we go all out, and are thrilled to welcome eccentric horn and drum trio Moon Hooch on Friday, with Omega Jade spinning tunes to kick things off at 6:30 pm. On Saturday, wrap up an amazing day of Foolery with the astoundingly dancy Jupiter & Okwess, hailing from the Democratic Republic of Congo. All of the Rivers, featuring Avi Salloway and friends from around the globe will kick things off with an entirely unique opening set.
Lake Monster Puppet Creation, by PuppetKabob
SATURDAY, AUGUST 3, 11 AM-1 PM
BEN & JERRY’S PITCH
Get looped into local folklore by creating a paper chain Lake Monster Puppet. PuppetKabob hosts an imagination station for kids to design their own unique creatures to twirl and swirl, flip and dip, and swoosh and sploosh up and down Church Street.
Vermont’s very finest Puppet Slam swirls forth the underground to the avant-garde in an evening for adults showcasing a variety of puppetry styles. Each piece features the talents of local artists and traveling puppeteers, guaranteed to be different from the next. Some may be funny, cool, quirky, dark, even profound! The Creemee Dreemee Slamereenee is hosted by local artist PuppetKabob. Get lit at the Lamp Club Light Shop as Radio Bean and Fest of Fools serve up this sweet treat!
Sunday FluteZauberClassical:Magic Enchantee
SUNDAY, AUGUST 4, 10 AM, CITY HALL PARK
Arc Benders Circus Opera perform a condensed production of Mozart’s beloved opera “The Magic Flute,” featuring a small instrumental ensemble, a tiny hardworking cast, aerial and ground acrobatics, and audience participation. This is going to be epic.
The Last Laugh Variety Show
SUNDAY, AUGUST 4, 5:30 PM, CITY HALL PARK
We’ll put the Fools to bed with a final sendoff in City Hall Park. The Last Laugh is famous for spontaneous magic and improvisational hilarity. Never rehearsed, never to be repeated, the full weekend roster comes together to present vignettes, accompanied by longtime Fool folks the Hokum Brothers, with special guests Obliquesta.
Arc Benders Circus Opera
Arc Benders Circus Opera takes opera to new heights—literally. Starting with well-loved arias, the company adds aerial acrobatics to fully interpret each aria’s story. The Benders delight in developing innovative interpretations of beloved classical music. They draw audiences into every performance through the alchemy of vocal and aerial arts, inspiring wonder, delight, and awe.
Colin Campbell
Colin Campbell is an over-the-top performer filled with hilariousness from head to toe. He’s appeared on Comedy Central and his one-man circus comedy show has been seen in over 50 cities and eight countries across the globe. Bagpiping, unicycling, juggling, acrobatics, and a larger than life personality make Colin’s show a must-see.
John Park
See marshmallows become airborne appetizers! Watch an epic water drinking contest! Witness a classic plate spinning routine! In John Park’s Funny Waiter Show, food and drink-based comedy routines incorporate juggling and audience participation rolled into one action-packed, laugh-filled extravaganza. John Park’s wide-ranging career has taken him from Hollywood, where he appeared on HBO’s award-winning Larry Sanders Show, to San Francisco, where he opened for the Grateful Dead and Huey Lewis and the News.
Circus Smirkus Road Show
The Circus Smirkus Road Show is sure to make you laugh and smile! Small but mighty youth performers create a 30-minute celebration of the unique, the fun, and the power of circus in a show for audiences of all ages. These Smirkus Camp teens put on a high-energy display of circus skills and clown characters that flip, fly, juggle, and shimmy their way into your hearts. Don’t miss it!
Jan Damm
Jan (“Yahn”) Damm has been touring in the U.S. and internationally as a circus artist for 17 years. Originally from Maine, he has worked street corners, big-tops, theaters, and opera houses, specializing in clown, juggling, acrobatics, balancing, and eccentric skills. Jan enjoys collaboration and creating original work, but is also at home in classic spectacles inspired by the greats of vaudeville and circus. He has toured with Clowns Without Borders to Haiti, Indonesia, Lebanon and Greece. Recently Jan toured 30 cities as lead character and solo act in Ringling ’s 2023 revival of The Greatest Show on Earth. He lives in Brattleboro, Vermont with his wife and their two children.
All of the Rivers
All of the Rivers is a global journey through song, story, and dance, featuring Avi Salloway (Billy Wylder/Bombino) in collaboration with international artists now living in Vermont. The project weaves together myriads of sounds, cultures, and stories into a dynamic performance. Curated and directed by musician and activist Avi Salloway, the performance features the Burlingtonbased Congolese Choir, Jeh Kulu, Koblavi Delali, Steeve Valcourt from Lakou Mizik, Pia Zapata, and Billy Wylder band members Pia Ella and Ricardo Guerra. The lively and unique show presents themes of migration, justice, love, freedom, home, and connection.
PuppetKabob
A puppet company founded by artist Sarah Frechette, Puppet Kabob has toured nationally to schools, libraries, theaters, museums and festivals. Sarah is a graduate of the University of Connecticut’s Puppetry Arts Program. Since then, she has developed four full length productions, toured internationally, and received the prestigious UNIMA-USA citation of excellence. Sarah blends science and history with puppetry arts to create dynamic and interactive theater experiences for both family and adult audiences. Sarah is also a Vermont Arts Council Teaching Artist. She studied marionettes in Germany with Legendary Master Puppeteer Albrecht Roser and worked in television and film, most recently earning credits in several commercials, LAIKA’s feature film ParaNorman, and Monkey Paw Productions Wendell & Wild
Fern Maddie
Fern Maddie is a balladeer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist based in Central Vermont (N’dakinna). Her songs—performed with clawhammer banjo, guitar, and clear, soulful vocals— explore themes of trauma, grief, and renewal. Fern’s modern interpretations of traditional ballads have earned national and international acclaim. Her debut album, Ghost Story, was named #2 of The Guardian ’s Best Folk Albums of 2022 and was listed on NPR’s Best Roots Music of the year.
Nigel Blackstorm
Nigel Blackstorm, aka the Heavy Metal Magician, has entertained audiences young and old around the world with his awardwinning show. Nigel has combined his two passions, heavy metal music and magic, to create a new genre: Heavy Magic. His electrifying show delivers a high-octane, character-driven comedy-magic spectacle that seamlessly blends comedy, magic, and heavy metal music. Strap in for a wild ride full of surprises.
Jupiter & Okwess
Explosive! Na Kozonga, the new album by Jupiter and his band, Okwess, is a blast of energy that bewitches the body and feeds the spirit. Since the beginning, Jupiter and his fellow pyrotechnicians have been drawing the rhythms of the Congo out of obscurity to reveal their superpowers: the powers of rock and funk, ready for every kind of musical coupling and any kind of invitation!
Positive Brothers
Originating in the subways of NYC before breaking out onto the streets, the Positive Brothers bring a live beat-backed performance of acrobatic execution and tricks of contortion spiced with hilarity and swagger.
Moon Hooch
If any band is a poster child for turning the power of positive thoughts and intentions into reality, it’s the explosive horn-and-percussion trio Moon Hooch. In just a few short years, the group has gone from playing on New York City subway platforms to touring selling out headline shows in major venues around the country. The band experiments with unique techniques and incorporates found objects into their sound. Come hear your next new favorite band!
The Street Circus
It’s frantic, furious, and fantastical! The Street Circus elevates your heart and soul with a huge dosage of fun. The energy is contagious as two performers engage in hand balancing, hula hooping, fire juggling, hand-to-hand acrobatics, and a TON of laughs. As two award winning, Guinness-record-holding performers with over forty five years of combined world-wide performance experience, Dan and Kim mix modern circus styles with the spontaneity and intimacy of the street.
Billy Kidd
Billy Kidd is a magician that excels in all types of magic performance. Her sleight of hand skills as a close-up artist combined with her experience doing stage and street magic have allowed Billy to perform in theaters and on screens worldwide. This is Billy’s first Fools experience, so give her a warm welcome to Burlington!
Mutts Gone Nuts
The hounds of hilarity are bark for more! The sensational pups of Mutts Gone Nuts are bringing the world’s most talented dogs to their third Festival of Fools in a row due to popular demand. The all-star lineup includes two Guinness World Champions, a hilarious six-pound Pomeranian Pikachu mix, and a host of houndinis that will dance, prance, flip, and skip their way right into your heart. All of Mutts Gone Nuts’ dogs were adopted from shelters or from rescues and are living the good life. Come play fetch!
Obliquestra
Founded in New Orleans as live music began sprouting from the ashes of the pandemic, Obliquestra features virtuoso fiddler, guitarist, and musical sawist Dr. Sick (of the Squirrel Nut Zippers) accordionist David Symons (of Vermont’s Brass Balagan), and clarinetist Susanne Ortner. Together, with banjoist Aaron Gunn, the band performs a mix of Moldovan klezmer, Brazilian choro, New Orleans jazz, and Russian and French waltzes. Festival of Fools will be Obliquestra’s Vermont debut.
Hilby the Skinny German Juggle Boy
One cannot help but be charmed by Hilby’s impeccable timing and extreme circus skills. You can find Hilby atop unicycles of all shapes and sizes, manipulating objects ranging from bowling balls to hedge trimmers. Hilby creates a powerful and spellbinding collage of superb technical skill and wacky comedy in the tradition of vaudeville. Performing at theaters, colleges, cruise ships, and fairgrounds from Canada to Australia, Hilby brings his highly professional and excruciatingly funny show to young and old alike.
Ryu’s Big Circus
Ryu is a multidisciplinary circus artist who specializes in balloon juggling, Chinese pole, light juggling, and tree balancing. Embarking on the adventure of a lifetime, Ryu decided to forego his future as a doctor and instead pursue his passion to become a circus artist. Through perseverance, patience, and love for performance, Ryu continues his journey to reach the top of his artform. Witness his incredible agility as a juggler and watch in disbelief as he performs high in the sky. Ryu just might call you up to participate in his performance!
Wiley & Woodhead
Sometimes all you need for a good laugh are the right two people. Introducing Wiley & Woodhead, a new slaphappy duo who emphasize character (over narrative), circus, and music as the key to their comedic chemistry, stitched with a thread of the earliest cultural fabric of Americana known as vaudeville.
Festival of Fools Staff
Festival Director: Zach Williamson
Artistic Director & Co-Founder: Woody Keppel
Music Programming: Signal Kitchen
Operations Manager: Abra Clawson
Artist Services Coordinator: Zach Briggs
Street Design: Phinneus Sonin
Operations Leads: Julia Moriarty & Rome Lazarek
Music Coordinator: Mark Balderston
Street Audio & Operations: BCA Event Staff
Catering: Jenna Giguere
Security: Chocolate Thunder Security
Burlington City Arts Staff
Executive Director: Doreen Kraft
Assistant Director: Sara Katz
Communications Director: John Flannagan
Design Director: Ted Olson
Sponsorship: Elena Rosen
Festival & Event Director: Zach Williamson
Event Manager: Abra Clawson
Development Coordinator: Meara McGinniss
Special thanks to the Church Street Marketplace and Burlington Parks, Recreation and Waterfront Departments
See you next year! AUGUST 1-3, 2025
There’s a reason “community” comes before “bank” in our name: Supporting our communities isn’t an afterthought. It’s our first thought. Our people genuinely care about their neighbors, and that shapes every decision we make, from supporting local causes to helping businesses and families succeed.
16,000+volunteer hours
Banking should be personal—stop by your local branch or visit us online and we’ll show you why that makes all the difference.
$3,700,000
2,100+organizations supported employees served on nonprofit boards and committees 500+ OUR COMMUNITY EFFORTS:
