The 29th annual “Back to the Fifties” Festival will kick off this Saturday, Sept. 16 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Boone County Fairgrounds in Lebanon.
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The festival will kick off with Black Box Bozo Clowns at 9:15 a.m. in the car show area of the festival. Entertainment will continue throughout the day with Talent Factory taking the stage at 9:30 a.m., LHS Charisma Show Choir performing at 10:30 a.m., Heartstone Crossing Band taking center stage at 11:30 a.m., Midtown Madmen performing at 1:30 p.m., Roy E. Reynolds taking the stage at 3:30 p.m. for an Elvis Presley Tribute and Terry Lee Ridley 1950’s Piano Pumpin’ Honky Tonkin’ Rock N Roll rocking out at 5 p.m.
Around the festival, attendees can visit the Indianapolis Colts in-motion trailer, arts and crafts booths, the Center Circle food court, a classic car show and swap meet, a Hoosier antique and classic bicycle show, the children’s fun park and the Indiana large g-scale railroaders. Silly Safaris will take the stage at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. in the playground area, the 50’s Costume Dress Parade will commence at 1 p.m. from the information booth and Marc Lehmann will perform his strolling magic at 1:30 p.m.
Shuttle services will be available for travel between the parking areas and Center Circle.
The festival was originally titled “Saturday On The Square” during the 1970’s and was created as a means of including local artists and providing them the opportunity to sell their handmade items around the downtown square. The festival changed its name to the “Back to the Fifties” Festival and sought aid from local businesses to kick off the new rebranding. With the help of local merchants, organizers were able to secure 1950’s classic cars and exhibits and 1950’s themed entertainment, which helped the festival expand and adopt its current logo in 2001. The festival has since been granted the not-for-profit status since September, 2004.
“The Festival’s mission is to further the visual and performing arts in Boone County,” the festival organizers shared.
For more information on the “Back to the Fifties” Festival, visit the “Back to the Fifties” Festival website.