Firefly Arts Collective

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Firefly
A Burner Event
First year: 2003
Location: Craftsbury, Vermont
United States
Month: July
Most Recent Event
Date of event: June 30 to July 3, 2006
Participants: 450
Website: http://fireflyartscollective.org

Firefly Arts Collective is a non-profit organization that facilitates the annual Firefly festival. Firefly is a regional event inspired by the annual Burning Man festival in Nevada. Firefly is held in Vermont typically during July 4th weekend. Most of the organizers and participants come from the Boston metropolitan area and surrounding states including, but not limited to, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Vermont, and New York.

Firefly is a camping event that celebrates art for art's sake and espouses a gift economy where no vending, sales or barter are permitted. Visual and performance artists from all over the New England region and the East Coast create a temporary community for the weekend. Participants share a wide range of talents from sculpting, painting, music, theatre, and DJing, to alternative forms of expression such as games, performance art, and circus talents such as aerial silks, juggling, and fire spinning.

The event adheres to the ten principles of the Burning Man event in Nevada. Among these are the LNT (Leave No Trace) philosophy, an environmental policy whereby participants are obligated to remove every piece of refuse that they generate while at the event, taking it with them when they leave. The themes of radical self-expression and radical self-reliance are also borrowed from Burning Man. In addition, the event is considered a "no spectators" event, meaning that all attendees are expected to actively participate in its creation, staffing, and general philosophy.

According to the event's official website Firefly is, "A celebration of self-expression and community! Firefly is a participatory arts and music gathering in the woods of Vermont." The event is organized and run completely by volunteers. On the last night of Firefly a giant wooden Firefly is burned. In 2006 the Firefly included fireworks launched from its top.

[edit] Weather

Firefly is held at the end of Vermont's mud and rain season. The road leading to the current event site is a dirt road that can become unnavigable by average vehicles due to mud. In 2006 the mud was so bad some attendees left early to avoid being stuck and leaving late. Some late arrivals were also strongly warned about the weather by greeters.

[edit] History

Firefly was started in 2003 by Boston burners. It was first held on NUHOC land in New Hampshire.

Tickets for the 2006 event were $30.00 USD each, and were handled in one release of 350 tickets. When tickets were sold out a limited number of additional tickets were released. Members of music bands were also sold tickets outside of the initial release.

[edit] External links

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