Redmond Festival Of Color Rescheduled

UPDATE: The Festival of Color has been switched to Sunday at noon in front of City Hall.

From the City of Redmond: The Northwest’s largest free color festival will be held in Redmond on Saturday, March 18th Sunday, March 19, 12 p.m.–5 p.m. on the Redmond Municipal Campus near City Hall and the Public Safety Building. Organized by the Vedic Cultural Center (VCC) in partnership with the City of Redmond, the Festival of Color is the only event of its kind in the Northwest with no entry or admission fee.

The ancient Festival of Color (Holi) is celebrated every year in India, and now it's back in the Northwest for the second year as the City of Redmond’s official spring festival. Redmond Arts and Culture Commission Chair Lara Lockwood said, “Diversity will always be one of Redmond’s greatest strengths and is the source of many of its greatest joys. The Festival of Color is a great community event and I am proud that we are working with our partners at VCC to bring this experience to all of our residents.” Starting at noon with city and state officials, there will be color count downs once every half an hour until 4 p.m.

Colored powder will be thrown into the air, and attendees are encouraged to dance, eat Indian delicacies, and make new friends. Latha Sambamurti, festival Artistic Director and Washington State Arts Commissioner, said “the Festival of Color frees all of inhibitions so people can relate to others with pure joy. It brings people together and creates a community of happy people.”

From 1 p.m. until 4 p.m., DJ Anjali—the West Coast’s kind and queen of Bhangra and Bollywood dance parties—will take the stage with her group of dancers and a Dholi player. The Portland-based DJ is a regular at popular music festivals including Sasquatch, Decibel, and MusicfestNW.

Image via Pixabay