32nd Annual Riverfest
May 22 - 24, 2009
32nd Annual Riverfest
Little Rock Riverfront Park and North Shore Riverwalk
In the mood for a wide variety of music and food? Then make plans to attend the 32nd annual Riverfest, Memorial Day Weekend in downtown Little Rock and North Little Rock. Willie Nelson, Heart, the B52s, Little River Band, Buddy Guy and Trout Fishing in America head the entertainment line-up, May 22 through 24. Also performing will be 3 Doors Down, Jason Aldean, Hinder, Flyleaf, and Heads of State featuring Bobby Brown, Johnny Gill and Ralph Tresvant.
There will be food from one end of Riverfront Park to the other in Little Rock, showcasing everything from Pizza, barbecue, roasted corn, ice cream, frozen lemonade, funnel cakes and a whole lot more. There will also be food vendors at the North Shore River Walk in North Little Rock. The KidZone area will have hands-on activities for the kids, games, crafts and more. The Teen Scene, located on the North Shore River Walk, will feature activities and competitions just for teens. Booths featuring artists and merchants will be on both sides of the river with an array of products. Advance tickets can be purchased online by going to www.riverfestarkansas.com/tickets-merch or at any of these participating merchants: Cranford's Fresh Market, City Market, Harvest Foods, and participating Affiliated Food Stores and Central Arkansas Big Red Stores. For more information, e-mail info@riverfestarkansas.comor phone 501-255-3378.
Riverfest 2009, presented by Verizon Wireless, will be held May 22-24 along the Arkansas River in downtown Little Rock and North Little Rock. The state's largest festival will feature top headline musical acts, plus the Super Retriever Series Crown Championship, KidZone Playtime Promenade, an activity-filled teen area, the Osborne Family Fireworks display to close the festival and many exciting extras at no additional cost.
Nationally known headline acts include Willie Nelson, 3 Doors Down, Heart, the B-52s, Jason Aldean, Tone Loc, Little River Band, Heads of State featuring Bobby Brown, Johnny Gill & Ralph Tresvant, James Otto, Gavin Rossdale, Hinder, Buddy Guy, The Benjy Davis Project and many more. In addition to the headline entertainment, a diverse group of local and regional entertainers will be featured. North Little Rock will again host the Arkansas-only music tent, which is devoted entirely to the best original talent in Arkansas in a club-like setting. Acts will include everything from bluegrass to rap and gospel to punk. A complete line-up of musical acts (including times and locations) is available at www.riverfestarkansas.com
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"We are extremely proud of the impact Riverfest has had on the local community over the past 30 years," said DeAnna Korte, Riverfest executive director. "The popularity of the festival continues to grow each and every year. More than 250,000 people attended the 2008 event, making it the most successful to-date, with an estimated economic impact of $33 million on the community."
A limited number of advance tickets for Riverfest 2009 are now on sale on a first-come, first-serve basis at participating Affiliated Foods store locations and Big Red stores. Those advance tickets are $12.50 for three days' admission half the cost of the gate admission.
Admission for children 6 and younger is free, and children 7-10 will be admitted for a daily price of $5. Three-day passes sold at the gate and through the Riverfest website will be $25. This year's festival offers music lovers a savings of more than $600 if they bought individual tickets to see some of the major musical acts. The cost to see this year's 12 headline acts would be $615 (plus fees). A $2 round-trip shuttle ride will take festivalgoers to Riverfest from the east side of War Memorial Stadium and the parking lot of North Little Rock High School's West Campus.
The Super Retriever Series, which showcases the best dog and handler teams in the world, returns to Riverfest for the second year. This year, the canine athletes and their trainers have qualified to compete at Riverfest for the elite title of SRS Crown Champion. The Super Retriever Series is also proud to announce the 2nd annual "Callin' the Rock" event at 2 p.m. May 24 in front of the Super Retriever Series Crown Championship pool. Attendees will attempt to break the world record for the largest group of kids ages 17 and younger simultaneously blowing a duck call for at least three minutes.
The KidZone Musical Stage boasts a variety of family-friendly acts, including Mr. Don Magical Ballonman, Trout Fishing in America, juggler Casey Boehmer, Monster Shop Bumpn', and The Kazoobie Kazoo Show with Rick Hubbard. The annual fireworks display, sponsored by the Osborne Family, will light up the sky at 9:30 p.m. May 25.
Other notable Riverfest attractions in 2009 include:
KidZone Playtime Promenade activities, including the Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Dipping Station, Yarnell Ice Cream Float Tent, Squirt Art on Canvas, Fanciful Face Painting, finger casts, moonwalk, bean bag toss, bubble blowing and hula-hoop fun.
Teen area fun featuring a rock climbing wall, Bungee Trampoline, Speedway Entertainment, Amazon Adventure Maze, Nuke Doggie Temporary Tattoos, X-Box and Nintendo Gaming Tournaments, and performances by Team Hybrid, an extreme slam dunk basketball team.
Holidays Around the World at the International Village
Mack's Prairie Wings Kids Outdoor Zone
FLW Outdoors Bass Boat Simulator
Disco Connected K-9's World Famous Frisbee Dogs
Kraft Lunchables "Lunch Your Tummy Right Tour"
Burt's Bees 2009 Bee-Utify Your World Mobile Tour
2009 Ford Drive One Tour
3-D Chalk Artist
Jack Link's Beef Jerky Exhibit
