Previewing The Castro Street Fair, Coming This Sunday

Previewing The Castro Street Fair, Coming This SundayPhoto: torbakhopper/Flickr
Roy
Published on September 30, 2014
The 41st annual Castro Street Fair is less than a week away, and with major renovations from the Castro Streetscape Design project planned to be mostly finished, balmy weather in the forecast, and great entertainment planned for fairgoers, you have every reason to come out and check out the action on Sunday.
This year's fair will include five entertainment areas: 
  • The Main Stage (Market and Castro) will see the opening ceremony held at 11am, followed by a dance workout, drag shows, puppet shows from Tony Award-winning Avenue Q, and ... bellydancers!
  • The Legends Stage (18th and Collingwood) will kick off all-day music and DJs with a yoga dance from the Castro's own yoga studio Adhikara Yoga
  • The Dance Alley (parking lot at 18th and Collingwood behind Magnet) will be the spot for people who just want to shake it, with DJs spinning mixes from some of the city's best party DJs including Oscar Pineda Mark O'Brien, Riley Patrick, Dan De Leon, and Robin Simmons
  • The Castro Alley (parking lot behind the Castro Theatre) will feature two-stepping and line-dancing classes for newbies, so come on down to learn with free classes from the Sundance Saloon
  • And lastly, but certainly not least, the Milky Way (on 18th between Hartford and Noe) will feature the area formerly known as Barnaby's World of Wonderment. 

On that last topic, many people who have attended the fair in the past will remember the World of Wonderment as having a carny-like vibe with dunk tanks, burlesque dancers, fortune tellers, political puppet theatre, magicians and more.
Ring toss at Barnaby's World of Wonderment (Photo: Brian Prazinko)
Castro Street Fair Interim Executive Director Fred Lopez notes that the original curator of Barnaby's World of Wonderment, Max Barnaby, has moved out of San Francisco. "World of Wonderment is a fond memory for the fair, and we owe a great debt of gratitude to Max Barnaby, who was kind enough to curate that area for us for a number of years," writes Lopez. "We wish him all the best in his new endeavors."
This time around, San Francisco multimedia artist and photographer Uel Renteria will be curating the Milky Way for its inaugural year. Lopez told Hoodline that organizers are working closely with Renteria to bring a similarly fun atmosphere to the Milky Way. "We are excited to welcome Milky Way which will have a similar artsy-bazaar vibe," writes Lopez. "Uel is known for throwing a kooky party at the Powerhouse, Unicorn. He is bringing his singular vision to the Castro Street Fair, and we couldn't be more pleased." 
(Photo: Brian Prazinko)
Food will be located in the same place as it has been in the past,  with a variety of food vendors cooking up fair grub on Market Street just east of Castro Street.
In addition to being a fun excuse to dress down and hang out with friends, the whole event will benefit a good cause. The fair will be collecting a suggested $5 - $10 donation at the gate, with proceeds going towards local non-profits and the maintenance and upkeep of the Pride flag at Harvey Milk Plaza.
That's what's on deck for the festivities this coming Sunday, so come on out to snag some food, shake your tail, check out the art and enjoy the fair!