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The Spot Festival Celebrates the Culmination of its Childhood

By Joel Bevilacqua on February 25, 2019 in News

Celebrating Randwick’s vibrant community, by Anna Warr

With its heritage cinema and selection of trendy restaurants, cafes and bars, it comes as no surprise that even on a typical day The Spot in Randwick is buzzing with people looking to treat themselves.

But on Sunday, March 10, the bustling hub will really come to life in an emphatic celebration of food, music and culture as Randwick’s annual The Spot Festival returns for its twelfth year.

Organised by Randwick City Council, The Spot Festival brings the community together at the end of each summer for a vibrant street party.

Randwick Mayor Kathy Neilson is excited to celebrate the festival’s final year of childhood before it hits its tumultuous teenage years.

“The Spot Festival highlights the best of The Spot,” Cr Neilson said.

“It combines great food, fun dancing and community spirit to create a day that can be enjoyed by all.

“The Spot Festival has been running for twelve years now and each year we try to make it better and better.

“I hope the community come along and enjoy all that is on offer in this little corner of Randwick.”

Paloma Marquez, manager of the Four Frogs Crêperie on St Paul’s Street, said The Spot Festival is a great way to connect with the community. The Four Frogs has been in operation in the heart of The Spot since 2015, and has been involved in the festival every year since, serving people their crêpe and galette treats. Ms Marquez told The Beast that her team can’t wait for this year’s edition.

“It definitely gets better and better every year,” she said.

The intersection of Perouse Road and St Paul’s Street in Randwick will be closed off to traffic from 1pm to 8pm, making way for over 100 food and market stalls and three stages of live music and dancing. More than 20,000 people are expected to attend the celebration, which has something for everyone.

For the kids, the petting zoo is back, as is the silent disco, and street performer Bubbleheads will be roving around performing spellbinding bubble tricks.

A burger eating competition will surely capture the attention and appetite of those who take food consumption seriously – the person who can wolf down the most burgers will win a $100 dinner voucher to be used at The Spot, so get training.

For those curious about what the rest of the year has in store for them, there will be a fortune-telling tent featuring tarot card readings – hopefully they can offer more positive predictions than those supplied by our resident astrologer, Beardy from Hell.

More relaxed folk can head over to the ‘chillout stage’ to see local dance groups showcasing their favourite performances, or plonk themselves in the bean bag chillout zone. The hunters and gatherers among us can peruse an array of colourful market stalls brimming with exquisite handmade jewellery, beautiful clothing, children’s toys, antiques and homewares.

Above all else, The Spot Festival is a celebration of Randwick’s vibrant community, so make sure you get along and celebrate the end of another magical summer.

For more information, visit www.thespotfestival.com.au or email events@randwick.nsw.gov.au.