Londoners will mark the country's 150th birthday with five days of free music, a virtual reality dome, and family activities in the downtown.
SesquiFest kicks off Thursday and runs through Monday with events shutting down Dundas St. from Richmond St. to Ridout St. and Talbot St. between King St. to Carling St.
The festival, hosted by the city and the London Heritage Council, features a summer skating rink, fireworks, interactive displays, food trucks, an Ontario craft beer garden, and free ice cream with special Canadian flavours.
Canadian indie rock band Hollerado, pop singer Fefe Dobson, and Toronto-based rockers Sloan are slated to headline the festivities Thursday, Friday, and Sunday. Over three dozen local musicians will also perform daily on two-stages.
“We’re all excited to celebrate our great nation’s 150th birthday. This will be, without a doubt, the largest Canada Day celebration that our community has ever seen," said Mayor Matt Brown in a news release.
Sesqui, the virtual reality dome that is touring the province, has been set up in the Budweiser Gardens parking lot and will be showing the film "Horizon", a 360 degree virtual reality journey across Canada. Those wanting to learn about the various City services and initiatives can do so at the Pop Up City. It will have displays, activities, and large vehicles, like fire trucks, for people of all ages to touch.
Those wanting to cool off, can do so inside Budweiser Gardens, where the London multicultural event is taking place. It offers live performances by the Chinese ensemble, Hungarian (Transylvania) children’s choir, Joyful Noise choir, and a Latin American Duo.
For more information about the all-ages birthday bash visit canada150london.ca/SESQUIFEST.