One of the indisputable highlights on the Mornington Peninsula event calendar for the past quarter of a century, Main Street Mornington Festival returns on Sunday, October 15, with a jam-packed program of music, entertainment, food and drink. This year’s free family-friendly event will feature seven performance areas, stages, roving entertainment, and children’s activities as well as a huge range of Peninsula food vendors, wineries and producers to guarantee a fun day out for all ages.
The headline act is Ganga Giri (pronounced “gun-gah gear-ree”), a didgeridoo virtuoso and innovator who fuses this ancient instrument with electronic production and vocals to encourage a connection to Indigenous culture. He’s supported by an array of Peninsula artists including Sunday Lemonade, Heidi Louise Luckhurst with Hazel & The Thief, Owen Thomas & The Big Hats, and CJ Commerford & The Supertones. Long-time festival supporters Balnarring Musos and Peninsula Folk Club are providing more artists, while Impakt Freeza and the community stage will showcase some of the Peninsula’s youngest talent.
Spend the day or just a couple of hours enjoying treats from across the Peninsula and beyond. Indulge in some old favourites and some new ones such as 400 Gradi and Island Pasta Company. Don’t forget to save room for dessert because there are lots of treats in store. Browse a wide range of handcraft stalls, including OMG SeaGlass Designs, Tenae Lily and Wilderness Cove Alpaca, and pick up something unique to take home.
Some of the Peninsula’s top wineries, distilleries and cideries, including Red Hill Estate, Escape Brewing, JimmyRum Distillery, Ten Sixty One, and Bass & Flinders Distillery, will be showcasing their products, which you’ll be able to taste, buy by the glass, or take home.
This not-for-profit community event is indebted to the generous sponsors that help either financially or in kind to make the festival such a success, keeping stall costs down and providing free entertainment. Mornington Peninsula Shire has sponsored the event continually over the years. The Grand Hotel, Tallis Foundation, Mornington Racecourse, EastLink and Mornington Chamber of Commerce have also been constant sponsors throughout the festival’s existence. There have been various in-kind sponsors including Visitor Publications, 3MP, 3RRP, Mornington Peninsula Magazine and Mt Eliza Lions. Along with these, many more sponsors have contributed to the survival of the festival throughout the years. To become a sponsor and help support the festival, go to www.mainstreetfestival.com.au
Since 1996, Northern Mornington Peninsula Tourism, a voluntary non-profit association made up of Peninsula businesses, has been organising and bringing this event to the community on the third Sunday in October. It set out to offer a unique opportunity for businesses to connect with the regional and metropolitan community in a festival atmosphere promoting and showcasing the excellence and diversity of Peninsula food and wine.
Originally, the committee had a festival director, a treasurer, four committee members from NMPT, and a councillor. In 2001, Evelyn Krape joined as the artistic director to add a point of difference to other festivals by incorporating the performing arts. Over the years, the committee has changed through the inclusion and assistance of some wonderful people. In the past few years you might be surprised to know that just two people have organised the event: festival director Christina Nolan and artistic director Stephanie Born.
In the early days, communication and organisation was all done by phone or fax, which might be hard to believe when most of the work these days is done via email. All meetings this year have been on Zoom.
The festival showed its innovative side back in 2001 by working with Nepean Waste towards becoming a waste-wise management event and introducing recycling bins. It has constantly pioneered new ideas over the years that have contributed to making it an iconic event.
The stallholders and businesses have also consistently returned to patronise the festival. Endota Spa had a stall when it first was established. Stumpy Gully Winery, Elan Vineyard & Winery, Underground Winemakers, The Flying Calamari Bros, DOC, and The Rocks are just a few of those featured.
There have also been many musicians and performers over the years that have debuted at the festival, returning years later after becoming famous to revisit the site of their first performance in a show of support for a local event.
What has made the festival so successful has been the continued public support. Over the years the festival has seen patrons who first attended as children now return as parents or grandparents.
So let’s celebrate! Main Street Mornington Festival is on from 11am-5pm. For more details and information, go to www.mainstreetfestival.com.au
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