Communiversity 2011 - A Video Montage

The crisp wind, bright sun, and blue sky on April 30 could not have been better weather for roughly 40,000 visitors who flocked downtown Princeton for the 41^st annual Communiversity Festival of the Arts. With food vendors, local businesses, and Princeton University student groups lining every block from Nassau Street to Palmer Square, Communiversity brought together families, students, and anyone with an appreciation for arts in the community.

Communiversity is organized every spring by collaboration between the Arts Council of Princeton and students from the University. The festival began as a way of bringing the town and university together. Originally started in 1970 as “The Art People’s Party,” Communiversity has become a street fair that attracts businesses and performers from outside the Princeton area.

With 5 different entertainment stages, over 200 artists and performance groups, and visitors from all over the Central Jersey area, this year’s 5-hour event drew traffic-stopping crowds.

The Princeton University Marching Band kicked off the event at noon with a pep-rally march down Witherspoon and renditions of “99 Luftballons” and “Bad Romance.” Other featured performers included local artists Sarah Donner, Stolen Rhodes, and the Stone Soup Circus.

Popular events that attracted crowds all day included a section of street painting near Palmer Square, which allowed passersby to show of their artistic talents. One group even painted a sidewalk Mona Lisa by blending chalk. The Princeton Baseball Little League also gave kids a chance to dunk their coach into a pool of water if they could pitch a ball into a target. Princeton university athletes held a sports clinic for young children and a pie-throwing fundraiser, charging $3 a piece for the satisfaction of tossing a whipped cream plate into an athlete’s face.

Booth space for this year’s Communiversity sold out rapidly. The Communiversity festival’s website will begin accepting applications for next year’s vendors on January 16, 2012.

About the Author

Vivienne Chen

Vivienne Chen is a student at Princeton University majoring in English. She recently moved to Princeton from Pleasanton, California.