Moncton events drew big crowds in 2023

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Two new festivals featuring circus performers and chalk artists attracted thousands of people to downtown Moncton in 2023, and they are expected to return in the summer of 2024.

“We were very happy, blown away actually, by the success of the two festivals,” said Patrick Richard, executive-director of Downtown Moncton Centre-Ville Inc. He said plans are now in the works to bring back the buskers festival and a street art festival next summer.

The first-ever busker festival featured professional performers on stages along the Riverfront Park off Assomption Boulevard. The Silver Starlets, a pair of acrobats, wowed the crowd with their trapeze act. During each performance, they made a point of pulling a volunteer out of the audience to assist them. There was also Swedish magician Charlie Caper and others. The festival drew huge crowds through the weekend.

There was also the street art festival, where artists used chalk to draw magnificent portraits of legendary performers like John Lennon and Jimi Hendrix on Canada Street, next to the Avenir Centre.

These new festivals found a place in a busy schedule that also included a visit by Princess Anne, the Canada Day celebrations, Atlantic Nationals Automotive Extravaganza, the Rotary Ribfest, the Highland Games and the Mosaiq Multicultural Festival with its parade of nations and international performers on stage along the waterfront. There was also a full slate of performers at other venues like Casino New Brunswick, the Capitol Theatre and the Riverview Arts Centre.

The Avenir Centre hosted two sold-out shows by country music superstar Shania Twain and comedian Kevin Hart. And 20,000 people from all over Atlantic Canada showed up for the August concert by hard rockers Guns ‘N Roses with Carrie Underwood, which was the first time the athletic stadium next to l’Universite de Moncton was used for a rock concert.

“We were extremely happy with the first show in the stadium and I’m sure it won’t be the last,” said Shane Porter, manager of events for the City of Moncton. “These successes open the door for more shows in the future.”

The year started with the World Junior Hockey Championships at the Avenir Centre. The city also hosted an under-17 soccer championship and the first Atlantic Slam basketball tournament with top NCAA college teams from the United States. That tournament attracted international attention and is expected to return in 2024.

“We had a huge year for events this year,” Porter said. Events like these contribute to the economy by bringing participants and fans from other parts of the country, and the world, which means money spent on hotels, restaurants and airline tickets.

Porter said the Magnetic Hill Concert Site is still open for business but it takes the right promoter and event to make it work. The site was originally constructed for a visit by the Pope in 1984 and since then has been used for concerts by the Rolling Stones, AC/DC (twice), U2, The Eagles, Bruce Springsteen and others. The last concert at the hill was Luke Bryan in 2019.

One of the big factors of using the Magnetic HIll site is that it requires weeks of preparation at a high cost, and if it rains on show day it can get very muddy. The stadium, however, can handle a crowd of 20,000 with comfortable bleachers, a solid floor for the stage and crowd, and good infrastructure for food and beverage concessions. It’s also within walking distance to the downtown. So the main benefit of Magnetic Hill is that it can handle a bigger crowd of 60,000 to 80,000 people. Promoters have said in the past that they need to be confident they will sell enough tickets to justify the costs associated with the production.

“Depending on the tour and the promoter, shows are going to work better at one facility versus the other,” Porter said. “We’re looking for the best fit and the best deal we can get to bring shows here. Some years it will be Magnetic Hill and some years it will be the stadium. We’re still in the concert game.”