A champ on a 12-foot-tall unicycle, sword swallowers, fire jugglers and a record-holder for high-flying stunts on a pogo stick are among the street performers taking center stage at a quirky festival this weekend at Seaport Village.
In its 10th year, the annual Spring Busker Festival goes down from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. this Saturday
and Sunday at San Diego’s waterfront landmark.
As always, the free outdoor fest highlights awe-inspiring, eclectic busker acts from around the nation. This year’s lineup of professional performers is diverse and, of course, death-defying.
The lineup includes The Flying Tortilla, a group of Southern California performers who combine breakdancing, acrobatics, tumbling, circus skills and comedy in their act. There’s also CREW, a San Diego-based percussion group that specializes in repurposing everyday objects for their percussive performance.
Then there’s Pogo Fred, a multiple Guinness World Record holder who hails from Ohio and performs tricks on his pogo stick, including jumping more than seven feet in the air.
Jamey Mossengren – a seven-time World Unicycle Champion from Los Angeles – will also treat attendees to some stunts as he rides his 12-foot-tall unicycle.
Other performers include Martika Daniels, a Kansas City-based busker who, among many tricks, walks barefoot across broken glass. Professional sword-swallower, Murrugun the Mystic, will also perform. Jugglers, comics and others gifted with quirky talents round out the two-day fest. Event organizers say that while the performances are free, tips for the buskers are encouraged.
When night falls on Saturday, Seaport Village will host an after-hours, 18+ version of the fest – Buskers After Dark, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. This portion of the event includes a DJ spinning tunes, food and drink specials, as well as fire acts, adult humor and high-energy performances.
Parking for the Spring Busker Festival is available in the regular Seaport Village parking lots, where guests pay $4 for the first three hours with validation from a Seaport Village business and $3 every 30 minutes thereafter.
For the festival, there will also be extra parking available at the nearby Hilton Hotel Bayfront on Park Boulevard. The all-day parking rate there is $10 per car. Free shuttles will be available to take visitors back and forth from the hotel lot to Seaport Village. Shuttles will run every 15 minutes from 11:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Seaport Village is also easily accessible via trolley or bus. Visit the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System website for route details.
