Kidsfest snags Earth-friendly Treehouse TV music stars

Bobs and Lolo, a female singing duo whose videos air on Treehouse TV, will perform at the 2010 Winnipeg International Children's Festival, organizers are announcing today.

The perky, Vancouver-based Bobs and Lolo are known for Earth-friendly songs, such as Recycle With Me and I Love Bugs!

"They're a group I've been trying to get for the last couple of years," says Kidsfest executive producer Neal Rempel. "They're rising stars of children's entertainment."

Organizers will unveil the full 21-act lineup for the 28th annual Kidsfest today at 10 a.m. at the centre court of The Forks Market. The kick-off event is open to the public. There's free milk and cookies for kids, with performances by festival entertainer Jake Chenier and a children's choir.

The four-day festival, packed with music, storytelling, theatre, dance, circus and variety acts, runs June 10-13 at The Forks.

Headliners that Rempel has invited back because they were past hits include The Chairmen, a duo that juggles plastic patio chairs; Ache Brasil, a troupe that performs the Afro-Brazilian martial art/dance form called capoeira; Le Groupe Swing, a bilingual music duo; and Hilby, the Skinny German Juggle Boy from New York.

Locals in the lineup include the ever-popular Fred Penner and Al Simmons, Fubuki Daiko and Lulu and the Tomcat.

The festival is a week later than usual, a change Rempel makes every six years to help accommodate other Canadian festivals on the kids' circuit.

The fenced site will be configured differently this year, mostly to avoid the construction site of a new interactive playground. There will be four performance tents, plus the interactive tent called Artists & Audiences -- Bridging the Gap, where kids can meet performers and learn some of their skills.

It includes a "monstrously popular" trapeze rig. "For some reason, kids want to fly -- go figure!" jokes Rempel.

A first-time Kidsfest entertainer who's likely to attract attention is Hollywood-based Lee Zimmerman. "He's the world's fastest Etch A Sketch artist," says Rempel. "He's going to be in a tent, doing Etch A Sketch workshops. He's truly amazing."

The festival has raised its prices, by $2 per ticket, for the first time in 10 years.

"No one likes to do that, but it was time," Rempel says. "The prices we were charging weren't reflective of what it costs to put the event on and bring these artists in... It's still one heck of a deal."

Children under two attend for free. Kids under 12 only need to pay once for the entire festival, provided they keep their wristbands on.

Advance tickets are $12 ($40 for a family pack of four), available starting today at all Winnipeg Safeway and Assiniboine Credit Union locations.

Tickets at the gate are $14 ($48 for a family pack of four).

The totally free Kidstock "family rock 'n' roll" concert, which ends with fireworks, is Saturday, June 12 from 5-10 p.m. on the Scotiabank Stage at The Forks.

For more information, visit www.kidsfest.ca or call 958-4730.

alison.mayes@freepress.mb.ca

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition May 12, 2010 D8