Every year, new audience members discover the Lotus World Music and Arts Festival in downtown Bloomington, Indiana. Here are a few tips to help you plan your Lotus adventure if you’re new to the festival.
- Friday and Saturday night Showcases are ticketed. They begin around 7 p.m. and finish around midnight, and take place at multiple venues (usually seven or so). Peruse the Artist Roster here or in the links provided on festival pages.
- There’s a lot to explore in addition to ticketed stuff. Use the Festival Guide on each festival page of this site to see just how much (ticketed and free) stuff you’d like to do.
- Come for the entire Festival, not one particular group or individual performer. Festival admission guarantees that you will get into the festival. If you are coming to see just one artist, and you arrive at that venue early, chances are good that you’ll get in to see that one artist. However, we can’t guarantee that.
- Lines may occur at “sit-down” venues such as the Buskirk-Chumley Theater or church venues, where door monitors ensure that audience members enter and exit only at the breaks between songs.
- Some venues do not have seating. If you prefer venues with fixed seating, please see the Festival Map key for guidance.
- Your wristband is your passport to many performances (see Ticket Info for pricing) — However, we also ask that our audiences to be respectful of performers. If you are attending a set at a “sit-down” or fixed-seating venue please enter and exit ONLY between songs, as quietly as possible.
- Sound and energy levels vary from venue to venue, and from artist to artist. Music is amplified 99% of the time, even if artists are playing acoustic instruments such as guitar, violin, kora, mbira, etc. Quieter music is scheduled for churches. Expect loud music at the outdoor tents, where there are bigger crowds, movement, audience noise, and dancing.
- Performers and schedules may change at the last minute. Check this website or subscribe to our RSS feed for current information.
