Creativity and imagination are important parts of childhood (and should be in our adult lives as well) and there are few events in Mid-Michigan that celebrate the magic of creativity and child-like wonder quite as well as Jackson School of the Arts’ Annual Fairy Festival.
Going into our fourteenth year of the Fairy Festival, we are taking a different approach to reflect both the altered world we live in and enhancing the overall experience for our guests.
In years past we have had a Twilight Fairy Gala that was a Friday evening event with a sit-down meal and handful of activities and experiences. This was followed up by Saturday and Sunday events that were open to the public with free admission, but paid activities and experiences as add-ons. This was an impressive experience as our crowds grew dramatically each year prior to 2020.
This year we start a new chapter of the Annual Fairy Festival in which we take group sizes into more of a consideration for both enjoyment and health reasons. Instead of having our Gala, we will have an enhanced Fairy Festival experience that will be by registration only. This exclusive Fairy Festival experience will incorporate many favorite elements of both the Gala and the Festival, but in a more intimate setting.
While most of our attendee reservations will require a paid admission, we do want to ensure that we are still serving all families in Jackson County. We have multiple time slots for our Jackson School of the Arts scholarship families that are provided by our top-level event sponsors.
As a side benefit of this new arrangement, our nimble staff can more efficiently manage and plan for our guests. We can also keep costs focused to ensure the Fairy Festival remains practical. We are confident that the future of the Annual Fairy Festival will benefit both our families and our effectiveness as an organization that aims to bring affordable arts education to Jackson County.
We do want to emphasize, however, that all Fairy Festival attendees will need a confirmed reservation prior to the event, we will not be permitting any “walk-in” attendees. Many of the initial time slots have sold out and we have opened just a few more opportunities for reservations, but those may go quickly so we encourage you to sign up soon!
