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Theamara Bania and Margo Grandidier, both of Rosendale, N.Y., make bubbles during the Rosendale Street Festival on Saturday, July 20, 2024. (William J. Kemble Photo)
ROSENDALE, N.Y. — Main Street doesn’t often draw comparisons to Paris, France, but the Rosendale Street Festival’s activities on Saturday, July 20, had one resident of both locations seeing similarities when it came to community pride.
Franck Grandidier, who lives behind the Rosendale Theater, found that watching his 5-year-old daughter Margot send bubbles into the air was one of those simple joys that showed how entertainment does not have to be either sophisticated or expensive.
“I think there’s a lot of common bonds between Rosendale and Paris in the sense that people are very keen on protecting and cultivating the legacy and history of the city,” he said. “The festival is a testimony of that. It’s a great gathering and Paris is like that, where it’s all about fostering and empowering people to do art, to do music, and so there’s a lot of common points.”
Longtime co-organizer Billy Liggan said this year’s edition is devoted to honoring the memory of two people who brought out the community’s character. One was William “Uncle Willy” Guldy, who was known for being a caring character in the community. The other was longtime festival volunteer Amber Kniceley, who was being remembered with pink serving as the color of this year’s official T-shirt.
Liggan said the festival is carrying on its legacy of supporting emerging performers. This year there were 55 bands on Saturday and 42 scheduled on Sunday. In addition, any profit from the event will go toward supporting young musicians.
“Rosendale is unique in that we’re divided into Kingston High School, New Paltz High School, and Rondout Valley High School,” he said. “Because these musicians are all volunteering their time, we try to put what proceeds we can back into the community so that the next generation has some support.”
Artists that paint and draw also reflect the zest of local creative minds. Kingston resident Priscilla DeConti showed off work that brings a “zentangle” technique into efforts that have an elegance when reflecting African American culture.
“Zentangle is a meditation drawing design,” she said. “Three years ago I wanted to do something for Black History Month and that’s when I started doing the silhouettes, and from there that’s when I started doing others.”
The rough-and-tumble aspects of Rosendale might be metaphorically recognized in the appearance of Mid-Hudson Misfits Roller Derby team members, although they may reserve the use of the word “tumble” as something applied to their opponents. Hosting a vendor spot while its players sport day-glow pink uniforms and a fighting form while skating down the street has made the festival a valuable recruiting tool for the team, which has its home bouts at Skate Time in Accord.
“This is absolutely our best event for recruitment,” team blocker Amberly Campbell said. “We have been here over a decade and have gotten so many skaters from people meeting us, talking to us, and learning about roller derby. And we get so many people to come out to our bouts, which are charity bouts, and the one we have in September is for Circle of Friend for the Dying.”
The festival will continue from noon to 7 p.m. Sunday, July 21. Information is available at www.rosendalestreetfestival.org.
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