Lilac Festival Opening Celebration
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LILAC FESTIVAL OPENING CELEBRATION:
WALK THE PURPLE CARPET AND
SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCE USING
#LILACFEST TO WIN!
“America’s Got Talent” Winner Landau Eugene Murphy, Jr.,
Headlines Opening Day With FREE Lunchtime Concert
ROCHESTER, NY, April 29, 2015 — Hollywood may have its red carpet, but in Rochester, we show our Passion for Purple—and on Friday, May 8, we’re asking everyone to help us show the world our famous Rochester Lilac Festival! Come to Highland Park for a Hollywood inspired opening celebration, walk the Purple Carpet and share your experience with hashtag #lilacfest.
“We want #lilacfest to take over social media and trend nationally on opening day,” said Jeff Springut, producer of the Rochester Lilac Festival “People around the world will know about our famous lilacs, our famous festival, and our famous city.”
The festival kicks off at 10:30 a.m. and the real celebration begins at 12 noon with a free lunchtime concert that will have everyone dancing in front of the Sahlen’s Music Stage. America’s Got Talent winner Landau Eugene Murphy, Jr., brings his big band-style voice, reminiscent of Frank Sinatra, and Billboard chart-topping sound to the festival for two sets at 12:15 and 1:15.
When you arrive at the festival between 10:30 a.m. and 2 p.m., follow the signs at Highland Park to the Purple Carpet, where volunteers will take your photo. Share your experience on Instagram or Twitter with hashtag #lilacfest, and you will be entered to win the grand prize: Two tickets to anywhere in the continental United States on Delta Airlines.
Opening day of the 2015 Rochester Lilac Festival is sponsored by Royal Car Wash. Parking is free until 3 p.m., and the opening events will take place rain or shine.
Eat your way to even more prizes
With hundreds of menu items and more than 40 food and beverage stops, the Rochester Lilac Festival offers something delicious for everyone. During the Opening Day Celebration until 2 p.m. on Friday, May 8, festivalgoers will have a chance to win one of many prizes: a package from Royal Car Wash, an All You Can Eat at the Rochester Lilac Festival experience, backstage meet and greets with festival headliners, and more. Visit any of the food and beverage stops to pick up a sweepstakes entry form. The more stops you visit, the more chances you have to win.
“Opening day is just the beginning of the Lilac Festival culinary experience,” said Springut. “From Nick Tahou’s famed garbage plate and Abbott’s Frozen Custard to an international smorgasbord including gyros, falafel, Caribbean wraps, sushi, Indian cuisine, artichokes French and more, it takes all ten days to eat your way through the Rochester Lilac Festival.”
About Landau Eugene Murphy, Jr.
Landau Eugene Murphy, Jr., worked for ten years washing cars in his hometown of Logan, West Virginia, before he walked onto the stage at America’s Got Talent (see the video here) and won the hearts of America and the world. Since he won the $1 million grand prize—with the largest total number of votes of any winner in the show’s history—he has released two albums and is about to release a third, and he has appeared in more than 100 sold-out concerts across three continents, from the Apollo Theater in New York to Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. Television audiences know him from his appearances on The Today Show, The View, Fox and Friends, The Talk, Anderson Cooper, The Daily Buzz, NPR, CNN, and dozens of others. Find more information here.
About the Rochester Lilac Festival
The largest 10-day free festival of its kind in North America, the 117th Annual Rochester Lilac Festival welcomes more than 500,000 attendees annually. Visitors come to Monroe County’s famous Highland Park to experience the incredible beauty and intense fragrance of more than 500 varieties of lilacs on 1,200 plants. Alongside the largest lilac collection in the United States, visitors enjoy non-stop entertainment, a wide variety of foods, and one-of-a-kind shopping. Special events inside the festival include the televised Lilac Parade, a three-day Wine & Chocolate Tasting, two-day Lilac Brew Fest, Seniors Day, and the Highland Hospital Lilac 10K and 5K. Weekends include Art in the Park—a juried art and crafts show—and the new Home Show. Open 10:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. daily May 8-17; admission to the Rochester Lilac Festival is free.
Images for the Rochester Lilac Festival can be accessed by visiting rochesterevents.com/press or LilacFestival.com. For more information, visit LilacFestival.com.
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