VSWF Spotlight: Sponsor Love

This month is Valentines, and for Valentine's Day we wanted to show our love for our amazing sponsors.

The Victoria Spoken Word Festival is a community festival that celebrates our West Coast vibe, so we love to work with local businesses. We want to showcase what makes Victoria unique, as unique as spoken word, and we are so proud to partner with these amazing businesses:

We LOVE our sponsors!

First up is Intrepid Theatre - the home of the festival since the beginning. Intrepid has a mandate to support emerging and independent artists, and we are so excited to officially partner with them this year. Check out their next festival UnoFest in May!

The Solstice Cafe is the home of spoken word in Victoria. They regularly host Tongues of Fire and Vic Slam there on Thursday nights - go check it out! But get there early, these events regularly sell out. Solstice if the official coffee sponsor for the festival, they'll be keeping our poets alert and happy.

Two festival poets performing at Solstice Cafe.

The Mint has hosted the launch party for the Victoria Spoken Word Festival for the last three years, welcoming the visiting poets with their funky vibe and great food. The Mint has a new lunch spot upstairs too - so check them out night or day!

If Solstice is the host of spoken word, than Cenote's is the official hang-out of poets in Victoria. Super friendly and welcoming, and with a kitchen that's open late, Cenote's is a great spot to grab a drink after a show. You may even catch a festival poet there over the course of the festival!

The Mint kicks it all off!

UVic's radion station, CFUV has also been a sponsor for the last three years, and a great supporter of the local arts scene. This year, several of the festival ensemble will be doing a live performance on the air - March 3rd at 1:30pm tune in to hear a 'taste' of what the festival holds.

One of the most important things in the festival (to us as hosts) is to treat our visiting poets as best as we can - and that includes feeding them! With the help of amazing local restaurants The Reef a great caribbean themed restaurant, Hernande'z Victoria's favourite Mexican restaurant, NoodleBox home of Victoria's original box, John's Place (a great breakfast joint!) and Stone's Throw (new comedy hotspot!) we're able to feed them delicious, local lunches every day.

The Reef on Yates

Shout outs also go out to Munro's for giving each of our ensemble members a journal (poets need pages!) and Roger's Chocolates for providing chocolates (poets need chocolates!) and to our great friends TEDxVictoria for helping get the word out about the festival.

The Victoria Spoken Word Festival is also thankful for the support of the Canada Council for the Arts and the Conseil des arts et des lettres de Quebec.

If you couldn't tell already - it really does take a community to put together a festival, and we are so honoured by the support and help of these businesses in our community.

The Victoria Spoken Word Festival would not happen without them. So this February, why not show them a little love - go have a meal, buy a drink, a book or see a show at one of our fabulous sponsors.

Because they deserve to be your Valentine.

The Victoria Spoken Word Festival runs March 4-9 at Intrepid Theatre and Metro Theatre. Buy tickets online at Ticket Rocket.