Holidazzle — a longtime Minneapolis holiday staple — is evolving and rebranding.
What was a free event with lights, stage performances and vendors will remold as part of a “broader, winter-long collaborative campaign,” according to the Minneapolis Downtown Council, which manages the festival.
The new effort will be called “Winterapolis.”
Though Holidazzle typically was a four-day event in mid-December, the new “Winterapolis” will be a monthslong campaign from November to February, according to the council’s Kittie Fahey.
While details have yet to be announced, Fahey noted the events would include “arts, culture, markets and activations citywide.”
“By bringing together such partners such as arts organizations, cultural institutions, hospitality venues, retailers, city parks, and others, Winterapolis will showcase winter in Downtown Minneapolis as a full season of vibrancy rather than a single event,” the downtown council said.
Holidazzle started in 1992, but has struggled in recent years to find a foothold after the COVID-19 lockdown. The celebration turned virtual in 2020 and returned to Loring Park for two years before it was canceled in 2023 due to a lack of funding.
In 2024, the event took over Nicollet Mall but without its iconic parade. Though organizers anticipated 100,000 attendees over the four days, it only drew in 65,000, the council said last year.
The downtown council also manages the Minneapolis Aquatennial, a civic celebration of the city featuring fireworks and a parade in late July. According to the Minnesota Historical Society, the festival launched in the 1930s to quell tensions after a Teamsters strike and anti-union violence that killed two and injured dozens of others.
Fahey said the council is discussing the Aquatennial with sponsors and the city “to determine the best path forward for next summer’s celebration.”
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