Dreams of Utopia: Idealism, Festival and the Counterculture.

(A presentation I’ll be doing in April I think, if anyone’s interested in getting the slides off me then get in touch!):

Dreams of Utopia: Idealism, Festival and the Counterculture.

In 1969, hippie festival culture peaked with Woodstock, attracting close to half a million young Americans. To those that attended, this event was considered to offer far more than entertainment: despite fraught conditions and organizational difficulties the event was for many, an expression of freedom and peace, and for some, a social experiment in alternative living.

This presentation recounts the relationship between the festival and the Counterculture, and recalls the idealism of the era that fuelled the politically potent nature of the festival. It will also take a critical look at the popular remembrance of key festival performances, including Jimi Hendrix’s Star Spangled Banner and Bob Dylan’s performance at Newport Folk Festival, as symbolic.

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