Sudbury’s Up Here 10 Raises the Creative Bar

50+ shows, art, pop-ups, a geodesic dome + much more await visitors to this popular 10th annual festival in Northeastern Ontario.
A dance party with purple lights in a geodome in Sudbury Ontario.

Up Here festival in Sudbury, Ontario, has grown into the premier arts, music, and culture festival in Northeastern Ontario. But even as the popular event has evolved significantly since its launch in 2014, to celebrate its 10th anniversary, the event’s organizers going bigger than ever. 

This year’s theme? It’s about a return to childhood, a sense of anticipation, and the excitement of the journey itself. Up Here 10 asks: “Are we there yet?”

A party at Sudbury's Big Nickel.
The entire city of Sudbury is a venue for Up Here 10. Catch a show at the Big Nickel! // Photo credit: Vanessa Tignanelli @vantigphoto 

When is Up Here 10 and What’s Happening?

This year’s festival, taking place August 15-18 2024, will feature six all-new public murals throughout town, dozens of concerts, interactive installations, family-friendly programming and pop-up events. The organizers expect the event to not only celebrate the work of local artists, but get visitors involved in the artistic process itself. Tickets for Up Here 10 are available here

A mural  of a man lying down in Sudbury Ontario. A pink and blue mural of a woman on a building in Sudbury Ontario.
Check out the city's many murals and watch artists creating them in real time. // Photo credits from L to R: Chris Thériault
@candids_worldwide; Brandon Michael Gray@brandonmichaelgray

That means attendees will not only be able to see the creation of new murals and any of the 50 live shows taking place across 15 live music venues (including duelling late-night shows), but can immerse themselves in projected videos, sculptures of giant alien flowers and even discover artsy surprises in unexpected places (such as behind out-of-order porta-potties).

Green laser lights at a DJ show in Sudbury Ontario.
With more than 50 live shows to choose from there's a concert for every taste. // Photo credit: Vanessa Tignanelli @vantigphoto 

It will also be an opportunity to celebrate the event’s decade-long legacy, with guided tours of some of the 90+ public artworks that have been created since the festival’s launch. Among these: Canada’s largest mural by RISK and a portrait by Kevin Ledo of famous Sudbury native Alex Trebek on the wall of his childhood school.

Art Art Everywhere: Up Here Square Is Just the Beginning 

An art installation of plants and an orange ball in Sudbury Ontario.
Art is everywhere at Up Here. // Photo credit: Liz Lott @_lizlott_

The festival is spread throughout the city of Sudbury in indoor and outdoor venues. The main gathering place for the event is Up Here Square, the location of the live music main stage, the Up Here Bar (where visitors can grab refreshments throughout the fest) and a three-story geodesic dome.

In addition to the numerous scheduled events, pop-up shows will happen throughout the festival (announced via notifications on the Up Here mobile app) and adventurous guests can be on the lookout for hidden surprises and spaces throughout the event.

Family Friendly, Diverse Experiences, + Historic Legacies

While concerts are scheduled into the early hours of the morning, the festival also offers plenty of family-friendly activities, including a dedicated Family Day as well as a brunch program, created in partnership with local favourite, Knowhere Public House.

As it celebrates Sudbury’s creativity, Up Here 10 will also celebrate the destination’s diversity, with Anglophone, Francophone, Indigenous, BIPOC, and LGBTQ2+ perspectives throughout the programming. It will also emphasize Sudbury’s history and geological legacy—not only as one of the world’s premier sources of nickel (including the world’s biggest nickel, of course) but quirky moments in its past, such as when Thomas Edison got stuck in quicksand here or NASA sent aspiring astronauts to Sudbury’s rocky landscape as training for walking on the moon’s barren surface.

Plan Your Trip to Up Here 10 in Sudbury Now

Canada's largest mural painted in multicolours on a hospital building in Sudbury Ontario.
The city of Sudbury is packed with opportunities to check out arts, culture, and more this year at Up Here 10. // Photo credit: We Live Up Here @weliveuphere @uphere

Whatever concerts, installations or experiences guests explore as part of this year’s Up Here, they will find plenty “there” to answer the question “Are we there yet?”

About Alex Palmer

Alex Palmer is a New York Times bestselling author who writes about travel, culture, and history for outlets including Smithsonian, Slate, and National Geographic. Learn more at alexpalmerwrites.com

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