Wander. That's the best advice for visitors heading to Downtown Las Vegas Sept. 22 to 24 for the fifth annual edition of the Life Is Beautiful (LIB) festival. Well, wander and wear comfy shoes. And stay hydrated, of course.
The second and third should go without saying. Music festivals are notoriously tiring affairs, and no one makes it to the second encore of the Sunday night headliner in high heels or without plenty of water. But it's that first suggestion — the wandering — that will make the difference between having a nice time hearing some bands — and the lineup is stacked with artists like Chance the Rapper, Lorde and the reunited Gorillaz — and experiencing what the Las Vegas festival is all about.
Which is a "sense of discovery," according to Life Is Beautiful CEO Justin Weniger. The surprising moments that happen between the sets you were excited to see.
As in previous editions, some of those surprises will involve art. Since its inception, LIB has held art as one of its key components, and this year that focus will manifest in a variety of formats. The street art program, which has literally painted Downtown red, blue and every other color you can name, will return for a fifth year curated by Justkids' Charlotte Dutoit.
"It's become fun and stressful, finding walls to paint," said Weniger. Indeed, Downtown Las Vegas is now an open-air art gallery, packed with murals and installations from previous festivals. Earlier this year, LIB collaborated with the Plaza Hotel & Casino to add massive paintings from Shepard Fairey and D*Face to its hotel tower.
"We're expanding the art footprint beyond the festival walls," Weniger said. "We're now moving into beautifying beyond the footprint."
The festival's art motel is also returning after not being part of the 2016 edition.
"There was almost like this mini-movement to bring it back," the CEO said of the project, which turns a defunct motel into an interactive art gallery where each room features its own installation. Known for its immersive artworks, Santa Fe, N.M.-based Meow Wolf will be running the motel this fall, and should you want to take home a piece of Life Is Beautiful's art program, the "Crime on Canvas" gallery show will be back for a second year, featuring works from Matt Skiba, Mark Ryden and Tara McPherson on display and for sale.
"I like to think that if all we did now was the art it would still be an amazing experience," Weniger said.
Wander and ye shall be rewarded, eh?
But don't stop there. After floating a comedy series last year in response to attendee feedback, Life Is Beautiful is expanding that part of the programming, featuring people like Jo Firestone and Matthew Broussard during daytime showcases where folks can wander in, sit down and laugh it up while taking a break from their feet and the heat (remember what we said about footwear and hydration?).
The speaker series will back, too, as will a robust food and beverage program featuring Las Vegas's enviable stable of local chefs.
Perhaps the most notable change for Life Is Beautiful 2017, however, is that it's nearly sold out.
"The festival has never sold out before, and this year we sold out with all of our three-day [general admission] tickets within 90 minutes," Weniger said. "We went on sale with single-day tickets a week later, and Friday and Saturday sold out."
You can still go. Single-day Sunday tickets are available, as are full-fest VIP packages. And this year for the first time, Life Is Beautiful is offering hotel-and-ticket packages, with three days of fest attendance and three nights' hotel accommodation for two people starting from $1,400 at properties like the Plaza, SLS, W Hotel and the Golden Nugget. The packages are a nod to the growing numbers of out-of-town visitors making the trip to Las Vegas to attend LIB.
"Our out-of-market sales are going to dramatically outsell the in-market sales," Weniger said. "It's just a combination of a lot of things: the lineup, the experience, word of mouth.
"We're not taking a victory lap," he said. "We're kind of in the starting gate right now."