1/6/2024 0 Comments Santa archyBut I guess if that's what you like to do, that's what you do." It seems actually to go completely against the idea of the holiday. I couldn't believe they tried to monetize people walking around in Santa outfits. "They started trying to do copycat things the week before and charge money. Phoenix Symphony CEO is stepping down Bittersweet goodbyes to 9 Valley restaurants and bars You can finally fly to this city from Phoenix again How to build a monarch butterfly habitat and other fun facts How the event moved to downtown PhoenixĮventually, Scottsdale promotors decided they wanted a piece of the action, which Lykins feels ruined the spirit of what the event was intended to be. The Arizona Cacophonoy Society also started stepping up its own game. It's just all Christmas or holiday-themed." You might call it a Halloween in December. People would show up as snowmen and gingerbread men and Hannukah Harry. But then it started getting a lot more elaborate, which was kind of nice. "I wore the same one for like, seven years. "Initially, everyone was wearing really super-cheap, horrible felt-y Santa outfits," Lykins says. At its height, it got up to about 1000 people in Old Town, because that was really the only place that you could do it."Īs the event grew increasingly popular, people started putting way more effort into dressing up. And then it just kind of took off very quickly. And it started off with walking through Fashion Square singing Christmas carols. HOLIDAY FUN: Fewer people, more lights: Scottsdale's Coach House is celebrating Christmas despite COVID "There was no social media back then," Lykins says. So he and Ben Overbaugh started one here in 2007. When Lykins moved to Phoenix from Seattle in 2002, he was shocked to find that Santarchy, which Santas in Seattle had been doing for at least five years, had yet to work its way into the local culture. The Santarchy phenomenon began in 1994 with SantaCon in San Francisco and soon spread to other major cities. The actual event location will be announced to ticket holders a couple of days before the event. If we cancel the event, we will do a drive-through toy-drop so we can still have enough gifts for the kids who would otherwise do without during this holiday season." There's still a chance that even a truncated, socially distanced Santarchy could end up being canceled.Īs the website says, "Please note that we are monitoring the COVID pandemic and may cancel this event. 'TIS THE SEASON: Best Christmas lights in Phoenix: Drive-thru and walk options around Phoenix The Society is collecting new, unwrapped toys to be distributed to local unsheltered families. The post went on to note that social distancing, mask-wearing and good hygiene are required in a year defined by COVID-19, adding, "WASH THOSE HANDS and WEAR THAT MASK!" In an Instagram post, the Society shared a photo from a prior Santarchy with a crowd of mask-free people dressed as Santa doing very little in the way of social distancing under a banner that reads "2020 Santarchy will not look like this!" How this year's Santarchy will be different But we'd like you to bring toys, and that way we can get them to the local Santa Claus, who can then still deliver them to kids. "There might be a small collection of people. "We're basically just saying, 'We're gonna be at a park.'" Lykins said. Instead, this year's event will focus on the toy drive aspect of Santarchys past. "The impact, really, of Santarchy in the past has been this kind of visual spectacle and getting a bunch of people together. "I guess in its purest sense it isn’t really happening," says Chris Lykins, a co-founder and co-organizer of the Arizona Cacophony Society event. That's the question facing local organizers of the annual event which is essentially a flash mob performance of people dressed as Santa Claus and other holiday-themed characters roaming the streets of downtown Phoenix on a pub crawl. Can Santarchy even exist in a socially distanced setting that abides by health and safety protocols with COVID-19 cases spiking?
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