Reading, Pa. – Reading Fire + Ice Fest, the premier regional winter festival, will return to downtown Reading for its fourth year in 2018. Produced and organized by the Reading Downtown Improvement District, the festival will take place January 12-13, kicking off on Friday, January 12 at 5:30 p.m. in the 500 block of Penn Street.
The festival will once again feature a variety of both indoor and outdoor activities, including a Snowfall Ball, professional ice-carving competitions, fire performances, a chili cook-off, an ice wine bar, live music, and food trucks. All outdoor activities will be free, and the chili cook-off and Snowfall Ball will have nominal entry fees.
Scheduled to perform at the Snowfall Ball on Saturday, January 13 is Go Go Gadjet, an immensely popular regional band that describes itself as “a burst of electric funk carried on the back of a thundering juggernaut of searing rock.” Times and locations for the Snowfall Ball and the chili cook-off will be announced later.
Returning again to thrill audiences with their heart-stopping fire performances will be Madeleine Belle from Philadelphia and Burning Hearts Fire & Light Theater from Allentown. They will be performing both nights of the fest.
And Sculpted Ice Works, located near Scranton, Pa., will rejoin Reading Fire + Ice Fest with spectacular ice sculpture displays and carving competitions. Established in 1999, Sculpted Ice Works is a full-service ice event company with several members of the National Ice Carving Association, and is owned by Mark Crouthamel, a carver with over 21 years of experience under his belt.
Charles R. Broad, Executive Director of the Improvement District, said several festival sponsorship opportunities are now available. They include:
Signature Sponsor
Snowfall Ball Sponsor
Chili Cook-off Sponsor
Carving Demonstration and Competition Sponsors
Ice Sculpture Sponsors
Broad noted that companies, organizations and individuals can sponsor custom-made ice sculptures as well as larger sculptures. Additional sponsorship details are available by contacting the Improvement District office weekdays between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. at 610-376-6424.
Updates on Reading Fire + Ice Fest will be posted continually over the next several weeks at www.readingfireandicefest.com. Sponsorship information can also be found on this website.
As occurred last year, tied into the festival will be a special event at Santander Arena – World Championship Ice Racing on Saturday night at 7:30. The 2018 Next Generation Fire On Ice Tour will feature the biggest names in professional motorcycle ice racing and the craziest riders on earth racing wild Unlimited Outlaw Quads and more.
Reading Fire + Ice Fest is supported in large part by a generous grant from the Hawley and Myrtle Quier Fund of Berks County Community Foundation. “We’re excited to see what the Reading Downtown Improvement District has planned for the 2018 edition of Reading Fire + Ice Fest,” said Heidi Williamson, the Community Foundation’s Vice President for Programs and Initiatives. “This event has proven to be a real crowd-pleaser, and also serves as an uplifting catalyst for downtown revitalization.” Broad added: “We’re gearing up to make Reading Fire + Ice Fest bigger and better than ever. Thanks to Berks County Community Foundation’s generosity and support, this signature event will provide great wintertime fun for everyone.”
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