The music grew bolder, bigger and louder during the course of SunFest‚s magical 42-year run before coming to a sudden stop this year.
In many ways, the origins of West Palm Beach’s waterfront extravaganza are a reflection of how the city evolved over the past four decades, starting out in the spring of 1983 as a small local jazz and arts festival before quickly transforming into a mega-concert series that booked big acts over the course of a four- and five-day span.
The roots of SunFest can be traced to the Royal Palm Festival, a multi-event hodgepodge that was held at various days in August. That fall fest ultimately was shelved in favor of an event on the first weekend in May, promoting art and jazz and labeled „the festival by the sea.“
The initial plan for the waterfront festival was hatched by developer Llwyd Ecclestone, urban planner Bill Finley, public relations executive Anita Mitchell, former Mayor Pat Pepper and developer and arts community leader Bob Armour.
Finley, president of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation’s real estate company, had seen the Royal Palm Festival with a VIP seat and described it with some choice words. “It was awful,” Finley told The Post in 2012.
„It was a series of disorganized activities (throughout) the county. They had as a highlight the funniest parade you ever saw: six paper floats; marching bands from high schools, half of whom did not have uniforms and had never marched before, let alone played together; and a series of pickup trucks carrying girls in cowboy hats with signs glued to the side of the truck,“ Finley said. „Llwyd Ecclestone was the chairman, and at the end of the parade he said, ‚What do you think of the show?‘ I said, ‚It’s the worst thing I ever saw in my whole life.'“
Ecclestone later reached out to Finley, “Well if you have better ideas, tell us.”
Finley didn’t hold back.
“I knew it had to be in the spring, on the water, with arts, music and ethnic foods,” Finley told The Post.
Without realizing it, Finley’s ideas were so popular he instantly became of the festival’s founders.
“The board of directors thought the festival would be much better centered in one spot in the spring rather than the summer,” Executive Director Frank Hannah said at the time.
The name „SunFest“ was suggested by board member Judy Goodman to promote cultural, educational and non-professional sports activities. The festival has traditionally been held in early May, positioned in hopes of extending beyond Easter the season and the economic boost tourists bring to the region.
Founded in 1982 and launched the following spring in 1983, SunFest was a 10-day event with free admission. The event drew big crowds but lost about $100,000.
Among the performers that weekend were the Flying Wallendas, the legendary hire-wire performers that operated without a safety net. Carla Wallenda, who performed that weekend and was the last surviving child of the founder of the troupe, died in Sarasota in 2021 at the age of 85.
Other acts included the WKAO Big Band and the Boca Raton Symphonic Pops Orchestra.
The fact that it lost money prompted organizers to cut SunFest three days in 1984. Other changes followed.
By the time Sue Twyford was brought in as executive director in November 1985, the festival had $12,000 in the bank. In its early days, SunFest didn’t even have a copy machine. The phones had only one line and it was impossible to put anyone on hold.
„The accountants would come in and I’d have a stack of bills and I’d say, ‚OK, which ones can we pay?'“ Twyford told The Post in a 1990 interview.
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„Prior to her arrival, it was a kind of bring your blanket, hang out, listen to some jazz sort of an event,“ recalled Twyford’s husband Tom Twyford in an interview in 2012. „Sue loved that, but she was hired to really put the festival on the map, and she, in her wisdom, knew that some tough decisions had to be made.“
Here is the final day schedule of the inaugural 10-day festival:
By the late 1980s, Twyford and the city knew it had a hit.
In 1991, attendance reached an astounding 380,000, highlighted by a Sunday night finale that featured Crosby, Stills & Nash. SunFest was such a huge draw, city officials dealt with crowd complaints for the first time.
Twyford stepped down in 1996 to spend more time with her family, but she remained devoted to SunFest until her death in 2003.
What started as a free concert open to downtown eventually became a pay-at-the-gate event with hopes admissions would cover some of the rising costs. And the days of stretching out on the lawns with chairs, blankets and coolers faded, overcome by raucous crowds elbowing for standing room during the headliner acts.
Through the years, SunFest evolved from a chill jazz-only arts festival to a musical extravaganza that featured concerts for Generations X, Y and Z. Gradually, music overtook art as the reason people came to SunFest.
James Coleman is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at jcoleman@pbpost.com and follow him on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @JimColeman11. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.
SunFest's beginnings: Debut in 1983 was a free 10-day festival with a high-wire act – The Palm Beach Post
