Phish Mondegreen Festival has FREE 4-day passes for creative volunteers. How to register

Are you interested in creating cool art out of cardboard for the chance to get free admission to the new Phish Mondegreen Festival in The Woodlands of Dover Motor Speedway?

Festival organizers are inviting creative minds and music fans from all over the Mid-Atlantic region to join in a unique artist event and earn a pass for the Mondegreen Phish Festival, to be held on the same grounds as Firefly Music Festival. Mondegreen runs from Thursday, Aug. 15, to Sunday, Aug. 18.

Participants can help build an 82-foot structure inspired by Baltimore’s City Hall with only cardboard boxes and adhesive tape in one of seven pre-event workshops at Dover Motor Speedway inside the NASCAR Cup Series garage, according to organizers.

This experience is open to participants of all ages. Lunch will be provided.

Here’s what you need to know about Phish, the Mondegreen festival, and how to register for the cardboard art workshop.

When are the Mondegreen Phish Festival cardboard art workshops?

Workshops are held Wednesday, Aug. 7, to Sunday, Aug. 11, and Tuesday, Aug. 13, and Wednesday, Aug. 14.

The Morning Session is 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Lunch is provided from 1 to 2:30 p.m. The Afternoon Session is 2:30 to 6 p.m.

The pre-event workshops are only one phase of the project. Construction (Thursday, Aug. 15) and Deconstruction (Sunday, Aug. 18) efforts also are planned.

What free Mondegreen Phish Festival passes will art volunteers receive?

Volunteering for one workshop day will earn participants a single-day Mondegreen General Admission Pass ($150 value). Volunteering for two or more workshop days will earn participants a four-day weekend General Admission Pass ($450 value), according to organizers.

What is the Phish Mondegreen Festival cardboard art installation?

Renowned French artist Olivier Grossetete is leading the creation of an 82-foot replica of Baltimore’s City Hall using nothing but cardboard and adhesive tape.

Grossetete’s vision has led to the creation of more than 300 projects across five continents, some as tall as 85 feet.

Volunteers will help to construct (and deconstruct) this cardboard art installation in Dover.

This project is intended to unite people of all ages to join in the creative adventure.

Who is Phish?

Formed in Vermont in 1983, Phish is a jam band with a huge and die-hard fan base who love to follow the band on tour, including performances outside of the country.

Phish is named after co-founder and drummer Jon Fishman. The group icomprises Trey Anastasio (vocalist/guitar), Mike Gordon (bass), Page McConnell (keyboard) and Fishman (drums).

The jam band played its first Madison Square Garden concert in 1994 and has regularly played annual multi-day shows at MSG, usually around New Year's Eve. Phish's latest MSG show was New Year's Eve 2023, which marked the band's 83rd concert at the legendary venue.

Why do fans love Phish?

One of the key elements behind Phish's fame is that the band's concerts are never the same twice, offering different setlists. In April, Phish performing for four days at The Sphere in Las Vegas, delivering more than 14 hours of music without repeating a song.

The band's enthusiastic fan base is credited with creating a welcoming atmosphere at events.

Phish's popularity also has to do more with the live experience than studio recordings as the band has a history of introducing silly antics at shows and a lot of improvisation on stage. A song might be five minutes one night, for example, and 30 minutes the next night.

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What is Phish Mondegreen Festival?

The Phish Mondegreen Festival will continue Phish's tradition of bringing thousands of music lovers together to remote areas of the country. Mondegreen will be Phish's 11th self-produced festival. 

The four-day event offers four headline performances by Phish, along with art installations, curated regional food and drink and more.

Mondegreen is in The Woodlands of Dover, home of Firefly Music Festival; Firefly hasn’t returned since its last event in 2022.

Phish's concept of attracting hordes of people to remote areas around the country for a festival has helped to influence major events including Firefly, a festival born in 2012, and Bonnaroo in Tennessee.

The first Phish festival was the three-day Clifford Ball in Plattsburgh, New York, in 1996.

Phish celebrated the turn of the millennium with a New Year’s Eve festival at Florida’s Big Cypress Indian Reservation, drawing a record-setting attendance of 80,000 people, according to Mondegreen organizers.

How do I register to volunteer for Mondegreen cardboard art workshop?

Folks interested in volunteering for the cardboard art workshop can register here.

For more information about Mondegreen, visit mondegreen.phish.com.

Are you coming to the Mondegreen festival and have a cool Phish story to tell? Please email lifestyle reporter Andre Lamar at [email protected]. Consider signing up for his weekly newsletter, DO Delaware, at delawareonline.com/newsletters.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Phish Mondegreen Festival has free passes for artistic volunteers