And for ten years, it has. The Purple Hatter’s Ball (PHB) has happened every year since Rachel Morningstar Hoffman’s untimely death in 2008. Known throughout the festival community for her signature fuzzy, purple hat, Rachel was murdered while working as a confidential informant in a botched police drug bust. Her death inspired the passage of HB 914.28, a law that strengthens regulations and protections for confidential informants in the state of Florida, commonly known as “Rachel’s Law.”
Walking the grounds at the festival, it was apparent by their reverence that nearly half of the attendees were personal friends of either Rachel or her family, while the others were respectful of those who knew her. While not the all out party vibe that many festivals seem to have, The Purple Hatter’s Ball was more a celebration of life than a mourning of loss, with many festival goers wearing purple hats. Large butterfly decorations were scattered around the park as well. At around 6:30 p.m. on Saturday evening, before Zach Deputy took the stage, Mama Margie (Rachel’s mother) gave a speech and then released 24 monarch butterflies, 23 to represent each year she was alive and 1 to represent her spirit which still lives on.
One of the goals of The Purple Hatter’s Ball is to showcase Rachel’s musical and artistic tastes. In addition to incredible art installations all over the park, PHB included a slew of incredible acts spread across 3 stages. Friday night, headliners The Russ Liquid Test and Emancipator melted the forest with their unique brands of psychedelic EDM. In addition to many of their old classics, Russ Liquid debuted a new song that is likely to be on their new album. Below is a video of the song, filmed by Live For Live Music.
\\Saturday morning saw the opening of the Beach Stage by the river, where festival goers relaxed on the beach and in the Suwannee river as bands played on the overlook above. Saturday night played out more funky than trippy as American jam-band Perpetual Groove was followed by funk-powerhouse Dumpstaphunk on The Amphitheater stage. LED Poi’s and hoops sparkled throughout the crowd as it rained off and on throughout the weekend. Other acts throughout the festival included The Malah, MZG, and EDM artist Zoogma.
To celebrate the 10th anniversary, The Purple Hatter’s Ball ended on Sunday with their first annual potluck. Those who couldn’t bring a dish were asked to make a monetary donation to the Rachel Morningstar Foundation. In addition to these donations, funds were raised for the charity through a charitable disc golf tournament hosted by Zach Deputy.
This article appears in Jun 1-8, 2017.