Mermaids, clowns, sequins and jewels all dazzled on Santa Barbara Street for the 52nd annual Summer Solstice Parade Saturday afternoon.

Hundreds of people set up chairs and blankets on the sidewalk to watch as dancers performed in dazzling costumes and unique human-powered floats paraded down the road. 

Liz Rodriguez and Patty Cuvas attended the Solstice parade for the first time to support a friend who was dancing in the parade.

“I love that it was a mixture of everyone, genders, ages, everything,” Cuvas said. “You had from… maybe (kindergarten) age all the way to somebody in their 80s, and they looked like they’re having so much fun.”

The two live in Santa Clarita, but have a summer house in Ventura. This was their first Solstice Parade, but they said they want to come back every year. 

Rodriguez said she was inspired by how many older dancers were participating in the parade. 

“I was saying I think we should try to do this next year, so we’re looking into that,” she said.

They also appreciated how energetic everyone was, and how participants would engage with the crowd rather than just walking by.

“Everybody had a smile on their face, it was great,” Rodriguez said. 

Before the parade, people lined the street, drawing with chalk and taking advantage of the rare street closure to skate and bike down the road.

The Solstice Parade started at noon on Saturday on Santa Barbara Street at Ortega Street, and made its way to Alameda Park at 1400 Santa Barbara St. for the Solstice Festival. 

The parade featured numerous interpretations of this year’s theme: “Wave.” Many groups went with ocean-inspired floats, dressing up as sharks, mermaids, jellyfish and other sea creatures. 

There were also coastal cowgirls, hula dancers and carnival-inspired dancers dressed in jewels and feathers. 

Other groups included old-fashioned clowns with large papier-mache hands waving to the crowd, giant cactus cats, and a giant old-fashioned record player, or gramophone, representing sound waves. 

Artists have been hard at work for weeks working on the floats and costumes at the Community Arts Workshop on Garden Street.

Solstice celebrations will continue on Sunday, noon to 7 p.m., in Alameda Park with live music, food, vendors and more.