At the heart of our Luminous Playground, Center Camp is stage that caters to players of all shapes and sizes. Dazzle us with talent. Mesmerize us with song. Tickle our intellect and expands our horizons. Everyone is welcome to share their passion through a playshop, talk, or performance at YOUtopia’s Center Camp.
Center Camp Sign-Up deadline is Friday, October 2, 2026 at 11:59pm.
We are all about play! Bring something enjoyable and interactive to share with the community such as yoga, jewelry making, art car design, dance, or flow arts! Teach others about healthy relationship building or how to travel around the world without money. Playshops are a platform for playful learning; a way for our community to come together and share knowledge, experiences, skills, and ideas. These can be about anything, limited by your imagination only!
YOUtalks are similar to the popular TEDx talks. These talks will be a platform for anyone to present interesting and well-formed ideas in 30 minutes or less on topics that are pertinent to our local community and the world at large. Specifically, a good idea for a talk takes into consideration certain evidence or observations and draws a larger, meaningful conclusion. You are especially encouraged to develop YOUtalks that reflect the Burning Man 10 Principles. If you are interested in giving a YOUtalk, please fill out the application form, and list YOUtalk in part of your title or description.
YOUtopia is a great place for you to express your inner creativity and perform! In addition to Center Camp stage, there are many spaces throughout the city that can host your performance! Modeled on the principles of Burning Man, YOUtopia doesn’t pay performers or musicians to come to the event. Instead, it provides a blank canvas where you can explore your creativity and imaginative ideas.
We do not have complimentary tickets for performance artists. You can apply for an Art Grant to help with certain expenses related to your performance. Funding is limited.
Grants will be awarded at the close of each Art Grant Window. The earlier the application, the sooner we may be able to support the project.
Playshops, YOUtalks, and Performances may be held at Center Camp, at a Theme Camp, or at another designated space. You can let us know if you have suggestions for where you are scheduled.
* Hours are subject to change based on interest.
Power is planned at Center Camp, but please be advised that there is NO guarantee of power available for your performance. Please try to be radically self reliant, and either bring power of your own, or have your performance with a Theme Camp that has power you can tap into.
Center Camp cannot host fire arts on the stage (it’s made of wood). But we can direct you to the Fire Arts Safety Team (FAST) who will designate a safe location for your performance. If you plan to use fire in art or cooking, or have a generator or heat source of any kind at YOUtopia you must be familiar with the relevant policies which can be found here: Fire & Heat Source Policy, Fire Performance Policy, and Generator Policy.
Yes, Center Camp Stage will have limited performance times for live music and DJs in the early evening, with sound restrictions.
As many times as are available on the Center Camp schedule, or within the camps you’ve coordinated with.
Our team can provide you a list of camps willing to host within our city. Contact themecamps@sdyoutopia.com for more information.
