The second annual Toronto Vintage Easter Parade organized by Bee's Knees Dance Studio took place on Sunday afternoon in an atmosphere of slightly confused but energetically displayed joy. Based on the traditional pedestrian Easter Parade in New York City upon which the fabulous Fred Astaire & Judy Garland film was based, the Toronto version features a small group of people donning their finest vintage clothing and singing and dancing their way around what turned out to be an improvised route.

Most of the confusion came at the beginning when participants emerged from the studio near Yonge and Bloor to discover a crowd of about 50 people lining the sidewalk and facing the street waiting for what they obviously expected to be a full blown Parade with floats and bands and Easter Bunnies. The group walked up the opposite side of the street and waved cheerfully and yelled "Happy Easter" as they made their way north to the subway line in an effort to provide some sort of show for the thrill seekers who left looking very confused and less than thrilled.

Once the group reached the subway there was singing and dancing in the station at Bloor before heading north. A stop at Rosedale, where more singing took place on the platform, was cause for some laughs for the folks waiting on the southbound side.

After another stop at Eglinton and more song and dance the group headed south to Union and points beyond, taking advantage of the new subway's open carriages to parade up and down the length of the train. All in all it was some harmless fun and a good spring spirit raiser for everyone involved, and seems likely to grow as people look for alternatives to the strictly child-focused Beaches parade.