By Rebecca Danvers

The Flufferettes are raring to go as the 10th annual What the Fluff? festival hits Union Square this coming Saturday.

The illustrious Marshmallow Fluff creator, Archibald Query, concocted the beloved gooey spread in Union Square in 1917. On Saturday, September 26, the tenth anniversary of the madcap festival will celebrate Query’s invention with musical performances, a cooking contest, fun for every age, and Fluff treats of every sort.

The Fluff Festival offers zany activities for every age. Children will enjoy Fluff games at the Midway Kids Area, games and activities overseen by Knucklebones, a ride on our Roaming Railroad train, face painting, and sand art.

There is plenty of fun for all ages provided by Villari Martial Arts, MA Ghostbusters, Brooklyn Boulders, and our Shenanigans Stage, overseen by an Archibald Query recreator, featuring sticky activities such as Fluff jousting, Fluff Musical Chairs, Blind Man’s Fluff and even Fluff Hair-Do, showing that it’s perfectly okay to play with your food.

Vendors will have a variety of Fluff inspired crafts, and fest-goers can sample the taste of Fluff from local vendors presenting sweet and savory Fluffalicious delights like Fluff Pizza, Fluff Tacos, Fluffanutta Donuts and lots more. Area businesses get into the spirit too, turning over their menus. Fluff-inspired cocktails and Fluff-topped beer are on tap at nearby restaurants.

In addition to the fun activities and games, tasty and unique food, and fluffacious crafts, there is great music on the Main Stage. This year’s performances include Ten Tumbao, a funky and soulful Afro-Latin-Caribbean band; the Revolutionary Snake Ensemble, a costumed funk/street beat improvisational brass band performing a unique blend of original and traditional music; and Lilla, offering a blend of soul, hip hop, reggae and pop with a jazzy twist. This year there will also be a performance by the School of Honk at the Sidestage.

And, of course, no Fluff Festival would be complete without the Flufferettes. They were originally a music group in the 1930s that promoted Fluff on the radio for Durkee Mower, the makers of Marshmallow Fluff. The group comes alive each year for the visual age as colorful and sassy song-and-dance performers. The ladies of Rogue Burlesque return to the festival with their unique brand of gorgeous, geeky burlesque.

Each year local creativity is also promoted through the Cooking Contest. This is a great opportunity to test your culinary genius and sink deep into the sugary fun by creating a marshmallowy concoction for the cook-off. The winner gets a private, behind-the-scenes tour of the Durkee Mower Fluff Factory.

This year’s esteemed Cooking Contest judges are Brian Mercury, the Executive Pastry Chef from Harvest who was named Boston Magazine’s 2014 Best Pastry Chef and The People’s Best New Pastry Chef (East) by Food & Wine Magazine; Sarah-Beth Chester, the owner of 7Ate9 on Highland Avenue who has been put at the top of the CBS Boston Best Cheesecake list; Greg Karczewski, President of US2 (Union Square Station Associates), the City of Somerville’s master developer partner for Union Square Revitalization Project and this year’s sponsor of the Cooking Contest; and Emma Smith-Benzan, our reigning 2015 National American Miss Massachusetts Pre-Teen Queen.

What the Fluff? A Tribute to Union Square Invention, Saturday, September 26, 3:00 –7:00 p.m. Union Square. Rain date: Sunday, September 27.