Arts week activities
By Boundary Sentinel
Arts and Culture Week turns the spotlight on the vital contribution that arts and culture make in learning and in life. Music, films, media arts, dance, books, theatre and visual art are a part of daily life, and have a lasting impact. They inspire us, challenge us and broaden our horizons and help us to become informed, aware and contributing members of society.
This year the Boundary District Arts Council (BDAC) celebrates BC’s 12th annual Arts and Culture Week with a performance gala, visual arts displays and demonstrations at the gallery, open house at the Focus on Fibre guilds’ building and a reception.
BDAC’s annual performance gala will be held on Friday, Apr. 15 at 7 p.m. in the Grand Forks Secondary School Auditorium.
This show features the abundant talents of local BDAC member groups, including the Grand Forks Pipes and Drums, poetry by the Writers Guild, dances by the Hip Sisters, Rara Avis, Spiorad an Damhsa, music by voice, piano and violin students, and a short skit by Rivers’ Edge Theatre.
Admission at the door is $7 for adults or $2 for youth. Come and help celebrate the arts!
Other Artsweek events include an exhibition of visual arts by local artists and craftspeople, on display in the Reid Gallery, upstairs in Gallery 2, from April 11 to April 23 during regular Gallery 2 hours. All the artworks are handmade – blown glass, quilts, beading, dolls, woodwork, paintings, photography, drawings and pottery.
During Arts and Culture Week there will be tours and demonstrations for over 100 students from Hutton and Perley. They will see fencing, dance by the Hip Sisters, and storytelling. As this year’s theme is Green It and Mean It, the students are also creating posters with environmental topics, which will be displayed in Gallery 2.
For those with an interest in the fibre arts, the various guilds at the Focus on Fibre building (8120B Donaldson Drive) are holding a drop-in open house every afternoon from 1-3 p.m. on Apr. 11-14, in conjunction with Arts and Culture Week. There will be needlework happening on the 11th, quilting on the 12th, spinning and knitting on the 13th, and for the 14th, weaving. Everyone is welcome to attend.
Coinciding with Artsweek is the next in Rivers’ Edge Theatre’s not-to-be-missed series of Brown Bag Theatre presentations; on Thursday through Saturday, Apr. 14 – 16, at 12:15 p.m. on each of these three days at Gallery 2. Tickets are $5 at the door.
On Saturday, Apr. 16, immediately following Brown Bag Theatre, is a reception to celebrate the 12th annual BC Arts and Culture Week and to thank everyone for a job well done. The reception features music and dance by our talented youth – a terrific finale for BDAC’s Artsweek festivities.
These Artsweek events are part of a special year as the Boundary District Arts Council marks its own 35th anniversary of presenting the arts in our region.
For more information about BC’s 12th annual Arts and Culture Week events, or t ovolunteer, please call Erna Gobbett at 250-442-8569.
