It’s never too early to plan ahead for a couple of big events for Lethbridge artists, musicians and actors.
Planning is underway for multi-disciplinary arts festival, the SOAR Festival 2, taking place at Casa, June 1-5.
A highlight of the SOAR Emerging Artists Festival will be nightly cabarets at Casa, taking place, June 1, 2 and 4. So organizers at the Allied Arts Council are looking for budding artists age 18-35 who want to perform their original plays, songs, dance, spoken word or present their film/ new media productions. Performance/ production space will be supplied for those pieces selected. Artists will also receive an honorarium for their work.
There is no cabaret on June 3 because that will be the opening of art exhibit M.A.P.S (Making Art for Peculiar Spaces.)
Local artists are needed for that as well. Artists age 18-35 will be given a box (16" x"20"X2.5") in which to exhibit their painting, drawing, photography, collage or sculptural techniques.
Finished pieces will be on display at unorthodox spaces around the downtown such as on lamp posts, the sides of buildings and fences. Patrons can collect maps to track down all of the exhibits.
The deadline for submissions for both events is Feb. 29.
Application forms and more information about both events can be downloaded at http://www.artslethbridge.org/aac-initiatives/soar-emerging-artist-festival.html
In addition to those special events, there are also 15 professional development symposiums to provide education on a variety of subjects.
The Green Fools will be hosting a circus workshop, while Gianna Isabella and Blake Evernden will be hosting a session on film making. Dave McCann will be offering a session on songwriting. There will also be a panel about issues facing First Nations artists. There will be a session for tax tips, grant writing and how to crowd fund projects.
Enrollment is $25 which allows you admission to all sessions. Registration opens on March 1.
Another event for aspiring playwrights and actors to plan for is Playgoers of Lethbridge’s annual One Act Play Festival to be taking place in the Sterndale Bennett Theatre, April 8 and 9. Original one acts are welcome as well as more established works. The deadline to enter is March 16. There is a $25 admission fee.
— By Richard Amery, L.A. Beat Editor