Submitted by Huntsville Festival of the Arts
The show must go online.
While the COVID-19 pandemic has forced cancellations and postponements of its spring programming, the Huntsville Festival of the Arts (HfA) is launching online programming featuring arts activities for youth and a series of virtual concerts.
ART BREAKS is a slate of easy and fun online arts-based activities including free video demonstrations, livestream performances and online gatherings facilitated by local artists. Topics include drawing, improv, puppetry, mindfulness, music and more. The program offers kids a creative outlet while at home and can give parents and caregivers a little break to take care of themselves. Activities are facilitated by local artists including Helena Renwick, Catherine Luce, Mary Spring, Sandy Inkster, and Mike Lopez, as well as youth Harper Smith and Juniper Nuedling-Black. The program will continue throughout this period of social distancing and more activities will be announced soon.
#StayHome Virtual Concerts are a series of online concerts taking place over the Zoom video conferencing platform. Not only will it provide high quality entertainment, but the Zoom platform also offers face-to-face interactions with the artists and other audience members,creating an impromptu online community where viewers can feel together even though they are apart. The series kicks off with award-winning folk duo The Young Novelists on May 3 at 4:30 p.m.
Following this will be a special event on May 9 called The Black Whole: Quarantine Reunion concert. Anyone who attended Huntsville High School in the 90s will remember this series of concerts where students organized and performed monthly in the gymnasium. This online event will bring back those magical concerts virtually. Organizers Marcia Kuehnen and Andreana Hudson, along with HfA, are inviting HHS alumni who participated in the concerts to perform a new or old song during an online concert using the Zoom platform. The event will raise funds for local charities, and give alumni and teachers the chance to see familiar faces and reminisce on memories. A call for artists is being circulated on Facebook. Anyone interested in performing can contact Dan Watson by email at [email protected].
More virtual concerts and events will be announced soon.
While HfA continues to stay active, it is also looking towards the summer.
“We had a full summer of programming planned that included over 30 exciting events and concerts,” says executive director Dan Watson. “We know that is not going to happen the way we envisioned. We are monitoring the situation closely and working on a path forward. In the coming weeks, we will be announcing what that is going to look like. Our primary concern is of course the health of our audiences and community.”
The Huntsville Festival of the Arts wants to thank all the essential workers for continuing to provide their vital services, and to all the government agencies, community organizations, businesses, and individuals who have stepped up in such amazing ways. HfA also wants to thank everyone who is staying home and taking care of themselves and their loved ones.
For more information on programming, visit www.huntsvillefestival.ca , call 705-788-2787 or visit their social media pages.
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