(The following Trumpeter column originally appeared in The Huntsville Forester on Wednesday, January 31, 2007.)
By Kareen Burns
The words eclectic, facilitate, evolve, teamwork, fringe, and nurture are for me essential in putting my stamp on a successful, dynamic and evolving Huntsville Festival of the Arts.
I was invited to join the Festival board in September, 1997 by past mayor Hugh Mackenzie and I have loved every new and exciting season.
My first association with the Festival came exactly one week after my arrival in Huntsville as a Swiss Chalet and Harvey’s franchisee. I attended my first Festival show as a co-sponsor with The Huntsville Forester of a young, dynamic and as-yet fledgling family group called Leahy. The Swiss Chalet chicken even played the fiddle! Need I say more? I was hooked.
My Festival interests gravitated toward the artistic, ultimately becoming vice-president of the committee. My passion was introducing fringe to the Festival lineup. Please note the largest fringe festival in the world is in Edinburgh and as I was born in Glasgow, bonnie Scotland, it’s in my blood.
Every year we have added new fringe events – the Arts Splash, Arts Walk, Jazz in the Garden, Novel Marathon, Monday Night at the Movies, Poetry Café and, last year, Beverley Hawksley’s absolutely wonderful ‘Sub-Plot.’
Since retiring in July, 2005 from my beloved Swiss Chalet and Harvey’s to re-discover my creative self, I have had the freedom to fully immerse myself in the Festival and most recently the delight of beginning my role as president.
My vision is threefold: evolving development of our summer Festival program to celebrate our 15th season; facilitation of strong alliances with other art groups in Huntsville; and development of new ‘avant garde’ fringe events, while nurturing young local talent, watching them grow and develop through our key and very focussed Festival Education Outreach committee.
Overall, mainstage artistic direction is a board decision which leads, at times, to a very creative discussion. Committees focus on sponsorship, promotions/marketing, fringe mosaic, administration and our May Marché, which is our biggest fundraiser of the year.
Our wonderful general manager Rob Saunders is the glue that makes our Festival such a success every year.
What pride I feel, kindred spirits! My vision will only be achieved with a strong creative board that fosters both individuality and community and, most importantly, laughter and good cheer.
A special thanks to our generous sponsors, whom we could not be without.
I eagerly look forward to the future and I would love to hear your thoughts and ideas. Please do not hesitate to contact me at capercailliecallum@gmail.com.
‘Aw ra best’ for our upcoming 15th exciting season and a bientot.
Kareen Burns is the current president of the Huntsville Festival of the Arts board of directors.
