By Ross Kirwin, HFA Director
This year, the Huntsville Festival of the Arts (HFA) will be celebrating its 16th season and its eighth major spring fundraiser known as the May Marché.
The May Marché is now considered one of the most popular social events of the year, and tickets for this year’s event have already sold out.
Deerhurst Resort will be our host again on Friday, May 23, at 7 p.m. in the grand Waterhouse ballroom. The event is being sponsored, in part, by Polar Bear Diamonds, who have combined with local jeweller Ron Henry Jewellers to donate a beautiful diamond pendant, valued at $5,700, for raffle. As well, the silent auction tables will be laden with a cornucopia of items, the best Huntsville has to offer.
Many of the vendors from last year will be returning. These include Seven Main Café, Bartlett Lodge, The Fiery Grill, Delta Grandview, HV Resort, Aroma, On The Docks Pub, Port Cunnington Lodge, Spencer Tall Trees, Three Guys and a Stove, Sleeman Ale, Steam Whistle Brewery, Cilento Wines, Henry of Pelham Winery, Kittling Ridge, Pellar Estates and Muskoka Lakes Winery. New this year are Blackburn’s Steakhouse, Reif Estate Winery, Jackson Triggs, La Dolce Vita Trattoria and Huntsville High School (HHS).
We promise a memorable evening for all who have purchased their tickets in anticipation of an evening that will start the summer season on a very high note.
The May Marché is already sold out, says HFA director Ross Kirwin, who promises it will be a memorable evening.
The Huntsville Festival of the Arts is a registered charity and all proceeds from the May Marché will be used to support the performing arts in our community.
We continue to support initiatives such as scholarships, training in the performing arts, theatre funding for HHS, public school projects, performances and live theatre.
With the building of the Algonquin Theatre came the opportunity for the festival to provide entertainment year round. So as not to forget our roots, we continue to celebrate each July with a different show each night for two weeks. This year is no exception. Our jazz festival held its debut last year and was such a huge success that we are doing it again this year.
It has been an exciting time for me, having arrived in Huntsville a little over four years ago and expecting to put my feet up and quietly retire. Shortly after the theatre was built, I joined the Huntsville Festival of the Arts board of directors and as co-chair of the May Marché, my time with the festival has been an eye-opening experience, which has made my short time in Huntsville a very rewarding one.
I have enjoyed every minute of my work with the festival and have discovered that this community is one of a kind. The arts community is vibrant across Muskoka and nowhere more so than in Huntsville.
The continued strong support of our community is what makes Huntsville so successful in attracting newcomers and tourists, as well as providing the youth of this community the opportunity to enhance their lives through the wonders of the arts.
Our summer ’08 line-up is on the festival website and we are currently conducting a survey to see how we can make the arts programs in our town even better. Please check both out at www.huntsvillefestival.on.ca.
See you at the May Marché and thank you for your continued strong support.
