BENGOUGH, Sask. — Some come for the music, some come for the quaint, small town feel, and some come to witness the almost organic-like growth as the festival takes root and reaches out a little further each year.
The Gateway Festival in this southern Saskatchewan town has grown to three days from its inception as a one day show in 2004. It now includes three stages and about 40 musical performances.
Michelle Brownridge of Regina, an artist and photographer, has seen the changes first-hand.
“I love to come and see the evolution of the festival. It’s a festival that has an intimate feel,” she said.
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The economic impact boosts the local economy and increases tourism to the area’s attractions, including the Big Muddy badlands, Castle Butte and the Sam Kelly outlaw caves.
“Our festival has magic,” said Carol Cairns, the festival’s artistic director.
“Some people have moved to Bengough as a result of attending Gateway,” she said.
The event was held July 22-24.
Visitors Berle and Wanda Eberle, who also volunteer at the festival, have come to all seven festivals.
“We like the entertainment, the country music, but it’s also an outing and a social event, one that pulls the community together,” said Wanda.
This year’s musical lineup included Canadian country music singer George Fox, Big Sugar, The Arrogant Worms and old time music.
Young performers often work with the stage crew and perform on the main stage.
“Another mission of the festival is to provide an opportunity for up and coming artists,” said Cairns.
One example is 17-year-old Kjel Sidloski of Weyburn, Sask., who played guitar and sang. Sidloski will star in The Fantasticks in Weyburn
this month and begin music studies at Briarcrest College this fall.
This year, the festival addedSpirits of the Trail,a historical drama performed on horseback by Ken Mitchell’s Theatre on the Hoof.
It dramatized the first encounter and friendship between Colonel Walsh and Sitting Bull. The Sioux leader crossed into Canada in 1876 with 5,000 Sioux, following the massacre at the Little Big Horn in the United States.
For more information, visit: www.burningsun.ca.
