Old Town Arts Festival
sponsored by
Old Town Center
for the Arts
Mannheim Gallery
and
ARC Contemporary
Fine Art
The Muse Bistro
Winery 101
Arizona Commission
on the Arts
Cottonwood Economic
Development Council
Local First Arizona
Arizona Home Town
Radio Group
Earth Day Celebration
Old Town Arts Festival
Saturday, April 22, 10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Inaugural Old Town Arts Festival Celebrates Earth Day!
Free Admission!
Looking for a staycation and a great way to celebrate Earth Day this year? Head to the Verde Valley for a weekend of wine, art and earthy fun!
The Verde Valley Arts Council will host its inaugural Old Town Arts Festival on Saturday, April 22 from 10:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m. The event will feature fine arts, selected fine crafts from Arizona artists, as well as live entertainment, wine tasting by Winery 101 and Pillsbury Wines, along with farm to table demonstrations and food.
Old Town Center for the Arts (OTCA) is a major sponsor of the event and will be hosting part of the festival on their grounds.
Theater Event Schedule
10:00 am - Festival Opens, Intro: William Eaton, OTCA Host
10:05–10:20 - Richard Sidy, Director of Gardens for Humanity
How Gardening Roots Us Into Local and Planetary Healing
10:20–10:50 am - The Art of Wine Making with Gavin Gallifant
11:00–12 noon - Trash to Tribute Fashion Show with Leslie Fox
1:00–1:40 pm - What Do Seeds Have to Do with It? with Belle Starr, Deputy Director of Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance
1:50-2:30 pm - Wetiko vs. The Planet Mask Mask presentation with performance artist & mask maker, Pash Galbavy
2:40–3:15 pm - Wine Art & Ecology with Paula Woolsey, Verde Valley Wine Consortium Vice President
3:30-3:45 pm - Ken Koshio & Kenzoo A special koto drumming exhibition, preview to the Earth Day Concert at 7 PM
7:00 pm -
Japanese Taiko drummer Ken Koshio & Kenzoo’s Celebration of the Earth. Tickets available online and in Cottonwood at Mt Hope Foods and Desert Dancer, or in Sedona at the Local Juicery.
Arts Festival Special Event
12:00-1:00 pm - Chef ‘Chopped’ Competition with Chris Dobrowolski, Owner-Chef, Muse Bistro (Adjacent to Muse Bistro – front cottage)
Musicians in the Garden
Live Music throughout the day will include national touring and recording artists Arvel Bird, Robin Miller, Rick Cyge and local musical wizard Dave Rentz. There is no admission fee to experience the art, music, theatrical events and guest speakers scheduled from 10 am – 5 pm at the outdoor festival and in the main theater at OTCA.
10:15 am - Rick Cyge
11:30 am - Dave Rentz
1:00 pm - Arvel Bird
2:15 pm - Arvel Bird
3:45 pm - Robin Miller
Mural Project
Color Me Cottonwood interactive mural painting facilitated by Joan Burque – throughout the day.
Other activities include a Trash to Treasure fashion show that will feature recycled, repurposed, and reclaimed clothing and fabrics to delight festival goers.
Food Contest
To put some spice and taste into the festival offerings, local chef Chris Dobrowolski – owner of the Schoolhouse Restaurant and Serenitie Restaurant and Burger Bar – will host a chef Chopped competition with locally-grown produce and micro-greens to kick off his newly opened restaurant, the The Muse Bistro. The restaurant is located in the remodeled cottage located in the front of the OTCA complex. The competition features three of The Verde Valley’s best hidden chefs who will go head to head in a chopped style battle to create a simple snack for our guests. Different than most food contests, the audience will vote on the best appetizer!
Masks
Mask-maker and performance artist Pash Galbavy will interact with attendees as an earth spirit who will offer earth blessings and photo opportunities at the festival. She will also give an Earth Day mask presentation that will inspire participants to think in new ways about their impact on the planet and how to live lighter, from the inside out!
Presentations
Throughout the festival there will be presentations and talks in the Old Town Center for the Arts Theater. Longtime environmental advocate Richard Sidy, Director of Gardens for Humanity, will provide the opening remarks for the festival and How Gardening Roots Us Into Local and Planetary Healing.
Belle Starr, Deputy Director with the Rocky Mountain Seed Alliance, will present: What Do Seeds Have to Do with It? An interactive talk that contemplates “Where do seeds come from and why is it important to have local, well adapted, deliciously procured seed stock to hold up our burgeoning local food systems?”
Wine
Verde Valley Wine Consortium Vice President, Paula Woolsey and Gavin Gallivant of Winery 101, will both speak about the art and ecology of growing wine in the Verde Valley.
Arts
The Mannheim Gallery and ARC Contemporary Fine Art is another major sponsor and is located across the street from the Arts Center. They will be displaying a newly installed sculpture garden on their grounds along with new paintings by Santa Fe artist Blair Vaughn-Gruler and works on paper by Natasha Pudalov.
Our Sponsors
This is event is made possible through the generous support of our sponsors: Old Town Center for the Arts, Mannheim Gallery and ARC Contemporary Fine Art, The Muse Bistro, Winery 101, Arizona Commission on the Arts, Cottonwood Economic Development Council, Local First Arizona, and Arizona Home Town Radio Group.
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