Rosebud blossoming all summer
By Laureen F. Guenther Times Contributor
From concerts to take-away meals to shopping, Rosebud offers enjoyment and entertainment all summer.
Outdoor concerts are being performed on the festival stage next to the Opera House every weekend. Concert patrons are seated in physically distanced spaces, with up to four people per space.
The concerts, sponsored by Rosebud Theatre, Rosebud School of the Arts (RSA), Rosebud Chamber Music Festival and Rosebud Festival Society, will be moved into Rosebud Church in inclement weather.
“(These concerts are) a fabulous way for us to connect with the community at large,” said Paul Muir, RSA’s Executive Director. “It’s a great line-up of guest artists coming in, some (from) close to home, some further afield. I know it’s going to be a fabulous summer.”
The concerts feature diverse musical genres. Rosebud Chamber Music Festival performed the first concerts, July 10-11, and again on July 17-18.
John Wort Hannam, Juno-nominated and Canadian Folk Music Award-winning, will perform July 24.
Calgary-based “old-fashioned rock and roll band” Peter and the Wolves will perform July 31.
Singer-songwriter Justine Vandergrift, whose country-soul music has roots in hymns and folk songs, will perform Aug. 7.
Rosebud and Alberta favorites Lewis and Royal, combining wit, humour and soulful music, will perform Aug. 14-15.
Jenn Beaupre, with a bold, agile, and eclectic vocal style, will perform Aug. 21.
Calgary-based duo, Two Late to the Party, will perform Aug. 28.
The concerts aren’t the only thing happening in Rosebud.
Takeaway food, with hot entrees, cold snacks and drinks, is available in Rosebud Mercantile, Thursdays to Sundays, noon to 6 p.m.
July 17 and Aug. 14, Rosebud Art Collective is hosting outdoor Artisan Markets, featuring artwork in pottery, paint, metal, wood, and other media.
Saturdays, Rosebud Country Inn hosts the Rosebud Country Market, selling fruit, vegetables, and fresh-baked goods. The Inn also offers pie and light lunches on Wednesdays to Sundays.
Rosebud County Goods and Co. gift shop is open every Saturday. Rosebud Museum is open Wednesdays to Sundays and offers ice cream treats.
The new Banks and Braes, and Rosebud’s other B and B’s, are open. The iconic windmill will also soon welcome guests as an Airbnb.
Sundays at 10:30 a.m., Rosebud Church holds a church service on the festival stage.
Online, all summer, RSA offers a free, hour-long concert performed by RSA faculty and graduates. The concert includes RSA graduate Natalie Gauthier’s singing “Oh for the Children,” a response to Canadians’ sorrow as we discover unmarked graves at former Indian Residential Schools. Muir called it an “anthem” that “encapsulates so much of what we are dealing with as a culture.”
The concert also includes an invitation to participate in RSA’s summer fundraiser, Rosebud Alive!
“Rosebud patrons and donors and supporters are the most supportive people around,” Muir said. “They are sending a message, saying Rosebud must remain alive.”
This spring, RSA donors met a matching goal of $15,000, raising a total of $30,000. This summer, another $25,000 in matching funds has been offered, and Muir is confident RSA donors will meet this challenge too.
“All of us feel so encouraged and so inspired by people’s generosity,” he said, “that we just feel like, yes, Rosebud is going to live and we can reach this goal this summer.”
RSA and Rosebud Theatre also look toward the fall. RSA will begin another school year of in-person classes and is still accepting new students.
Being a student at RSA, Muir said, is “all about connecting to other people … you will (also) have a group of instructors and staff and leaders and community members … all of whom will be interested in you and will want to build into your life and encourage you.”
Rosebud Theatre will probably produce a play at Christmas time, Muir said, or as soon as it’s possible and economically viable.
To watch the online concert or donate to the Rosebud Alive! fundraiser, go to https://www.rosebudtheatre.com/support-us.
To keep up-to-date on what’s happening at Rosebud Theatre, go to rosebudtheatre.com and sign up for the email list, and watch the Rosebud Theatre Facebook page.
To learn more about studying at Rosebud School of the Arts, go to rosebudschoolofthearts.com.
To order an entrée from the Rosebud Mercantile, call 1-403-677-3000 ext. 236.
To book a ticket for a Rosebud outdoor concert, call 1-800-267-7553.