Arts programs in schools are not what they used to be, but creative forces are still alive and thriving in School District 57.
Music for and by local students will fill the Civic Centre on May 15, giving the youth generation a blast of inspiration and entertainment with a purpose. Dozens of classes from across the city and from neighbouring communities will all be coming to The Show.
"We just call it The Show. We've been holding it for the last seven years, and about 1,000 kids show up," said local elementary teacher Tim Yule who also books touring musicians into some of the schools of the area each year. When he's not doing that, Yule is also a musician in the band The Chevys, one of the acts performing this year at The Show. Yule and the School District 57 Cultural Committee organized the event.
"It's great to have bands and all sorts of performers come into our schools from all over the place, but this is sort of in reverse," Yule explained. "The schools come to the artists and performers, but it's everything you can imagine all together in one festival."
There will be indoor and outdoor activities. The school district has been joined by partners like the Prince George Public Library, the Two Rivers Gallery, Huble Homestead and others, so the kids have a day of enthusiasm and mental sparks.
"The idea is to encourage local artists and stimulate the minds of the kids as to what the possibilities of life really are," Yule said.
On the concert stage the kids will get to see up-close concerts by The Chevys, Black Spruce Bog, Granville Johnson, Bollywood Dancers, Excalibur Dance Company, art lessons by Two Rivers Gallery, storytelling with Prince George Public Library, heritage displays by Huble Homestead staff and the Heritage Fair Committee, plus three-dimensional art all over the main hall of the Civic Centre. Yule said the event benefits from all the cultural institutions that surround the plaza.
"There is art appreciation, there is entertainment, and there are art experiences built into this," said Yule. "The musicians have done a great job of tailoring their show to the kids, because they are, for the most part, not 'children's performers,' but they are good about making their set accessible for kids.
"And what sets these performers apart from the ones who come to the schools from out of town is, it's kind of cool that they get the experience high-caliber musicians they'll run into at the grocery store and realize that these talented people are right here among us and maybe they can do that, too. Some of the performers, like the Bollywood Dancers and the Excalibur Dancers are school-aged people themselves so they also get to see their peers."
There is a big drum-off at noon, so the attending students get to build and use their own percussion instruments as a pop-up class project.
The cost to each student is $5 and adults are free, all arranged in advance by participating schools. They will arrive at the Civic Centre at about 9 a.m. and take part in the art until mid-afternoon.
