Coming up this Saturday, July 27th, at 1p.m., there will be an exciting and fun event at Joe Zuken Park in North Point Douglas.
Called the pē-kiyokē Creative Arts Festival, this is an event that will celebrate the artistic diversity of this wonderful part of the city. There will be musical acts, food vendors, poetry readings, dance, and an opportunity to take part in an indigenous beading workshop. The event will also provide visitors with an interesting look into the history of this eclectic area of the city.
The Ross House Museum is in Joe Zuken Park and will be open for visitors to tour and explore. It is one of the oldest houses in the city and guests can see what 19th century life was like through the eyes of the Ross Family who together with the Inkster Family helped to develop early Winnipeg.
What makes this year’s pē-kiyokē festival extra special is that it coincides with the Winnipeg 150 celebrations that have been taking place around the city.
Di Brandt was the first Poet Laureate for the city of Winnipeg, and she is also one of the people responsible for creating the pē-kiyokē Creative Arts Festival. She lives close to Zuken Park and The Ross House Museum. The project came as the result of a stroll through the park. As she explains, “It was really the Ross House Museum that started this festival. I was walking across the park and one of the summer workers there said, ‘I understand you are a poet; do you want to organize a poetry reading series in our little theatre.’ So that is really where the idea came from...It took us a couple of years to put it together, but it has been really fun collaborating with Ross House Museum.”
From there the festival grew to include musicians, dancers, and food. Musicians such as Jason Lepine, Lionel Darjarlais, and Kenneth Ingram will be performing amongst others. There will also be contemporary dancers Carol-Ann Bohrn and Brooke Hess taking part in the festival, and some Inuit throat singing performed by Chasity and Carmello Swan.
Brandt and her colleague Poet Laureate Duncan Mecredi will be acting as emcees. They will be introducing the performers but also reading some of their own poetry. Other poets who will be sharing include Jason Stefanik, Mathew Evan Havens, and Sadie-Phoenix Lavoie.
This year’s festival also helps to mark Winnipeg 150. As part of those celebrations, Ross Eadie the city councilor for the Mynarski Ward which includes Point Douglas, will be joining the festivities to help give some celebrations for Winnipeg 150.
The pē-kiyokē Creative Arts Festival is all about bringing people to the community and exposing them to all the wonderful things Point Douglas has to offer. It is completely free to attend, so there is no financial barrier to take it all in.
This is going to be a fantastic way to spend a Saturday afternoon in Winnipeg. Guests are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and anything else they might need to help keep them comfortable in the warmth of a Saturday in late July in Winnipeg.
For more details on the pē-kiyokē Creative Arts Festival click here.