Old-Time Music, Ozark Heritage Festival
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2023 Old Time Music, Ozark Heritage Festival Scheduled
The 2023 Old-Time Music, Ozarks Heritage Festival in downtown West Plains will be held Friday and Saturday, June 2 and 3, 10 a.m. – 8 p.m. The annual two-day event celebrates Ozarks music and culture and is the signature event for West Plains. The festival seeks to preserve, pass on and nurture an appreciation of the old-time music and folk life traditions distinctive to the Ozark Highlands. Admission to all festival events is free.
Organizers say this year’s event will feature increased programming of traditional music, lifeways, and arts. Headliners and much of the music will be inside the West Plains Civic Center, with additional music venues on outdoor stages along the route which has been expanded this year. The footprint of the festival includes from the east lawn of the Civic Center, down Trish Knight Blvd., on Washington Avenue from Broadway to Dixon Street, and up to the Commons on the Missouri State University-West Plains campus at Haas-Darr Hall.
The east lawn of the Civic Center will become an encampment, featuring living history from four eras – Native American, Colonial, Mountain Men (Rendezvous), and the Civil War era. Workshops and demonstrations on musical and traditional arts will continue to be presented at and around the Civic Center, and a Quilt Walk is planned throughout the downtown area. Digital maps for the Quilt Walk and West Plains Mural locations will be available.
Some of the new programming will include the Yellow House, where storytelling will be featured in addition to an art exhibit. The Avenue Theatre is planning a full slate of productions – live theater, showings of the West Plains Story Tour, silent films and more. Downtown Revitalization will program activities on Washington Avenue from Dixon Street to Broadway. And Trish Knight Street will be filled with vendors of all types.
Docents will be present at several downtown locations who will present the history of the buildings, and plans are underway for walking tours of locations featured in the Ozarks Deep: West Plains Story Tour around the square and down Washington Ave.
On the Missouri State University-West Plains campus, the Garnett Library will host Ozarks authors, sessions on archival methods for families and organizations, and will house a portion of the Broadfoot Collection on loan from the Harlin Museum. Jig dancing workshops and Friday night’s square dancing will take place in and around the Student Rec Center, along with children’s activities and the Bucket Brigade. An outside stage will be placed on the corner of Garfield and Trish Knight for additional music throughout the day.
The Harlin Museum will feature the Broadfoot Collection exhibit, along with quilts and other area artifacts from the post-civil war era, in addition to hosting speakers on Ozarks traditions.
Because of the increased size of the footprint, additional carts will be provided so that attendees can easily move from one location to another.
VENDOR BOOTH SPACE AVAILABLE – Organizers said they welcome booths from vendors, non-profit groups, businesses, school fund-raising efforts, churches, civic groups, public officials, and individuals; however, in the event of duplicate offerings, first consideration will be given to early registrants. Final approval rests with festival committee members, organizers added.
Booth spaces measure a minimum of 10×15-feet. Space rental fees this year are $70 for for-profit vendors, $35 for non-profit groups, and $150 for food vendors.
Booth registration forms may be downloaded from the festival website, http://oldtimemusic.org. You may also contact the vendor coordinator, Jennifer Dryer – Phone: 417-256-4433 or email info@wpchamber.com
DEMONSTRATORS/ARTISANS – Demonstrators are currently being sought for this year’s event, and practitioners of traditional arts are encouraged to apply. Applications are available on the Festival website at http://www.oldtimemusic.org/?page_id=3205 Suggested demonstrator hours would be 10 a.m. -8 p.m. Coordinator – Lauren Campbell ljcampbell9145@gmail.com
Many of the area’s material arts and crafts originated for entirely utilitarian reasons and were essential for meeting the basic needs of Ozarks residents in past generations. As a result of changes in the region’s economy, especially the increased availability of manufactured goods since the mid-twentieth century, such arts and crafts are no longer practical necessities, but many talented artisans and craftspeople in the Ozarks continue to practice them both as outlets for their creativity and as means of celebrating the region’s rich cultural heritage.
Some of the artisans and craftspeople who participate in the Old-Time Music, Ozark Heritage Festival practice their arts and crafts as living traditions, and their work reflects ongoing developments within those traditions, including, in some cases, their own innovations. Other participants in the festival are more historically based, and they strive to practice their arts and crafts as they were practiced generations ago. Some have products available for purchase; all of them encourage festival goers to observe their work and learn about it.
VOLUNTEERS – Volunteers come from many different areas of the community, donating their time to assure a successful event, and the festival committee spends many hours over the year preparing for it. Volunteers are needed for the information booths and helping with simple surveys (2-hour shifts); as shuttle drivers around the grounds (4-hour shifts, must be 21 or older); helping with set-up on Thursday evening and Friday morning, or tear-down on Saturday evening.
Those interested in helping in any way should contact volunteer coordinator Stacey Tune Staceyatune@gmail.com, 949-887-4185, email the West Plains Council on the Arts at info@westplainsarts.org, or an online sign-up form is linked on the festival website http://www.oldtimemusic.org/?page_id=1222
Volunteers from previous years are encouraged to call or email to confirm they will be participating again this year, organizers said.
2023 Festival partners include the West Plains Council on the Arts, the City of West Plains, the Ozark Heritage Welcome Center, West Plains Civic Center, and Missouri State University-West Plains. Partial funding for this event is provided by the Missouri Arts Council, a state agency. Additional support has been provided by Missouri Humanities and Missouri Department of Tourism.
For more information on the festival e-mail info@westplainsarts.org, visit the website at http://www.oldtimemusic.org, or Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Old.Time.Music.Festival
