Summer festival returning

After a one-year hiatus due to a lack of vendor commitment and sponsorship, the Summer Music and Arts Festival is back on.

The event, normally held at Hitchcock Park in Mitchell, will this year be located on the grounds of the Dakota Discovery Museum, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 12.

Director of the Dakota Discovery Museum, Lori Holmberg, is excited to have the event back on the calendar.

“We have partnered with Cindy Gregg with the Prairie Breeze Gallery, who as of a couple weeks ago had 15 artists committed to attend,” Holmberg said.

“We (at the museum) have been focusing on getting entertainment lined up.”

Those 15 artists specialize in sculpting, jewelry, basket weaving and other visual arts.

So far, four musical acts ranging from contemporary acoustic to 1930s fiddle music have been lined up for the event.

Holmberg said there are two spots left that she is trying to fill.

Holmberg said that the change of venue will help keep the costs down as portable toilets and additional electrical sources will not be needed. To help with costs, it was released Friday that the Mitchell Area Chamber of Commerce Regional Marketing Committee will award $1,000 to the event that Holmberg said will be used for advertising costs.

“It’s an event that helps to raise funds for the museum operations, programs and exhibits,” she said. “We are trying different locations to keep the costs down so we can raise — and not lose — money.”

Holmberg expects between 500 and 1,000 people to attend the event, which before last year’s break had run for 28 consecutive years.

“I think it’s shaping up pretty well,” Holmberg said. “The response this year with the artists has been very good.”

Tags: summer music and arts festival, lori holmberg, cindy gregg, prairie breeze gallery, news