LATEST NWMP TRAIL NEWS POSTED TO WEB
Posted on May 3rd, 2009
The Rural History and Culture Association (RHCA) has posted a page on its website for each of the six Celebrate the NWMP Trail festivals that are taking place between July 1 and August 2, 2009.
- July 1 in Wood Mountain;
- July 4, in McCord;
- July 11 in Eastend;
- July 19 in Shaunavon;
- July 24 in Val Marie; and
- August 2 at Fort Walsh National Historic Site.
Each festival recognizes the significance of the NWMP Trail through historical presentations, storytelling and musical and cultural performances and includes the following elements:
Stories of the NWMP Trail
NWMP officer James Walsh and Sitting Bull were two of the most famous figures who ever travelled the NWMP Trail. By capturing the relationship between these two men, renowned Saskatchewan playwright, author and actor Ken Mitchell creates a unique storytelling experience. Drawing on his epic The Medicine Line, which was performed to sold-out audiences in Moose Jaw in the summer of 2008, Mitchell captures the flavour of the early West.
History and the NWMP Trail
Garrett Wilson, the award-winning Saskatchewan historian and writer of the critically acclaimed Frontier Farewell: The 1870s and the End of the Old West will provide a fascinating look at the NWMP Trail and the events that surrounded it during the early days of the NWMP. Wilson, whose father was friends with Everett Baker, hails from the South West and intimately knows the country and its peoples.
First Nations Storytelling and Cultural Performances
Since time in memorial, Aboriginal peoples have lived in the land from Wood Mountain to the Cypress Hills. Drawing on oral histories, First Nations storytellers capture the spirit of the land and its sacred connection to first peoples. Through drumming and dance, First Nations cultural performers keep alive ancient and sacred traditions.
Saskatchewan Singer/Songwriters
Saskatchewan possesses a wealth of talented and versatile singer/songwriters and performers and some of the best will be providing concerts at each of the six festivals. The line-ups for each festival are: (below l-r) Carrie Catherine performing in Eastend and Shaunavon, Ragtime Don and Word Junkie performing in McCord and Fort Walsh, Leanne Hynd performing in Wood Mountain, Norm Walker performing in Wood Mountain, Megan Lynn Nash performing in Wood Mountain, Eastend, Shaunavon and Val Marie, Tommy-John Ehman performing in Wood Mountain and Val Marie, Sisters in Wood Mountain and Fort Walsh, Jeff Straker in Shaunavon andKaren Blackwell Jones performing in Shaunavon, Val Marie and Fort Walsh.