Arts celebration set to go

Whether it’s paintings, hats, or orchestral music that piques your interest, the “Centennial Celebration of the Arts” tomorrow is offering up a feast for the senses at the Townshend Theatre here.
And centennial co-ordinator Marla Simpson is hoping for a great turnout.
“We’ve had good attendance at all the other centennial events so far,” she noted. “I think we have a sort of following now.”^An arts and crafts exhibition sale in the high school cafeteria will be held throughout the event, which runs from 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Local artists have booked booths to exhibit their work.
Information about the Arts and Heritage Organization also will be available.
The festival also will include the judging of the centennial hat contest, which was first announced April 11 during the re-creation of the town’s inaugural council meeting.
Hats will be judged by people who visit the festival throughout the day, not a panel of judges. The categories include biggest, smallest, most colourful, most historic, most dramatic, and the one best suited to the centennial theme.
The winners then will be announced during the Borderland Community Orchestra concert at 7 p.m. Prizes have been donated by the Fine Line Art Gallery.
The hats themselves will be sold off in a silent auction.
Speaking of hats, the “The Hat Ladies” fashion show will go tomorrow at 2 p.m. at the Townshend Theatre. Admission is $5.
The pair from Burlington, Ont.
will model hats and costumes from the Victorian era to the present.
People also can bring along their vintage fashion collectibles for dating and authentication.
Also part of tomorrow’s proceedings will be the unveiling of a group art project following the theme “Celebrating Community.”^The concept behind the project is that one long continuous painting is divided into 10 three-foot segments—each of which was completed in sequence by one or more artists in two-week intervals over the past few months.
Artists who worked on this included Linda Lovisa, Pam Hawley, Barb Stevens, Terril Pentney, Fran Madigan, Jean Richards, Connie Cuthbertson, Donna Cannon, Nancy Gibb, and Vi Plumridge.
The segments of the painting then will be divided and sold off tomorrow. Proceeds from this will go back into the local arts community.
And the event finale will be the annual spring concert of the Borderland Community Orchestra.
This will include music, art, and poetry.
The participants in the centennial poetry contest held last month have been invited to the evening event to recite their pieces.
Admission for the concert is $10 for adults and $5 for children.