Phil and Dallas Boyer will play Metis fiddle as one of the acts at Tapestrama. Photo courtesy Facebook
Prince Albert’s version of Regina’s Mosaic, or Saskatoon’s Folkfest, is underway this weekend.
Tapestrama Cultural Festival starts on Saturday, and represents First Nations and Metis culture with jigging performances, fiddling, and food.
Tapestrama has been hosted by the Prince Albert Multicultural Council for a few decades now, and executive director Shayne Lazorowich said people can learn a lot about the cultures represented in the community.
“The diversity of Prince Albert has really been growing in the last several years, and I think a lot of people, it opens your eyes a little bit about who’s all living here in our community together and how diverse it is and how great that is that we can live together and contribute in our kind of ways,” he said.
Whether it’s First Nations culture, Latin dance or other art forms, they try to represent the different backgrounds of people in Prince Albert. Artists come from all over the province to perform.
Tapestrama is all under one roof in a new downtown location this year, called Plaza 88. Lazorowich said businesses like this are changing people’s impressions of that area.
“Plaza 88 is one of the newer businesses that’s opened up over the last couple of years and they’ve, I think, had a strong impact on downtown culture and, you know, there’s been some restaurants and pubs and stuff that have opened up on Central Avenue as well close to there, and all of that’s, yeah, it’s really healthy,” he said.
Among the acts are the Thunderingsky Dance Troupe, Riverside Jigging Club, and Dallas and Phil Boyer.
Attendance at Tapestrama is free thanks to a number of sponsors, and runs from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. There’s also a Salsa Dance Party for $15 at the door on Saturday night.
For more information check the Multicultural Council’s website or the event’s Facebook page.