Submitted
The Eastend Arts Council is gearing up for the 26th Annual Stegner House Dinner to be held March 9, 2013.
It is our big fundraiser for the support and maintenance of the Stegner House, the boyhood home of Pulitzer Prize winning author Wallace Stegner.
In 1987 the house was purchased from private interests, renovated, and reborn as an artists’ retreat.
In the ensuing years it has provided shelter and inspiration for a diverse collection of writers, painters, musicians, sculptors, dancers and poets. The house, the town and the landscape have left indelible memories with these people and in return, the visitors have contributed a fresh and eclectic dimension to the life of Eastend.
At the Stegner Dinner it is our aim to provide a mix of thought provoking readings and excellent musical entertainment, and to serve a wonderful homemade meal made as nearly as is possible from local ingredients.
2013 is 80 years beyond the worst years of drought and hard times on the Prairies.
This year we will remember those tough times and the wonderful resiliency with which prairie people persevered and survived.
In this far flung land your neighbours were your lifeline, your source of relaxation and fun. Music was the glue which bound people together and lightened their loads.
When the Titanic was sinking the band was ordered to play cheerful music, and they played Ragtime. No doubt Ragtime was on the menu at many gatherings during the dirty 30s when the outlook was not much brighter than on that sloping deck in the chilly North Atlantic.
The Eastend Arts Council is delighted to bring to Eastend, Bob Milne, considered by many to be the best Ragtime/Boogie-Woogie pianist in the world.
Milne has played all over North America. He has appeared at the Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival in Sedalia Missouri, The Montreal Jazz Festival, Eau Claire Ragtime Festival in Wisconsin and the Sacramento Ragtime Festival plus many more.
Milne composes and teaches.
The Library of Congress has designated him a 'National Treasure' and documented his expertise for future generations and the U.S. State Department has utilized him as a 'Musical Ambassador' in Japan and Switzerland.
Bob Milne brings endless enthusiasm, enchanting ease of playing and an engaging manner while telling stories about Ragtime and Boogie Woogie music with warmth and humor.
Check out Milne’s website: www.bobmilne.com
This year for the first time the Arts Councils is offering half price tickets for people 18 years and under. Regular tickets are $40 for the evening.
Prairie memories, great music, wonderful food and our famous and fabulous dessert bar.
Tickets are available now in time for Christmas Reserve yourself a seat in which you won’t be able to sit still.
Tickets available from: Ethel Wills – 295-3670
Madhatter’s Flowers and Gifts, 334 Redcoat Drive, Eastend.
Check out our website: www.stegnerhouse.ca
