For the second year in a row, Arts in the Park will be presenting an adapted season to fit with pandemic protocols
Last year, the pandemic forced nearly every planned summer event in the world to be cancelled or adapted to be presented in a different format. Rather than postpone the Arts in the Park season, our team decided to present the annual local concert series as a live show on the radio, in partnership with CJUC 92.5 FM Whitehorse Community radio.
After a successful, four-week run, it was clear that, this summer, the show would be able to look much the same, especially given that Arts in the Park’s usual stage is in Lepage Park, which is under construction this summer. Arts in the Park: On Air will be returning for the 2021 season, which runs from May 31 until July 9, and consists of a noon-hour performance broadcast live each weekday, with an additional youth-based performance each Wednesday evening from 7 until 8 p.m. The Thursday shows will be presented in partnership with Parks Canada and CFYT 106.9 FM: The Spirit of Dawson, and will feature artists from Dawson City, recorded at the Palace Grand Theatre.
Among the several new features this year is a series of in-person concerts at MacBride Museum. Each Friday, Arts in the Park, in partnership with MacBride Museum, will present a free noon-hour show, while a re-run of a previous broadcast will be played during the Arts in the Park radio slot. With pandemic restrictions easing, the opportunity to bring back an in-person component to Arts in the Park was an opportunity we had to take advantage of.
Joining our team this year is well-known Whitehorse musician Keitha Clark, who has stepped into the role of producer for the 2021 Arts in the Park season. Clark moved to the Yukon 16 years ago. On her second day in Whitehorse, had already been asked to perform at that year’s Arts in the Park. She has since played at Lepage Park during Arts in the Park’s usual season every year.
“It made me realize I made the right choice about where I wanted to live” she says of the community she discovered through the concert series.
Clark has brought her own children, a friend of hers who is in her 80s and visitors of all kinds to see shows at Arts in the Park, and considers it an important part of the Yukon’s artistic culture.
“I’m so proud of what Arts in the Park brings to our community on so many different levels,” she says.
Because one of Clark’s favourite parts of Arts in the Park’s typical season is seeing the residents of care homes come out to the shows at lunch time, she is excited to bring yet another piece of in-person programming to this year’s edition, having select artists perform in the care homes for residents.
“I’m excited about the different partnership opportunities this has created,” Clark says of the adapted season.
To keep up with Arts in the Park, visit musicyukon.com/artsinthepark
