Members of the Nescatunga Arts and Humanities Council are planning a three-day event this year for the 52nd Nescatunga Arts Festival in Alva, Oklahoma. It will be June 2-4 in a new location – Percefull Fieldhouse at Northwestern Oklahoma State University and in areas near the gymnasium.
The event kicks off Friday, June 2, at 6 p.m. with arts and crafts booths being open, as well as live entertainment taking place outside through 10 p.m. On Saturday, June 3, the schedule is 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. for arts, crafts, inside entertainment and outside games. From 6-10 p.m., live outdoor entertainment will resume. Sunday, June 4, is the final day of the event from noon to 3 p.m. with arts and crafts booths available along with live indoor entertainment.
Booth registration for the arts festival is open to fine artists and crafters, and a form may be found online at www.nescatunga.org.
Changing the location to NWOSU allows the festival organizers to plan for one location and to offer inside AND outside spaces to vendors who have voiced their opinions on preferring to be inside at these events, while still giving the option to be outside to those who prefer that.
Spaces for 12x12 booths are available for $40 for the first space and $25 for each additional space. There are approximately 34 spaces available inside Percefull Fieldhouse. Other spaces may be available in a spill-over area inside as well as some spaces outside.
The early registration deadline, originally set for May 5, has been extended to May 12. The fees will double after this date for any spaces that remain, as well as for the entries into the second Sugar Show that will take place inside the Health and Sports Science Commons Area.
The Sugar Show is open to bakers of decorated cakes, cookies and cupcakes of all skill levels. The first entry is $25 and $15 for additional entries. Professionals may enter one non-edible cake using dummy layers as well as one edible cake along with a dozen decorated cookies and a dozen cupcakes. Aspiring Sugar Arts and students may enter one edible cake, along with the dozen cookies and cupcakes.
Questions about the Sugar Show should be directed to April Ridgway at (580) 917-0101 or maxandapril@hotmail.com.
One festival booth space and/or Sugar Show entries for students are free.
The annual Quilt Show also will be inside Percefull Fieldhouse this year. Anyone interested in displaying a quilt should contact Rose Mary McFall at (580) 829-3011 by May 29. Quilters may call or text her if needing to arrange a drop-off/pick-up of quilts to display.
One of the Council’s biggest fundraisers to help provide scholarships to local graduating seniors is the annual Gourmet Food Booth. In order for it to be successful, the public is needed to donate their wonderful baked goods to be sold at the event on Saturday. Local bakers who would like to donate a baked item to the booth should contact Nicki Chaffee at (580) 430- 5450.
There will be a concession area on Saturday along with various food trucks available throughout the three-day event.
For additional information on the arts festival, email the Festival committee at NescatungaArts@yahoo.com. More information also is available on the website at www.nescatunga.org or by visiting the festival’s Facebook page at www.facebook. com/nescatungaarts.
Anyone interested in volunteering to help at the festival should contact the committee.
If anyone would like to help support the festival and everything the Council is doing, annual dues are $25 and can be mailed to P.O. Box 152 or paid online via PayPal at https://paypal.me/NescatungaArts. Donations to Nescatunga are welcomed to help defray costs for the festival and other activities of the Council.
The Nescatunga Arts Festival is sponsored by the Nescatunga Arts & Humanities Council, Inc., in cooperation with the Alva Chamber of Commerce, the City of Alva Tourism Committee & NWOSU.