Nine fertile years of In the Soil
They’ve been rained on. They’ve been hailed on. One year, the power went out. And still, In the Soil perseveres. Now in its ninth year, the regional arts festival will take over downtown St. Catharines with its usual mix of music, theatre and performance art. All told, there will be about 150 different things going on in multiple locations, including a free show by the reunited Rheostatics Friday night at the Festival Hub Stage on James Street.
The key, says artistic producer and co-founder Annie Wilson, is restraint. Growing slowly instead of all at once. Letting the roots take hold instead of speeding forward.
Other festivals have come and gone in that time (Niagara Integrated Film Festival). Some have been forced to pull the plug (SCENE). In the Soil has avoided pitfalls by letting itself grow naturally.
“We can’t afford to have a bad year, but it’s all the more reason why we are extremely modest when we make our plans,” says Wilson.
“The one thing we can’t help is the weather,” adds artistic director and co-founder Deanna Lynn Jones. “But if buckets of rain are pouring down on us, how do we still make this comfortable for the patrons? That’s something we’re always thinking about it.”
Attention to detail has made In the Soil one of the prime arts events in the region, attracting about 600 artists and 6,500 patrons last year. This year’s festival brings back the artisan market, the interactive village, nightly free concerts, and the popular Rhizomes at the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, in which visitors can sample
12 different installation and performances going on at once.
In addition to The Rheostatics, The Hub will see performances by The Dinner is Ruined and My Son the Hurricane. Mahtay Cafe will host a 12-hour edition of its Band on the Couch series Saturday.
Kids in the Hall member Bruce McCulloch brings his Young Drunk Punk show to FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre Saturday and Sunday, while the Border Blur Reading Series brings poets Christopher Dewdrey, Sarah Pinder and Phoebe Wang to Niagara Artists Centre Friday.
There’s also an assortment of family friendly events throughout the three days.
It’s part of the festival’s mandate to offer an all-in-one arts sampler.
“You might say ‘I’m going to check out The Rheostatics’ because you know and like them, but what happens once you’re here and see what else is being offered?” says Jones. “How can that open up doors to other things you might not have heard of or gone to?”
Finding that balance has made In the Soil one of the country’s most diverse arts festivals in Canada.
“That’s been a real important thing to us, to make sure we have a balance of disciplines,” says Jones. “Theatre, comedy, literary arts … so that we can distinguish ourselves as a multi-disciplinary festival.”
For a complete lineup for all three days, visit www.inthesoil.ca.