Concert to mark Mackinac Arts Council's 20th anniversary

Cheboygan Daily Tribune
·2 min read

MACKINAC ISLAND — The Mackinac Arts Council is celebrating its 20th anniversary on July 30 with a bluegrass concert at Marquette Park on Mackinac Island.

The concert will take place from 5-8 p.m. Immediately following the concert, the public is invited to a screening of the movie "Elvis," nominated for 2022 Best Picture, at 9 p.m. in the Center for the Arts at Mission Point Resort. Both events are free and open to the public.

Nashville bluegrass band Wood Box Heroes will perform at the concert, and serving as opener will be Petoskey singer-songwriter, Pete Kehoe. Kehoe was one of the first artists to perform when the Mackinac Arts Council was formed as a nonprofit 501(c)3 in 2003.

Pete Kehoe
Pete Kehoe

The celebration on Sunday, July 30 also features resident poet Jim Lenfestey, Minnesota author, and Mary McGuire, Detroit Music Awards winning singer-songwriter and best Americana songwriter (2016). Both Lenfestey and McGuire were early supporters of Mackinac Arts Council and helped launch the successful beginnings in 2003.

A free picnic dinner provided by Mission Point Resort of hot dogs, sodas and chips will be topped off with an audience-wide cupcake toast.

The Mackinac Arts Council is celebrating its 20th anniversary on July 30 with a bluegrass concert at Marquette Park on Mackinac Island.
The Mackinac Arts Council is celebrating its 20th anniversary on July 30 with a bluegrass concert at Marquette Park on Mackinac Island.

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Since its founding in 2003, the Mackinac Arts Council has grown from producing three events a year to over 100 in 2022, while adding 10 different programming offerings that span all four seasons.

“Through this development and growth, it has been our faithful supporting families and friends of the arts who have continued to make our work possible," said board president Mark Ware.

The Mackinac Arts Council works in partnership with Michigan Arts and Culture Council, Michigan Humanities, Mackinac Island Community Foundation, Mackinac State Historic Parks, Richard and Jane Manoogian Mackinac Arts Museum, the City of Mackinac Island, Mackinac Island Tourism Bureau, Mackinac Island Public Schools, plus many community groups and businesses to meet the arts and cultural needs of Mackinac Island through a diversity of initiatives, services and cultural programming.

To see the Mackinac Arts Council full schedule of arts and cultural events, visit mackinacartscouncil.org.

This article originally appeared on Cheboygan Daily Tribune: Mackinac Arts Council celebrates 20th anniversary