Calendar of Events

Community Band Spring Concert

The Park Rapids Area Community Band has begun preparing for its Spring Concert at 3 p.m. Sunday, May 3 at the Park Rapids High School Auditorium. The concert will be titled "The Great American Outdoors." The opening selection will be "An Outdoor Overture," composed by Aaron Copland in 1938. Other pieces include "Down a Country Lane," also by Copland, "Shenandoah" by Frank Ticheli and "Variations on America" by Charles Ives. Adam Tervola Hultberg of New York Mills conducts with members traveling from towns more than a one-hour drive from Park Rapids, including Bemidji, Nevis, Wadena, Detroit Lakes and beyond. The musicians span the age and experience spectrum with several area school music teachers to adults who still enjoy playing their instruments many years after high school. The band currently has about five high school musicians seeking additional performing experience. Guest soloist Deborah Harris will delight the audience with her brilliant flute playing. The longtime professor of flute from Concordia College will be featured in the flute section on a work called "The Gemeinhardt Suite." The three movement work explores a variety of ethnic components as well as flute-specific details. For example, the soloist and members of the section will play alto and bass flutes in addition to the standard C flute and piccolo. The Park Rapids Area Community Band began in 1991 with Jim Wheeler as its founding leader. Many years later, Wheeler still attends band events as a loyal audience member. This time, he has agreed to conduct on a piece that was on the inaugural program, "Guadalcanal March” from the television program “Victory at Sea."

Century Elementary 3rd & 4th Grade Music Programs

Century School 3rd and 4th grade music programs will be the evening of Thursday May 14. There will be two separate concerts with the 3rd grade starting at 6:30 and the 4th grade concert time of 7:30. "We scheduled them back to back to make more seating for our audience," Edevold said. "This worked really well last year." Concert music selections will be very varied. First Responders is a song that pays tribute to the people in our community who help us.Peace Song, There is Life Beyond the Phone and Es Bueno Ser Educado are just a few of the pieces students have been preparing. A reminder that if the main parking lot is full, people are invited to use the bus loop on the south side of the school. "We invite the community to enjoy an evening of music sure to bring a smile. There is nothing like young voices singing together to lift your spirits," Edevold said.

Armory Lift Off Celebration

It's time to celebrate! The transfer of the Park Rapids Armory to City ownership has been a long time in coming. And now that it has finally happened, The Armory Arts and Events Center board wants to mark this new beginning for the Park Rapids community.

A committee from the Armory Board was formed to put together a short program featuring key community members involved in establishing the Armory as a regional Arts and Events Center and to recognize the hard work of City and State officials and those groups who will feel a significant impact, and to hear the vision this rededicated facility gives to the community.

Now that the end has been accomplished, this celebration will take place "live" in front of the Park Rapids Armory at 11 a.m. Monday, May 25. To keep in line with State COVID-19 recommendations, the program will also be broadcast "live" on Facebook – here's a Facebook link to the Armory events page.

The community is invited to be part of this virtual celebration of a new beginning for the Park Rapids Armory. This has been a long time in coming, but holds great promise as an exciting community asset.

Blank Canvas Gallery Revisited art show

Blank Canvas Gallery (BCG) artists determined that June 2020 would be an excellent opportunity for a BCG 10-year Reunion Art Show. Planning included numerous artists with new exhibits to be held at the Armory Arts and Event Center based on the significant progress in developing that venue. Meanwhile, we all struggle to maintain a safe and healthy life knowing adjustments are necessary to protect ourselves, our family, our friends, our neighbors.BCG plans are intact – just paused. A show will proceed when appropriate. Watch for the 11-year BCG Reunion announcement. Thanks to all patrons for their continued support.

Park Rapids Sculpture Trail unveiling

The City of Park Rapids and Park Rapids Arts and Culture Commission invite the public to an unveiling and tour of the Park Rapids Sculpture Trail at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 27. The event will start at Red Bridge Park, located at 175-199 Beach Road (east of US Hwy. 71/Park Avenue North, about a block north of the stoplights at the junction of Hwy. 71 and state Hwy. 34). The tour will end in Downtown Park Rapids where four new artworks will be installed this year. Ten new sculptures will be selected and will remain in place for a year. The artists whose works are selected will be invited to the ceremonies to provide information on their works as part of the tour. This year's sponsors are CHI St. Joseph's Health, Heartland Arts, Klein Insurance, Northview Bank, Northwoods Bank, Park Rapids Downtown Business Association, Park Rapids Rotary Club, Russel Skoe Family Trust, Thelen’s Excavating & Septic and Thielen Motors. Solar lights were added at the park sculptures last year, thanks to grants from the Region 2 Arts Council and Minnesota Power.

Nemeth Art Center opens

The Nemeth Art Center gallery season will open Thursday, July 9 with the exciting group show: Of Course, Where Else, curated by gallery director Tessa Beck. Tessa has brought together a multimedia exhibit with the work of five exceptional artists from Minnesota and North Dakota: Meghan Duda – photography; Amber Fletschock – collage; Alonzo Pantoja – weaving and installation; Galilee Peaches – painting and drawing; Lauren Roche – painting. Shown collectively throughout the entire gallery, the artists' work covering a wide range of subjects will engage audiences in a conversation about landscapes of the body and the embodied histories they encounter in the social realm. The show will also explore how an upper-midwestern sense of place influences individual expression. The Nemeth Art Center is located in the Historic Hubbard County Courthouse at 301 Court Avenue in Park Rapids. All exhibits are free and open to the public through September. Open hours are Thursdays-Saturdays from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Please visit www.nemethartcenter.org.

Evening Under the Pines at Itasca State Park: Northern Bass

When events resume at Itasca State Park they will be held at the NEW Lake Itasca Amphitheater (near the swim beach in the picnic grounds). Northern Bass is scheduled to play from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Sunday, July 26. Northern Bass entertains a variety of music from the '30s through the '70s. From Pop, Rock, Instrumentals, Jazz and Standards, Louise, Mike and Dan combine their unique style with familiar tunes from the past. Louise plays keyboard, bass keyboard and sings. She has experience in many musical endeavors including working as a Woodtick Musical Theatre band member and a public school music teacher. Mike, an experienced drummer and singer, is involved with a number of musical groups and has been a touring musician. He is a master of providing playing styles from simple surf beats to complex jazz rhythms. Dan plays guitar and sings. He has been a member of a variety of musical groups and trios covering styles from instrumental surf to acoustic Bluegrass. The group performs together to have fun, so please come out and have some fun with Northern Bass. The concert will be held inside Forest Inn if it rains.

Nemeth Art Center Artists Reception

A reception for the artists involved in the Of Course, Where Else exhibit is planned Saturday, Aug. 22, conditions permitting. Audiences will have a chance to absorb the work and ask questions directly of the artists about their work and their process. In addition, several of the artists will host arts workshops, either in-person or via online link. Please check back for details as NAC adjusts its schedule to the fluid circumstances of the pandemic. The Nemeth Art Center is located in the Historic Hubbard County Courthouse at 301 Court Avenue in Park Rapids. All exhibits are free and open to the public through September. Open hours are Thursdays-Saturdays from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Please visit www.nemethartcenter.org.

Art Leap - Annual Driving Tour

Planning is under way for Art Leap 2020, a driving tour of artists' studios and other cultural destinations. This year's event will feature several new sites and artists as well as some familiar studios. Visitors can expect some guidelines will be in place to keep themselves and artists safe and healthy. Please check back for more details. This activity is made possible in part by the voters of Minnesota, through a grant from the Region 2 Arts Council, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.

Heartland Concert Association: Seeger to Springsteen

The Heartland Concert Association invites you to hear Seeger to Springsteen, the music you grew up with, at 7 p.m. Thursday, September 24 at the Park Rapids Area High School Auditorium. Husband and wife duo Max and Darcy Demers will invite the audience to sing along during the program. This concert opens the HCA 2020-2021 season. Season ticket information will be available at Beagle and Wolf Books & Bindery, Park Rapids; Northwoods Cafe, Nevis; and Thrifty White Drug, Walker. Tickets also may be purchased at the door. For more information, visit heartlandconcertassociation.org and visit HCA on Facebook