CARLYLE - “Twenty-one years? I’m surprised that the Dickens Village Festival is still going!” How many times has Shelley Slykhuis and the rest of the committed Dickens committee heard that comment around town?
Scheduled for Dec. 6 and 7, the festival is still going strong with a combination of dedicated experienced volunteers, alongside fresh new people on the committee and a strong enthusiasm for the community spirit which this festival generates,
What fun it is to have so many diverse elements of our local community come together on this weekend to visit, share time together, catch up, dress up and get into the community Christmas spirit – even if it is one filled with bah humbugs. In a town with so many diverse clubs and organizations, the Dickens Village Festival really brings the whole group together.
The costumes, the great shopping, the wonderful street food, the family-focused events, the affordable entertainment, lighted parade and tons of candy – what else can go right?
Here are ten fun facts which might not be common knowledge.
•This festival was originally started by the local economic development agency under the leadership of Judy Riddell. Judy got the idea by attending the Dickens festival in Garrison, N.D., which is now entering its 30th year. The Carlyle Dickens Village Festival, the only one of its kind in Canada, is now entering its 21st year and is run solely by community volunteers.
•Over 17 service groups, clubs and local organizations use the Dickens festival as one of their primary fundraisers for the year.
•All funds generated by the festival stay in the community.
•In 2024, the festival will highlight 100 per cent local musicians from over 11 different communities in the southeast corner including White Bear First Nations, Langbank, Kenosee Lake, Forget, Carlyle, Alida, Alameda, Weyburn and Lampman, with some Ochapawace First Nations and Regina connections thrown in there. Live music, interactive dances, open mics, children’s specialty entertainment – all for free.
•The entire festival is funded by the proceeds of the Dickens sale of donated used items which takes over the local hall twice yearly and is co-ordinated and manned by an army of volunteers, as well as generous donations from businesses and grants from the Town of Carlyle and the Bear Claw Casino.
•Cornerstone Theatre Inc. has now adapted and presented 20 versions of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, which has included locally written and produced versions, as well as many professional adaptations. This year, in a grand shift of direction, Cornerstone Theatre is staging an adaptation of a different classic with its offering of It’s a Wonderful Hockey Life. One of the biggest complaints about the festival each year by tourists is that the play sells out and they cannot get tickets.
•All of the proceeds from Cornerstone’s Dickens production and the Fezzywig pub are re-invested into the renovations and the upkeep of the Carlyle Memorial Hall and Theatre, with 10 per cent of ticket sales also being donated to the local food bank.
•In 2024, the children of southeast Saskatchewan communities are being included in the festival in an active role. The Dickens committee is partnering with the Kenosee Lake Kitchen Party to organize a children’s Christmas concert production where children work with amazing local artist Jacquie Walbaum to stage a musical production. This short show will be staged for audiences in the Fezzywig’s hall on Dec. 7 after the free family breakfast with Santa Claus, before the Al Simmons free concert in the theatre. Yes, Al Simmons who has been featured on Sesame Street and has won two Juno Awards as a children’s entertainer. And let’s not forget the family dance, the horse-drawn carriage rides and Instagram opportunities.
•One of the stated goals of the Dickens Festival is to give back to our local business community, as the local businesses are so generous all year long with their contributions of money, goods, discounts and sponsorships for all of the local clubs, schools and organizations. To this end, the festival has attracted approximately six bus tours each year, bringing shoppers and tourists to the town of Carlyle, as well as encouraging the local and surrounding communities to shop within our own community.
•In 2019, Shelley Slykhuis and the Catholic Church have now made over 640 gallons of chowder (or to translate for those who think metric - 2422 liters of chowder) for the Dickens Festival. This computes to over 19,381 cups of chowder. We have not done the 2024 math, but all those years adds up to a chow-chow of chowder.
Don’t miss out. Be sure to mark Dec. 6 and 7 on your calendar.
