Arts & Culture Under the Lights
Thunder Bay Chosen as Provincial Cultural Representative
By Abigail Heron
Ever since it began in 2010, Culture Days has attracted millions of people every year to celebrate all things arts and culture at free performances, workshops, and markets across Canada. Each province and territory has its own kick-off event and this year, Thunder Bay has been chosen to get Ontario’s party started. “Thunder Bay’s diversity and creativity will set the tone for a province-wide celebration of arts and culture,” says Ruth Burns, executive director of Ontario Culture Days.
The city has been chosen as the launch event host once before, in 2023, but the province just can’t seem to get enough of us. “They’ve chosen us to be the launch event because they think what we’re doing is very unique—not everybody does events like this,” says Caitlyn McMillan, City of Thunder Bay’s cultural development and public art coordinator. Thunder Bay’s launch event, Arts & Culture Under the Lights, will take place September 19 at the market lot and Baggage Building Arts Centre in Marina Park, decorated—as the event’s name implies— with an overhead web of twinkling lights.
The evening will showcase a range of artistic disciplines as niche as wearable art and as classic as pottery and painting. The stage will come alive with a range of cultural dance from around the world that reflect the city’s ever diversifying population, including an interactive lesson from Italian Touch Latin Dance School. “It’s really important that we’re able to showcase what cultures are living, playing, breathing in Thunder Bay, and also what value they bring to our community,” says McMillan.
Things will start to heat up with some fire performance art from Ivan Love of Wiggins Productions, and then chill out again at the Thunder Bay Public Library literary stage. There, in the baggage building, literary artists will read excerpts from their poetry or stories and talk about their works. “A lot of people undervalue what the arts bring to communities,” says McMillan. “They see it as extra or frivolous entertainment, but actually, the arts strengthen communities. We have some amazing artists here in the city. All of them play together to create this tapestry of experiences that really enrich everybody’s lives.”
Go to thunderbay.ca under Recreation and Arts & Culture to learn more.