Sep 2, 2005 6 min read

From ballet to blues to Betters, the entertainment at Uniontown’s second Arts in the City festival plans to cater to a wide range of musical tastes. Judy Vrabel, event coordinator, also hopes to excite a few people’s taste buds with a lineup of food choices that includes festival favorites and ethnic treats provided by more than a dozen local vendors.

And they’ll be easier to find thanks to new maps that clearly indicate where all the artists, demonstrators, entertainers and food booths will be located along Main Street in the Downtown Business District from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 11.

The entertainment literally “kicks off” in Eberly Square at 11 a.m. with Uniontown’s own Ballet Lafayette dancing scenes from their repertoire.

According to Director Kelly Jenkins, the new resident ballet company of the State Theatre plans to give arts festival spectators a taste of what to expect from her dancers when she presents a production of a ballet based on Washington Irving’s tale about Ichabod Crane and the Headless Horseman later this year.

“It’s exciting to have ballet become a part of Arts in the City,” she said.

Irish fiddler Kimberly Koast of Masontown takes the stage at noon. She will set toes to tapping with traditional Irish favorites, some more familiar than others to American audiences.

“It’s great to hear music more traditionally Irish played on this side of the Atlantic,” said arts festival committee member Fred Lapisardi, who worked frequently in Ireland and recalls his association at the Abbey Theatre with composer Bill Whelan.

“Bill’s ‘Riverdance’ brought new interest in Irish traditional music to America,” he said. “Before that, it was chiefly a choice between the Clancy Brothers and U-2.”

At 1 p.m., the Electric Folk & Blues Band, a group from the Charleroi/Belle Vernon area, will perform. Roger Sealy who described them as “a unique blend of mountain and country music with a few blue grass selections dropped in” recommended the group to the festival committee. Much of their music, Sealy said, is original. “They’ve recently released a CD featuring music they’ve written and produced.”

The entertainment spotlight shifts from Eberly Square to the lobby of the State Theatre from 2 to 3:30 p.m., where Nemacolin Woodland’s Curator Brian Leach offers a presentation based on his list of “hidden” art treasures that may be overlooked in obvious settings in and around Uniontown. Jace Vek plays his popular style of classics on the grand piano, and the Christian Klay Winery repeats another of last year’s hit events – a wine tasting party.

Fred Adams moves the entertainment scene back outside to the Eberly Square stage at 3 p.m. when he takes his guitar on stage for instrumental jazz and guitar backed vocals featuring pop music, show tunes, big-band numbers, blues and original material.

“I’ve played the guitar for 47 years,” Adams said, “and have come to think of it as an extension of my hands, my mind and my personality. I approach the guitar in the same way others approach the piano, as a free-standing instrument.”

As with last year’s Arts in the City, jazz great Harold Betters and his trombone climax the day’s events with a free two-hour concert from 4 to 6 p.m. A Connellsville native, Betters enjoys true fame from coast to coast. His music, a unique blend of sweet and classical jazz, has packed houses from New York’s Appolo Theatre to the Superbowl in Los Angeles. His career both with the Harold Betters Quartet and as a solo performer spans five decades. He has performed with top names in jazz including Ray Charles, Slide Hampton and Al Hirt, and has a host of recordings to his credit.

Just off the Demonstration Area, the popular caricature artist, Sam Thong, a familiar figure to anyone who has seen him perform his portrait magic in Pittsburgh’s Station Square, will set up from 1 to 4 p.m. to capture subjects’ facial images with two-minute, black-and-white sketches. There is no charge for Thongs’ quick portraits.

The food choices should prove just as varied and exciting as the entertainment. Four church groups will be represented.

The Ladies’ Guild of St. George’s Church will serve up stuffed grape leaves. St Paul’s AME Church will cook Buffalo wings. St. Hedwig’s/St. Cecilia’s Rosary Society provides pizza rolls and hoagies. The Asbury United Methodist Church Youth Group offers a ham barbecue.

Among the All-American party favorites, Rhonda Ritchey will be there with her hot dog cart.

Teddy Antoon makes lemonade, and the Laurel Highlands Band sells hot dogs and hamburgers.

L & J Catering serves barbeque sandwiches and cheese fries.

Jackson’s Farm provides ice cream for dessert. Italian foods will also be well represented by Stella Bella with pizza and Stromboli and by Christine Romeo’s cannoli, cookies, fudge and biscotti.

Plum Run Winery brings bottles of their popular Pennsylvania vintages to the table. Johhny Q’s plans to serve a wide variety of foods including fried dough, pizza, nachos, wings, apple dumplings, and spiced cider.

Health conscious eaters can find plenty to eat as Unique Baskets & Caf? Shop prepares soups and salads, and the New Meadow Run Bruderhof sells their unique breads and cookies.

“No one should go home hungry,” Vrabel said. “This year we’ve made sure there will be plenty of mouth-watering choices.”

Vrabel also explained that the information booth, centrally located on Beeson Boulevard, directly across Main Street from the Children’s Zone, will be easy for everyone to find.

“We’ll have festival T-shirts for sale there again this year,” she said. “They’ll be different each year so people can begin to collect them.”

According to Vrabel, a few people complained last year that they had trouble locating some of their favorite booths, so this problem became an agenda item at the planners’ meetings, and a map has been developed to show clearly where more than 50 artists’ tents, the Children’s Zone, the entertainment, hourly craft demonstrations and the food vendors can be found.

Visitors should also find ample parking space in the downtown parking garage. Volunteers from the Uniontown Garden Club, plus members of the “Red Hat Ladies” groups and local schools will be highly visible to help direct visitors to their favorite activities.

There is no admission charge for the arts festival.

For additional information about the second Arts in the City, contact Judy Vrabel at 724 430-2909 or by e-mail at udbda@lcsys.net.