Summer is still going strong in the Mad River Valley.
The days are hot, the evenings are lively and there is still plenty of summer ahead of us. Before our attention begins to turn toward school, foliage and fall, this is the perfect time to get out, enjoy The Valley and spend some time together. And there may be no better place to do that than right here.
For a small rural community, the Mad River Valley offers an extraordinary array of arts, music and cultural experiences. On any given summer evening, you might find live music filling the Mad River Green, a concert at Sugarbush, contemporary dance inside a beautifully restored barn, an exhibition featuring artists from across Vermont, a film celebrating community and the environment, or neighbors gathering to share stories, make art or dance together.
This isn’t simply a busy calendar. It is a reflection of who we are.
Phantom Theater’s summer season at the historic Edgcomb Barn is a wonderful example. Its eclectic lineup includes contemporary dance, magic, live music, queer country line dancing, a production of Our Town and a Moth-inspired evening of community storytelling.
The Valley Artists Guild is hosting its annual Big Red Barn Art Show which, coupled with a stroll around Lareau Farm, dinner at American Flatbread or a dunk at Lareau Swim Hole makes an unforgettable outing.
At the Big Picture Theater & Café, the inaugural Through Ellie’s Eyes Mountain Film Festival used film to explore adventure, community, the environment and the voices of young people. More importantly, it brought people together to honor Ellie Curtis and support Ellie’s Fund, ensuring that her passion and values continue to inspire the work of others.
Visual art is woven throughout The Valley as well. Mad River Valley Arts continues to connect artists and audiences through exhibitions such as The Silent Type, while the Bundy Modern gives visitors the opportunity to experience thought-provoking contemporary work in a setting that is itself a work of art. Makers, painters, craftspeople and young artists appear throughout the calendar in workshops, markets, camps and pop-up events.
Sugarbush adds another dimension to The Valley’s cultural life. Music and community gatherings take place at Lincoln Peak and Mt. Ellen, on the Big Deck, in the Lincoln Peak Courtyard and throughout the resort’s restaurants and gathering spaces. These range from intimate performances by local musicians to outdoor concerts, festivals and family celebrations. Sugarbush also supports events well beyond the resort, including Roundup Revival.
Speaking of which, the Roundup Revival brings free live music, food, artists, children’s activities and plenty of community spirit to the Mad River Green each Thursday evening. There is live music at Stark’s Pub, weekly pub nights at the Mad River Barn, the Lareau Farm Inn Back Porch Music Series, Sunday Sessions and performances in gathering places throughout the Valley.
These aren’t simply concerts. They are opportunities for residents, visitors, musicians, businesses and community organizations to share the same space. You see people you haven’t seen in a while, meet someone new, grab something to eat and remember how good it feels to be part of this community.
Then there are the experiences that are wonderfully difficult to categorize: community contra dances, pub trivia hosted by our local libraries, children’s magic workshops, storytelling, line dancing, maker demonstrations and family festivals. Together, they reveal a cultural scene that is eclectic, welcoming and unmistakably Mad River Valley.
What makes all of this especially impressive is the scale of the community making it happen. These experiences are being created by local artists, nonprofit organizations, libraries, galleries, theaters, businesses, Sugarbush and numerous community partners. Each contributes something different, but collectively they make The Valley a far richer and more vibrant place to live and visit.
There is always more happening than any one person can keep track of—and that is a pretty wonderful problem to have.
Fortunately, the Mad River Valley Chamber of Commerce and The Valley Reporter have worked together to make finding it easier. Our shared Mad River Valley Community Calendar brings events from throughout The Valley together in one place. That partnership helps residents and visitors discover what is happening while giving local organizations a free and far-reaching way to share their events.
The calendar belongs to the community, and it becomes more useful every time an organization submits an event and every time one of us checks it before deciding what to do. You can find it at madrivervalley.com/events and through The Valley Reporter.
So, while summer is still in full swing, I encourage you to make the most of it. Pick something you have never attended before. Hear a musician you don’t know. Step inside a gallery. Bring your family to the Green. Watch a film, try a dance or simply spend an evening among friends and neighbors.
The arts are alive and well in the Mad River Valley. More than that, they give us a reason to get out of our individual corners, enjoy this remarkable place and enjoy one another.
There is plenty of summer left. Let’s make the most of it—together.
Eric Friedman, executive director, Mad River Valley Chamber of Commerce
