PORT ANGELES — A fundraiser billed as a “mini-Juan de Fuca Festival” is planned Saturday.
MarchFourth will perform while 52 artistically-decorated stringed instruments are auctioned off at the Juan de Fuca Festival Foundation’s annual fundraiser.
Doors at the Vern Burton Community Center, 308 E. Fourth St., will open at 5 p.m. The auction and no-host food and beverage service also will begin then.
The music will start at 6:30 p.m. Dancing is encouraged.
Tickets are $30 or $240 for a table of eight. Advance tickets are available at www.jffa.org as well as at Port Book and News, 104 E. First St. in Port Angeles and Joyful Noise Music, 112 W. Washington St. in Sequim. Tickets also will be sold at the door.
Food by Next Door Gastropub, wines from Olympic Cellars Winery and a selection of beer will be available for additional fees.
The annual fundraiser helps to support the Juan de Fuca Festival over Memorial Day Weekend — which will be May 27-30 this year — as well as children’s programs and seasonal concerts throughout the year.
Saturday’s celebration offers two unique experiences, according to Dan Maguire, executive director of the Juan de Fuca Festival of the Arts.
• MarchFourth will dish up costumes, stilt walkers, hoopers and Vaudeville-style dancers along with music.
MarchFourth is made up of 20 musicians, dancers and artisans who travel the world year-round, “taking audience members of all ages from all walks of life, on a joy-inducing, foot-stomping, booty-shaking, soul-stirring journey that defies categorization,” according to the band’s website, http://www.march fourthband.com/.
• An auction of stringed instrument art pieces — each unique — painted by area artists.
Old, unusable instruments were donated to the effort. Among them are guitars, mandolins, violins, a mountain dulcimer, vintage banjos, ukuleles, a Chinese erhu and harps.
Artists donated their time and talent to make visual works of art out of them.
“We’ve never done anything quite like this before,” Maguire said. “Fifty-two artists volunteered their time to make this amazing art.”
Decorated instruments were on display in December during the Second Weekend Art Event at Studio Bob, and were judged in a People’s Choice contest.
The three biggest crowd-pleasers were Tammy Hall’s Celtic design on a small harp, first place; Sadie Perry-Baar’s Cat Curled Up on a bed of moss, second place; and Sherilyn Seyler’s nautical beaded electric guitar, third place.
The auction includes other goodies as well. Among the items are gift certificates for 18 hotel rooms on the North Olympic Peninsula, in Seattle and in Victoria. The 10 Victoria gift certificates come with free tickets on the Coho ferry.
In addition, the evening will offer a wine barrel raffle. The winner will receive a half-barrel filled with a selection of wine.
On sale will be metal instrument ornaments.
Maguire expects about 400 people to attend and hopes the event will raise between $15,000 and $20,000.
“This will be an unforgettable evening and also a fantastic opportunity to help support your community and the Juan de Fuca Foundation for the Arts,” he said.
A guitar decorated by Allyn Cowan. (Juan de Fuca Foundation)
MarchFourth will perform Saturday at the Juan de Fuca Festival Foundation’s annual fundraiser. (Juan de Fuca Foundation)
A guitar decorated by Jeanette Stehr-Green. (Juan de Fuca Foundation)
A guitar decorated by Charlie Crain. (Juan de Fuca Foundation)
Juan de Fuca Foundation (2) Above, Artist Sadie Perry-Baar’s Cat in the Moss guitar won second place for Favorite Strings during a vote conducted at Studio Bob in December. At left, Sherilyn Seyler’s Beaded Bay electric guitar won third place.
Artist Sherilyn Seyler’s Beaded Bay electric guitar won third place during the Favorite Strings vote done at Studio Bob in December. (Juan de Fuca Foundation)
