National Women’s Music Festival at ISU July 5-8

Date: 6/5/07
Contact: Kathy Beal

For the second year in a row, Illinois State University’s Women and Gender Studies Program will co-host the National Women’s Music Festival on Thursday, July 5, through Sunday July 8, in the Bone Student Center.

A four-day musical and cultural extravaganza incorporating all facets of women’s lives, the National Women’s Music Festival features workshops, concerts, comedy, theatre presentations, dances, a marketplace, newly released films and videos, a live auction, fine arts exhibit, spirituality series, writers series, animal lovers series and a celebrity golf scramble.

The 32nd Festival, first produced in 1975 in Champaign, has various ticket packages, ranging from $25 for the youth-oriented SheRocks concert to $235 for a four-day pass to all events. The Festival will have a childcare program for children under 10-years of age, and a work-exchange of four-hour shifts is available for reduced-price registration. The work-exchange arrangements must be made prior to the Festival by e-mailing workexchange@wiaonline.org. Shuttle service is available from the Bloomington-Normal Regional Airport to the Festival.

To register for the Festival, visit their Web site at http://wiaonline.org/nwmf/forms/NWMFRegistration2007.pdf  The registration form can be mailed in prior to the Festival or turned in at the Festival Registration Desk in the Bone Student Center. On-campus housing is available as well as nearby Bloomington-Normal hotels, motels and camping. To register for on campus housing, visit the Web site at http://wiaonline.org/RegPassTicksReservInfo.html

This year’s performers include musicians Jamie Anderson, Kara Barnard, Suzanne Buirgy, Melissa Ferrick, Ferron, Nina Gerber, Judy Piazza, Ember Swift, Linda Tillery, Lucie Blue Tremblay, Michelle Vought, Amy Carol Webb, Wishing Chair and Women in Docs; comedians Michele Balan, Poppy Champlin, Marga Gomez, Ubaka Hill and Zoe Lewis; writers Elizabeth Cunningham, Kip Parker, Radclyffe, Jade River and Kassandra Sojourner; and animal behavior specialist Patricia McConnell.

For a listing of performances and their times and dates, visit the Web site at http://wiaonline.org/stages2007.html