Canterbury Artisan Festival Held this Weekend

The Canterbury Artisan Festival will take place from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 12, 2015, at Canterbury Shaker Village in Canterbury, according to a press statement. The Canterbury Artisan Festival celebrates Traditional Arts with an Artisan Craft Fair and Farmers’ Market, music, artisan food, family craft activities, farm animals and demonstrations.

The Cold River Ranters will be playing on the main stage from noon to 2 p.m. and Audrey Budington and Clayton Clemetson play from 2:30 to 4 p.m.

The Juried Craft Fair will feature artisans in fabric, handknits and wovens, jewelry, pottery, woodworking, painting, toys, among others. The Farmers’ Market will include produce, prepared foods, handcrafted soaps, oils and more.

Traditional Arts demonstrations of coopering, blacksmithing, basketry, pottery, wood carving, historic building restoration, and herbal presentations, including do-it-yourself teas will be ongoing throughout the day. Agricultural demonstrations include farm animals, permaculture, heirloom breeds, and seed saving.

New this year is a special lecture and demonstration titled, “The Craft of Dance Making.” One of the most unique and distinctive aspects of the Shaker Faith was their use of dance as spiritual expression. So identifiable was dance to the Shakers that they gamely took their name from the then derisive nickname “Shaking Quakers,” given to them by the public. “The Craft of Dance Making” acknowledges dance’s place among the Traditional Arts and the role it played in Shaker life. Owner of Dimensions in Dance and Artistic director of Ballet Misha, Amy Laurel Fortier, will explain the key components of dance that can be manipulated to create a myriad of diverse dance expressions. Following the brief lecture, visitors can enjoy a performance of several varied contemporary dances in the historic Meeting House. Program will take place at 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.

“The Canterbury Artisan Festival represents the broad range of activities that the Shakers engaged in,” noted Funi Burdick, Executive Director. “This daylong event is so much more than a craft fair and farmers’ market. It’s really a chance to experience firsthand and rethink the traditional arts, agriculture, music, dance and food for our modern day lives.”

Tickets are $12 for adults, $6 for children ages 6-17. Children under 5 are free. Tickets can be purchased by visiting shakers.org.

The Canterbury Artisan Festival is sponsored by The Concord Group Insurance, New Hampshire State Council on the Arts, Nathan Wechsler & Company and The Rowley Agency.

Other upcoming events at Canterbury Shaker Village include the Shaker Village Farm-to-Table Benefit Dinner on September 13; Vintage Car Show on October 17; Ghost Encounters on October 24; and Christmas at Canterbury on December 5 and 12. To view the complete 2015 calendar of events, visit shakers.org.