By KATRINA BRANDON

 

A SIMPLE idea at first, and now a mass festival 22 years on, the Boolarra Folk Festival is evolving once again.

While it isn’t returning to its usual state, a smaller statue of the festival will be spread throughout the year in smaller heaps.

Running the festival requires a significant amount of time, planning, and money, which has become more challenging for the festival committee.

Although the larger component of the festival will change, the committee has evolved the festival into a new idea by scaling down and focusing on more frequent local events.

It is envisaged the cost, organisation and labour will be less demanding upon volunteers, and the community will still benefit from musical performances.

As Boolarra Folk Festival Committee President, Rick Teychenne explained, the idea came about through conversation with the festival’s ex-president, Ray Stewarrt.

“He (Mr Stewarrt) came up with the idea of turning an old, 100-year-old post office that was regionally located next to the railway station, which was relocated to another site, to rebuild it, to get it to something that becomes a new community asset,” Mr Teychenne said.

“It’s going to change where we’re going to the festival, where we’re moving out of the big events and moving into producing smaller events within the old post office.

“It was just an idea, we sort of pulled down a few buildings already, and around the town was getting to the stage where we’re going to have no evidence of our history at all. We thought, ‘we should try and restore it’.”

Restoration is underway for the historic establishment. The building has also been expanded to accommodate more people, provide additional facilities, and offer more options for the crew.

“It’ll be the beginning of a new era of the folk festival,” Mr Stewarrt said.

“It’s just different. We can break up the event into smaller events, each with its venue, and it’ll be one of the most important venues in the old town due to its position. It’ll be great going forward.”

Mr Teychenne said around 800 musicians have performed on the main stage in the Boolarra Memorial Hall and at ARC Yinnar over the last 20 years. Mr Teychenne also said more than 170,000 people have attended the festival, generating around $1.2 million each year within the community.

About 50 acts apply to play, and the festival committee selects 15. Mr Teychenne said the festival aims to hire 80 per cent local musicians, however they also get a lot of interest from Melbourne and interstate musos.

Alongside the musical talent, the free festival has shared the stage with the local Boolarra Primary School, and has been accompanied by a market, which has grown to about 100 stallholders over the last 10 years.

The Boolarra Folk Festival committee currently comprises 15 members. Around 40 members having served on the committee throughout the festival’s 22-year history.

“It’s been a great success – 22 years of very good festivals,” Mr Stewarrt told the Express.

“We are well-positioned because it’s got two of the loveliest parks you’ll see in any town in Gippsland, and because it sits between Latrobe Valley and South Gippsland, your area, we’re getting people up from the Mornington Peninsula. We’re getting people from the Valley and East Gippsland.

“It’s gotten more and more work from where we started in the early days.”