A festival for the eyes and ears

Jazz. Art. Sun. Food. The perfect combination for any event is just a glance at what’s to come for the University of West Florida’s annual Festival on the Green April 4 and 5 on the UWF Main Campus. Students, local artists and many campus community members will come together to presents works through crafts, music and art.

“We want to reach out to friends, community members and also to those people who have never visited UWF,” said Jeff Comeau, co-chair of Festival on the Green. “This is a way to show people the broad spectrum of things we do here at UWF, as well as the opportunities that we provide for the community, whether it’s through entertainment or education.”

The festival, which usually brings crowds of more than 20,000, will include a crafts fair, a dog sports and fly ball exhibition, fine arts show displaying regional works, diversity showcase, library book sale and a children’s festival. Events also include an alumni jazz brunch and awards celebration, Time Portal to the Past, three musical stages, festival food and a classic car showcase exhibited by the Panhandle Cruisers.

Off-the-Green events include the annual Student Art Exhibit, U.S.A. Volleyball Gulf Coast Region Bid Championships, NCAA tennis matches and softball and baseball games.

UWF will present a special “Profiles in Leadership Series” event during Festival on the Green. Suzanne Lewis, superintendent for Yellowstone Park and UWF alumna, will share her experiences at a public lecture, “Yellowstone: The Delicate Balance,” April 4 from 2 to 3:15 p.m. in the University Commons Conference Center, Building 22. A reception for Lewis will precede the public lecture starting at 1:30 p.m.

The Kathleen T. and Philip B. Phillips, M.D. Jazz Piano Competition, a nationally recognized jazz performance competition sponsored by UWF, will return this year as the festival’s main event. The final round of the competition will be held as a free public performance April 5 at 7:30 p.m. in the UWF Mainstage Theatre in the Center for Fine and Performing Arts, Building 82 located on the UWF Main Campus. Tickets are required since seating will be limited. For tickets, call (850) 857-6285.

“Festival on the Green is the best time of year for people to come out to campus and see everything that we do in the music, theatre and art department,” said Kyle Marrero, chair of the music department. “It’s truly a festival for the eyes and ears.”

New events to the festival include seven new exhibits for the university showcase, a surprise for the children’s festival presented by the Naval Aviation Museum and the 1812 and World War II time periods will be added to the Time Portal to the Past exhibit.

Festival on the Green is sponsored by WEAR-TV, Soft Rock 94.1, Your Country 102.7 WXBM, “Pensacola Downtown Crowd,” WUWF Public Media, Kathleen T. and Phillip B. Phillips, M.D. Jazz Piano Competition, 1620 AM News Radio, Cat Country 98.7 and efollett.com (UWF Bookstore).

For more information, contact Comeau at (850) 474-2610 or e-mail at jcomeau@uwf.edu. For a complete schedule of events, visit uwf.edu/festival.

By Megan Tyson, University Marketing Communications