ARNOLD’S COVE, NL — It’s that time of year again.
The March Hare, which began as a small literary event at Corner Brook’s Blomidon Golf and Country Club in 1988 and has now become a renown, international festival, kicks off Feb. 28 at the Explorer’s Club in New York.
From there, the Hare travels to Ontario for stops in Toronto and Parry Sound, and then to Halifax, N.S., before heading home to Newfoundland.
The Hare kicks off its Newfoundland leg of the tour at the St. Michael’s Parish Hall in Arnold’s Cove on Monday, March 5, and makes stops in St. John’s, Renews, Freshwater, Fogo Island, Gander, and Deer Lake, before an eventful three-day conclusion in Corner Brook.
Rex Brown organized the very first March Hare in 1988 along with poet Al Pittman, who passed away in 2001.
Brown said the event is best described as a celebration of words and music, featuring poetry, prose, storytelling and music.
He attributes the continued success of the festival to Pittman’s genius and belief in the power of the spoken word.
“He (Pittman) wanted to take poetry and prose off the page and out of the lecture room and before the general public,” Brown said.
“He believed that the general public would enjoy this, and our success is obviously a tribute to his belief and to his genius.”
Brown will be performing in Arnold’s Cove and emceeing several other shows.
Performing in Placentia Bay is always a treat, he said, as he and Pittman both hailed from resettled communities in the bay – Brown from Tack’s Beach and Pittman from St. Leonard’s.
“We would celebrate the bay every we go,” said Brown.
For more information, visit https://themarchhare.ca/
Mark.squibb@thepacket.com
