8 March 26 - April 8, 2021
LOCAL
Explore Big Sky
Last summer, Big Sky PBR was cancelled due to concerns over the COVID-19 pandemic. This summer marks the tenth anniversary of the event and plans are underway for a full week of family-friendly events culminating with PBR. OUTLAW PARTNERS PHOTO
Summer 2021 events in Big Sky BY GABRIELLE GASSER BIG SKY – One tumultuous year after the pandemic struck southwest Montana, summertime is around the corner, and many hope the warm weather will bring with it some classic Big Sky events. Currently, vaccines are being distributed and the outlook for events this summer is hopeful. Last summer, after widespread closures and state mandates, Montana was just starting to tentatively reopen at the beginning of May. Many of the classic events that make a summer in Big Sky so fun were canceled in 2020. Now in 2021, plans are being made in conjunction with county health officials that will ideally allow for COVID-safe events this summer. Currently, the Gallatin City-County Health Department has limitations on gatherings, but health officials say these could change in response to the quickly evolving pandemic situation. On March 16, Gov. Greg Gianforte announced that vaccines will be made available to all Montanans starting April 1, a move which could potentially help accelerate the return of larger in-person events. “We just as much as everyone want to see a return to some normalcy and we hope that we can,” said Lori Christenson, the health department’s environmental health director. “It’s reasonable to expect that we’ll likely not
see shoulder to shoulder concerts but [we are] moving in that direction where we can see people enjoying music outdoors.” One such event will be Music in the Mountains, the free summer concert series put on by the Arts Council of Big Sky. For over a decade this event has gathered the Big Sky community on Thursday evenings for family fun in the Town Center Park, now called Len Hill park. Currently, construction on the new BASE community center has closed the park but Kate Ketschek, chair of Big Sky Community Organization, said it will be open in time for this summer. The plan for Music in the Mountains this summer is still in the works and the Arts Council will adapt as the situation develops according to Brian Hurlbut, executive director of the Arts Council. He pointed out that it would currently be difficult to hold a compliant event in the park since it’s a completely open space with no assigned seating or way to restrict access. “We are planning on moving forward with having some type of concerts this summer and trying to work within those guidelines, whatever they may be,” Hurlbut said. “As an organization, we really don’t want to go through another summer without live music so we’re pretty determined to come up with some creative solutions, and make sure the community can gather in whatever way we can figure it out.” In addition to live outdoor music, the Arts Council has a few other items on the docket. Hurlbut confirmed that Shakespeare in the Park will perform on July 19 and the Arts Council is still moving forward with their classical music festival, rebranded as Bravo Big Sky, on Aug. 13 and 14. Finally, the Mountain Film Festival is still scheduled for the weekend of Sept.11, but could be another drive-in event depending on county regulations at that time. Another outdoor music event that will likely return to Big Sky this summer in an altered form is the Moonlight Music Festival, which was canceled in 2020 due to concerns over the pandemic. “We decided not to do a full-fledged festival this summer, [but] we may explore some smaller possible events out there in lieu of the festival for this year,” said Bayard Dominick, VP of planning and development at Lone Mountain Land Company. “We haven’t decided on anything definitive yet.”
Every Wednesday evening during the summer, the Big Sky Farmers Market draws crowds to the many tents to shop their various offerings. OUTLAW PARTNERS PHOTO
Now is the time many organizations typically plan summer events and book artists, but the evolving regulations and uncertainty around events spaces is making it difficult to make conclusive calls. Some are calling for a permanent events center in town.
