Heading into its 10th summer in P.E.I., the River Clyde Pageant still delights spectators

What started as a seed of an idea a decade ago has since blossomed into a flourishing spectacle on the banks of a river in central Prince Edward Island. 

As the organizers of the River Clyde Pageant tell it, though, the success of the annual performance arts festival was never really in doubt from year one. 

Theatre artists Ker Wells and Megan Stewart first brought the idea to people in the New Glasgow area in 2015. They got almost immediate buy-in. 

"We were totally shocked by the energy and the engagement and how we got to the end of the first summer and everybody was like, 'You're coming back next summer, right?'" Stewart, the pageant's artistic director, told CBC's Island Morning. 

"We gathered a lot of really interesting people with many hidden creative talents — and you know, many of those people are still involved in the pageant today, which is pretty amazing." 

Island Morning8:12River Clyde Arts festival to celebrate its 10th anniversary

The summer outdoor festival, which is in July and August, is celebrating a milestone this year. We speak with artistic director Megan Stewart about the ups and downs, and the hard work it took to get here.

The River Clyde Pageant is an outdoor theatre production, performed by community members and artists since 2016.

The performances often deal with themes of environmental stewardship and the natural world, and include the use of stilt walkers, choirs and puppets large and small.

The shows come together in about six to eight weeks in July and August each year, and run in two-year cycles. 

The cycle allows the performers to explore a particular theme and performance structure. By the second year, the pageant could change slightly and allow for deeper exploration of performance elements. 

This summer marks a new cycle, the pageant's fifth overall. 

"We're really inspired by flocks and swarms and the different kinds of movement patterns that different species sort of travel in together," Stewart said of this year's production. "We're thinking about different kinds of animal migrations and how these movements evoke different responses in us as humans." 

Radiating with energy

On the evening of the pageant, spectators gather at the top of a hill in a New Glasgow field. They then venture down the hillside and arrive at the performance site next to the Clyde River. 

From there, a group of around 85 performers ranging in age from eight to 80 will unfurl an imaginative story for the audience. 

Tickets typically sell out quickly each year, said Stewart, calling that a testament to the continuing community enthusiasm for the pageant. 

"Seeing the way community members are just pouring so much energy and creativity into every piece of it — whether it's a piece of music they're performing or movement or… a flag or a puppet that's been made — the whole piece really radiates with that particular kind of energy," she said. 

"I don't think there's anything else like it that is happening on P.E.I., and there's not really anything else like it that's happening in Atlantic Canada."