Booth Western Art Museum to Host
5th Annual Southeastern Cowboy Gathering
CARTERSVILLE, Ga. – The 5th Annual
Southeastern Cowboy Gathering,
hosted by the Booth Western Art Museum and presented by Comcast, will
be held March 6-9 at the Booth Western Art Museum and the Grand
Theatre, both located in historic downtown Cartersville, Georgia.
Highlights include the Southeastern Chuck Wagon Cook-off, an evening
concert by Red Steagall, an
old-time fiddle contest, children’s activities, a poetry-writing
workshop, Dutch oven cooking contests, and a presentation by featured
artists Paul and Chris Calle.
The Cowboy Gathering officially begins Thursday evening
March 6, at 7:00 p.m., when featured artists Paul and Chris Calle,
present highlights of their careers and show examples of their work in
the Booth Theatre. Guests are also invited to a Meet the Artists
Reception for Like Father, Like Son: The Art of Paul and Chris
Calle and A Time and Place: Landscapes by Ken McClesky
from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Doc Stovall and the Tumbleweed Cowboy Band
will also be performing Western music in the
Museum atrium from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
On Friday evening, March 7, at 7:00 p.m., guests are
invited to experience The End of the Trail Supper and Concert, which
will include a barbeque dinner served on the Booth Museum grounds
amongst the wagons gathered to compete in the Southeastern Chuck Wagon
Cook-off. Cowboy poets Andy Hedges,
Kent Rollins, and
Jim Hawkins along with several cowboy
poets from around the state of Georgia will entertain guests around
the campfire. Tickets are $15 for Booth Museum members and $20 for
not-yet-members.
Saturday starts early as teams of cooks prepare beans,
meat, potatoes, bread and desserts just as they did on the cattle
drives of the late 1800s in the Annual Southeastern Chuck Wagon
Cook-off. Visitors are invited to watch as teams use authentic
ingredients and cook over an open fire to prepare lunch for the
public. Lunch tickets
are $12 and should be purchased in advance at the Museum. Lunch will
be served at noon.
Throughout the day Saturday, top musicians from around
the Southeast will compete in guitar, fiddle, mandolin, and banjo
contests at the Grand Theatre. The contests will begin with mandolins
at 10:00 a.m., followed by banjos at 11:00 a.m., guitars at noon, a
junior fiddle division (under 18) at 1:00 p.m. and an open fiddle
division at 2:30 pm. Musicians wishing to compete should call
770-387-1265 for details.
A host of family activities and entertainment will be
offered throughout the weekend inside the Booth Museum. Children’s
activities including story time in the Museum Store and hands-on
activities where children can make their own Western art masterpieces
will be offered from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday and noon to
4:00 p.m. on Sunday. There is a nominal fee for some activities.
Adults will have the opportunity to participate in a Cowboy Poetry
Writing Workshop at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday. The Youth Cowboy Poetry
Contest will be held throughout the day on Saturday and will feature
contestants ranging from grades five to 12. Throughout the day on
Saturday and Sunday, enjoy storytelling, open mike cowboy poetry
sessions, and Western music in the Booth Theatre.
Featured entertainer for this year’s Cowboy Gathering
is Red Steagall, famed Western
singer, songwriter, poet, and guitarist. A native of Texas, Steagall
has entertained audiences all around the world and has been called “a
singing scholar of the old West” by James Earl Jones and “The best of
the best” by Rex Allen. Tickets for the Saturday night concert at the
Grand Theatre are $25 for adults, $20 for Museum members and $10 for
students and can be purchased at the Booth Museum, Grand Theatre box
office or by calling 770-387-1300. A CD signing will follow the
performance in the Encore Room, adjacent to the Theatre.
Cowboy Church will be held in the Booth Theatre on
Sunday at 11:00 a.m. This is a non-denominational church service with
a Western flair and is free for everyone. Following the service, top
cooks from around the southeast will compete in the Dutch Oven Cooking
Contest on the Museum grounds. Cooking will begin at 11:00 a.m.
Judging for breads will take place at 1:00 p.m., followed by main
dishes at 2:00 p.m. and desserts at 3:00 p.m. After the judges have
sampled the entries, cooks will serve samples to the public. Winners
in each division will be announced at 4:00 p.m.
The Southeastern Cowboy Gathering is designed to
celebrate the rich heritage in songs and poetry celebrating the
Western experience and is a unique opportunity to enjoy the West
without leaving the South.
“Looking at the paintings and sculpture contained in
the Booth collection you can almost imagine what it might have been
like to be a cowboy out on the range,” said Booth Museum Executive
Director Seth Hopkins. “Exposure to cowboy poetry and music can
further enhance enjoyment and understanding of our collection. While
this will be a fun and entertaining event, we also want to emphasize
the educational aspect of the Cowboy Gathering.”
For more information on the 5th Annual
Southeastern Cowboy Gathering, including admission prices and
schedule, visit
www.boothmuseum.org or call 770-387-1300.
More about the Youth Cowboy Poetry Contest
The Southeastern Cowboy Gathering has held a Youth
Cowboy Poetry Contest in previous years, open to students in its
county and neighboring counties. This year it is opened up statewide
to students in grades 5 -12. The top fifteen finalists in each of the
three grade categories will compete at the Booth Western Art Museum on
Saturday, March 8, 2008 as part of the Cowboy Gathering. Three
finalists will then return to the Booth to compete for cash prizes in
the final competition on Saturday, April 19, in honor of
Cowboy Poetry Week.
About the Booth Western Art Museum
The Booth Western Art Museum, an Affiliate of the
Smithsonian Institution, is an 80,000 square foot museum located in
Cartersville, Georgia, where guests are invited to explore the
American West through contemporary Western artwork. The Museum also
houses a Presidential Gallery, Civil War art gallery, and Sagebrush
Ranch – featuring hands-on art activities and areas for role-playing,
storytelling and reading, all with a Western flair. Visitors to Booth
Museum also enjoy the intimate downtown setting with unique specialty
and antique shops, boutiques and nationally featured restaurants all
within walking distance of the Museum. Open since August 2003, the
Booth Museum is the only museum of its kind in the Southeast and is
the second largest art museum in the state of Georgia. To learn more
about the Booth Western Art Museum, visit
www.boothmuseum.org.
