Missoula Events

Lewis and Clark Festival Kick Off Draws Large Turnout

By Brenna Moore, 6-23-06

	Nationally known acapella artists Ulali headlined Wednesday's Lewis & Clark festivities in Caras Park. Photo by Amanda Determan.

A crowd of about 1,000 people flocked to Caras Park during this week's 21st annual "Out to Lunch" where the Lewis and Clark in the Rockies Bicentennial Festival held its opening commemorative ceremony. After buying their food and drink from the vendors, the attendees gathered with friends and family to watch the beginning of the festivities.

The celebration began with a concert from the Ulali singers, a First Nation Women's a cappella trio. They sang tribal songs and chants and dedicated the performances to members of different Native American tribes, particularly Salish and Kootenai, the tribes from Western Montana. Families watched the trio as the singers created their own rhythmic beat and let their three voices blend together and float up and over the park. A two-year-old boy in a bright orange shirt with food on his face kept breaking away from his mother and running out on the grass to jam out to the music and show off his unique moves to the crowd. Kids of all ages seemed transfixed by the festiviities as they gazed at the performers and attempted to dance to the beat.

When the Ulali singers finished their set, about 30 people dressed up in old military uniforms marched into the park, carrying bayonets and other old-fashioned war equipment. After stopping to perform a military exercise for the crowd, the group marched out of the park and down toward the river.

Next, Mary Jane Charlo, manager of Native Ed-Ventures at the People's Center in Pablo, Mont., made her way to the stage to introduce the several Native American dancers about to perform. Six dancers all together, they made their entrance as a group with their colorful costumes swaying to the beat of the drum. As each dancer danced, first the three men and then the three women, Charlo explained what the dance meant, when it was danced and told the traditional story behind it. Then, during the group's last two dances, the crowd was invited to join in, and couples, mothers with their children, friends and family members seeped onto the grass to dance.

"We didn't know who was playing today, but for [my daughter] the festival was a fabulous cultural experience. We came for 'Out to Lunch' and the food and the people and the sense of community, but we're very glad we came today," said Noreen Humes with her daughter Morgan Best, both Missoula residents who were dancing on the grass with the Native American dancers.

"I think that after seeing this, we're going to check out what else is going on with this festival. There are probably many more fun and culturally entertaining events like this that the festival has to offer," said Laura Wattley, Missoula resident.

Make sure to check out other upcoming Lewis and Clark events going on for the next two weeks, and stay posted for further updates and information.

Like this story? Get more! Sign up for our free newsletters.