Verona's Cattail Festival creates a new Buzz

Aug 11, 2011

Photo: “Buzztown” skit a favorite with festival goers

This year’s Verona Cattail Festival created a new buzz with the addition of the original musical skit “Buzztown” to its on-stage stellar line up.

Written by David Archibald specifically for the festival, the musical skit starred members of the community, including the popular and beloved Cameron the Bog Lemming. The play had two runs during the festival and was a big hit with festival-goers. The skit tells the tale of community underdogs beating the greedy big wigs. In it, Buzztown residents led by Morgan (Lauren Clarke Ross) and Connor (Samantha Johns) foil the plans of the greedy Reeve (Dick Miller) and Bunny Duckweek (Deborah Spaar-Mueller) who want to destroy the Buzztown bog, home of Cameron the Bog Lemming, to make way for a new golf course/condo development. Morgan and Connor, with the support of the locals, make a video that goes viral and after much song, dance and hi-jinks, manage of course to save the day.

John McDougall, one of the play’s directors, says the production will evolve into a sequel next year. “The skit is the perfect thread that ties the whole Cattail brand of the Festival together. We have never had a play or musical in our 16-year festival history so it is something fun, and definitely something that we will build on every year.”

On the topic of cattails, volunteer crafters busied young festival goers with hands-on demonstrations of a wide variety of cattail crafts, including hats, ducks, boats, place-mats, reindeer ornaments and more. The festival offered up not only an impressive star-studded line up of musical guests over the three days but also ran its always popular events, including the duct tape boat races, the soap box derby, the celebrity dunk tank, the dog show, the Verona train ride, mini golf, the antique car show, the artisans’ market, and of course the Saturday morning parade. The shuttle bus carried visitors to the various event locations throughout the festival grounds

The festival’s general manager, Wayne Conway, was pleased with the turn out and grateful that the rain held off for the duration of the event. ”We're really pleased with the ways things ran and are hoping to continue to attract even more music lovers to the festival thanks to the hard work of our entertainment committee.” The musical talent on stage this year was a definite highlight and included numerous talented groups from near and far, including blues powerhouse Ila Vann, who opened the festival on Friday night; Luthor Wright and the Wrongs; The Beatles tribute band The Rattles; and triple-treat Celtic Bluegrass songstress/fiddle player and step dancer Kelli Trottier, who closed the festival on Sunday afternoon.

Kudos to all of the festival organizers and volunteers who have once again not only created a worthwhile and well thought out community event, but have given festival goers many fine memories to last them until the show goes on again next summer.