It’s so very cheerful and joyous.
That’s how one of the organizers of Oktoberfest PG describes the popular celebration.
The fun takes place at the Seniors Activity Centre, 425 Brunswick St., downtown Prince George, on Saturday, Oct. 5.
“I was born and raised about an hour away from Munich where the original Oktoberfest took place so it was natural for me,” Heidi Burtenshaw, one of the organizers, said about what it means to her to share the traditions of the largest folk festival in the world.
“I took it all in – all the songs and traditions I had been around all my life. In Germany I was in choir and learned all these folk songs and then I got really into music when I moved to Vancouver and joined the German Clubs.”
The original Oktoberfest started in 1810 and is the largest festival in the world where about six million people attend the event that lasts at least 16 days each year.
It is still held in the original location, a 70-acre meadow on the outskirts of Munich. There are tents that can accommodate as many as 10,000 people at once, Burtenshaw added.
“Oktoberfest brings people together in joy and fun,” Burtenshaw said. “That wholesome fun that you experience as a child, and there’s beer, of course, but it’s more than that. It’s about being together and the tunes are all happy. There are polkas and beautiful waltzes and it makes people smile. It’s all about spreading cheer and joy.”
And couldn’t we all use some of the right now given the state of the world, she added.
“We will have a mini, mini Oktoberfest in Prince George,” Burtenshaw laughed. “We will be doing the traditional things that I remember doing. So there will be the traditional polkas and songs and then every half hour or so we will have a traditional toast where people will raise their glasses and there’s singing with it and then there’s schwankend songs – swaying songs – where even if you can’t get up to dance you can sway in your seats to traditional folk songs. At one point I go out and do some of these marching songs like the Happy Wanderer where I go into the audience and get people to follow behind me and the line gets longer and longer and we wind our way through the hall.”
At about 10:30 p.m. there is a luncheon provided featuring traditional German foods.
“There’s sauerkraut, warm potato salad, and those big soft, salty pretzels, a very nice spread that’s quite substantial, I find,” Burtenshaw described.
Beth Bresette and Burtenshaw are the organizers of the event and they will both be in their beautiful, traditional dirndl dresses.
“We’ll be wearing our dirndls but the guys? Sometimes it’s not so easy to get them into lederhosen!” Burtenshaw laughed.
Everyone is welcome to dress traditionally or in their regular clothing.
“The choice is yours,” she added. “Everyone is welcome to come and relax and enjoy the evening. The music won’t just all be traditional German music. There will also be some country and old-time rock ’n’ roll for people to enjoy. We’re just hoping to spread some happiness and cheer.”
The music is presented by the live band Sound of the North.
Oktoberfest PG goes Saturday, Oct. 5 at the Prince George Seniors Activity Centre, 425 Brunswick St.
Tickets are $40 in advance for anyone 19+, and are available by e-transfer to [email protected] or in person at 425 Brunswick St.
