Members of a newly installed board of directors say they’re gaining confidence that Newfoundland and Labrador’s premier folk festival will live to see its 50th anniversary.
The non-profit society behind the faltering festival elected a new board of directors Sunday, with an aim to stabilize the organization and pay off tens of thousands of dollars in debt.
“We are keen to do something for the summer,” said Rob Brown, the new vice-president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Arts Society.
“Whether it will be at the scale that, you know, we’ve seen over the last while — I doubt it, but if the organization is going to continue and last, then it has to be at the scale that we’re able to manage.”
Under previous management, the Folk Arts Society shut its offices and laid off all remaining staff in November 2025. Former director Julie Vogt said she believed the 2025 festival, in July, was going to be the last.
That final nail came after the organizers wrestled with debts and deficits for years. The 2024 edition of the folk festival, which aimed high with big-name acts like Emmylou Harris, lost more than $100,000.
“We do know where some money is owed, and the plan is to start tackling that right away,” Brown said. “We are trying to figure out the situation with inventory and where things are stored, and all that stuff.”
The festival has been a fixture of the summer in St. John’s, almost always held in the city’s biggest downtown park.
“Those of us who’ve gone to so many of these, you know, you get to see people that you haven’t seen all year. It’s like Christmas in that regard,” said Dave Penny, a Newfoundland folk musician and a new board member.
Rising travel, performer and venue set-up costs were blamed for higher ticket prices at previous festivals. The folk festival also faced new competition from other concert series that began in St. John’s.
Through it all, attendees and festival organizers have also debated what size and shape the festival should take — how much it should focus on local acts, or on bringing in bigger names from outside the province that some argued would boost ticket sales.
“It has to be sustainable, but be sustainable without compromising the essence of a folk festival,” said Penny. “A lot of things have changed over the years, most notably of course the cost of everything.
“But some things haven’t changed, some things can’t change for a folk festival…it’s a task for sure.”
It’s simply too early for many of those questions to be answered, both Penny and Brown said. But they both say there’s reason for optimism.
“People are offering to play music and help with fundraisers, and people are offering to help lift and carry things,” Brown said. “We really do have a strong community for that. I think we’re really hopeful.”
