The Ryga Arts Festival

The Ryga Arts Festival is an annual multidisciplinary arts festival held in Summerland, BC, that celebrates the legacy of George Ryga, a prominent Canadian playwright, author, and poet. The festival, run by the Ryga Festival Society, aims to advocate for social justice through the arts by presenting a variety of events including  spoken word, theatre and music through workshops, presentations, performance and a community conversation.

This year we are excited to be celebrating our 10^th anniversary!

This year our featured theatrical performance will be “Deafy,” a  play by Deaf artist Chris Dodd that skillfully combines ASL, surtitles and the spoken word to weave together a tragicomedy that takes the audience on an unexpected journey of discovering what it really means to belong.  Past theatrical performances included award-winning “Jake’s Gift” and Rice and Beans Theatre’s “Made in Canada.”  We will also be featuring several authors this year including Brian Thomas Isaac, Danielle Krysa, Joanna Cockerline and Kevin Andrew Heslop.

Additional performances will be provided by the following artists: Ollie Rankin, Claire Coupland, the Cramer Brothers, Michael V. Smith, Anona Kampe, Isobel Rondeau, Krystal Withakay and more. Many of our events continue to be offered by donation or PWYC options.  We hope you’ll join us for our 10^th anniversary festival!