LUTHERAN QUILTERS – Members of the Quilts for Comfort Group stand between pews draped with some of the 205 quilts they made, in the Sitka Lutheran Church Tuesday. The group made the quilts for five local non-profits and one in Anchorage. The remaining quilts are sent to Lutheran World Relief which  distributes them to places around the world in need, such as Ukraine, as part of Personal Care Kits. Pictured are, from left, Helen Cunningham, Kathleen Brandt,Vicki Swanson, Paulla Hardy, Kim Hunter, Linda Swanson and Sue Fleming.  (Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)

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Daily Sitka Sentinel

Red Riding Hood – as Told by Sitka Celtic Dance

By SHANNON HAUGLAND

Sentinel Staff Writer

Once upon a time, a long time ago, Little Red Riding Hood skipped through the streets of Seattle, selling her Grandma’s smoked salmon to the good folks of the rainy city, the sound of bagpipes in the air ...

Wait a minute – what?

This is not your typical Brothers Grimm fairy story.

 

Sitka Celtic Dancers perform at the Sheet’ka Kwaan Naa Kahidi Saturday evening during the International Dance Grind. The dancers will present “Celtic Little Red Riding Hood” Saturday. (Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)

 

Sitka Spruce Celtic Dancers will present “Celtic Little Red Riding Hood” – a highlands and Northwest take on the classic tale – 7 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Performing Arts Center. 

It’s the second year in a row that Celtic dance teacher Kris Fulton has produced a show around a fairy tale. Last year’s program, “Cinderella,” was inspired by music she was listening to.

This year’s dance program was motivated by costumes in Fulton’s collection, which opened up possibilities for nautical, Alaskan, Celtic and jazz-age theme dances.

 

Delaney McAdams and Mia Anderson both play the title role in this production, portraying a born-and-raised Sitkan Red Riding Hood making ends meet and supporting her passion for dance, by selling Grandma’s smoked salmon.

The adventure takes place in Sitka and Seattle, and a places between those two cities. Grandma (Tava Guillory) has invented a special recipe for smoked salmon, which Red sells in Seattle. Granny lives in Sitka, where she protects her recipe with her sisters (Barbara Kendall, Jeren Schmidt), and the help of cats, mice and butterflies.

The dramatic tension comes from a plot by the Wolfe Brothers (Connor Fulton, Kincaid Parsons) to steal the recipe from Granny. 

Highlights include a dance-off between different dance groups, a visit to Victoria and a Native village.

In all, 36 dancers – from those barely in pre-school to adults – will take to the stage.

The show, co-written by Kris Fulton and last year’s Sitka Winter Fellow Henry Colt, will be narrated by actor Zeke Blackwell. A few Robert Burns poems are woven into the narrative, in honor of his birthday on Jan. 25.

Kris Fulton is in her 11th year teaching Celtic dancing, which is a program of the Sitka Fine Arts Camp. 

“I hope to continue it as long as I’m physically able,” she said. “I like making these dance and theater stories, and get lots of kids interested and they’re looking forward to me continuing.”

Fulton herself has been dancing since childhood.

“Dancing makes me happy, and I don’t want to stop,” she said. “I like finding good music and making up a dance to it. It makes me happy and I like working with kids – it keeps me connected to the younger community. If I hadn’t been doing this I wouldn’t know half of the people in this community. It’s been rewarding for me.”

She started offering Celtic classes after she retired from the New Archangel Dancers. She has participated in Celtic and Irish and other forms of dance, but mainly was looking to offer something that didn’t exist here.

 

“I didn’t want to quit dancing, and I thought it would be fun to teach Scottish dances,” she said.

The Sentinel talked to a sampling of the Red Riding Hood dancers. Eighth-grader Tava Guillory (Grandma), who said her costume includes a “weird” hat, said audiences can look forward to lots of dances, and such characters as foxes and elk.

She likes Celtic dancing for the amount of movement, compared to some other dance forms.

“I’m not very good at other kinds of dance – it’s good for me to be OK at some kind of dance,” Tava said. She’s a cross-country runner, and likes having other activities outside the cross-country season.

Tessa Anderson, 10, who plays Red Riding Hood’s friend, said her favorite part of the show is when the wolf gets hurt (but not killed). She said she likes the costumes and enjoys the steps in Celtic dancing.

 

Her 12-year-old sister, Mia, plays Red in one of the performances, and is on stage for most of the show. She said she participates in a number of dance classes at the Sitka Studio of Dance, and likes the addition of Celtic to her repertoire of ballet, jazz, lyrical and modern. 

 

Tickets to the performances are $15 for adults, $5 for youths and seniors, and are available at Old Harbor Books and at the door. Kids under 5 are free.

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20 YEARS AGO

March 2004

Advertisement: Tea-Licious Tea House & Bakery 315 Lincoln Street Grand Opening! Freshly Baked Scones, Cakes & Pastries Innovative Salads, Soups & Sandwiches Harney & Sons Tea. Lunch * Afternoon Tea * Supper.

50 YEARS AGO

March 1974

Photo caption: National Republican Chairman George Bush takes a drink of water offered by Jan Craddick, Sitka delegate, during the Republican convention held here. Mrs. Craddick explained to Bush that the water was from Indian River, which means, according to local legend, that he will return.

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