Feature Articles

Sitka is known as the home of abundance in wildlife and outdoor activities. Sitka is also known for an abundance of the arts in summer.

“Happy Porch Fest!” says one person to another. “Happy Porch Fest to you, too!” This may sound odd to anyone, except those walking down Lincoln Street on Porch Fest Day. Now in its fourth year, Porch Fest is becoming a Sitka tradition.

The Sitka Music Festival (SMF) was started in 1972 by violinist Paul Rosenthal. This celebration of chamber music has evolved through the decades. “It’s been quite a journey,” says Festival Executive Director Alex Serio.

In late July every year, Broadway comes to Sitka. Broadway, you say? Yes, Broadway – in the form of the Sitka Fine Arts Camp (SFAC) Musical Theater production. 

What happens when three creative teachers combine sign language, Tlingít language and violin? An amazing program called Lingít Ghíxh’jaa’ (Tlingít Violin). 

People often wonder what folks do in Sitka during the long, gray winter months. The answer is simple – they go to the theater, they participate in theater, they listen to music, they create music, they attend lectures, they give lectures, they take classes and teach classes. Sitka transforms once the tourist season is over. It becomes a place of art. 

What do the following have in common:  A slime line, a gaggle of tourists, fireweed, bears, northern lights, mosquitos, and snow? If you guessed Alaska and the Nutcracker, you are correct. Wait, what? The Nutcracker?!?! Yes, in 2023 the Sitka Nutcracker takes on the Last Frontier.  

Roger Schmidt was just five years old when Sitka Fine Arts Camp began in 1973. No one could have known that one day he’d be at the helm of the vessel on a decades-long voyage.

When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up? An explorer. I loved reading books about explorers and then pretending and daydreaming their adventures.

When it comes to entertainment in “your backyard,” nothing fits the bill like the Sitka Monthly Grind.  This local variety show begins its season in September and takes its final bow in March each year.  Advertised as family-friendly and non-political, it is pure art by Sitkans for Sitkans.