Brandon's first ever Food Truck Warz has been nominated in the category of "Event of the Year" at this year's Tourism Westman Awards Gala to be held next month in Gladstone.   Food Truck Warz took place in Brandon, MB in September of 2017.  The event played host to 17 gourmet food trucks from all over the province and attracted over 20,000 people to the 2-day event. "It's quite the honour" said event co-organizer Darrly Wolski when he heard the event had been nominated.  "I am very proud of the effort we put forth in hosting the event and we are looking forward to making this year's event even bigger and better" added Darryl. The evening recognizes and celebrates the exceptional individuals, businesses, organizations and communities within the Westman region that have made significant contributions to tourism development and promotion over the past year.  Other nominess for Event of Year include: Brandon Cruise Nights, Camp Hughes Heritage Day, Grimm Acres Scare Away Cancer, Neepawa Street Party, Westman Multicultural Festival and the Royal Canadian Legion National Youth Track & Field Championships. In addition to Event of the Year, awards will also be handed out in five other categories including Aspiring Youth, Marketing Excellence, Partnership, Service Excellence, and Volunteer of the Year.  Award winners will be announced at the Tribute to Tourism Gala being held at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, June 13th, 2018 at the Gladstone Community Centre.  Winners will be nominated for the chance to advance to the Manitoba Tourism Awards for a chance to be recognized at a Provincial level.

Here ye, here ye, Vincent Massey High school is honoured to present this year’s musical King Artie and the Knights of the Rad Table. An all ages musical based on the legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table set in our modern day’s age. Book and lyrics by Pat Lydersen and music by Wendy Woolf. This musical follows the one-hour journey of a rad lad name Artie who was sent back in time to Camelot and became the high king of England with the help of the knights of the rad table, the great wizard Merlin, and his friend Gwen. Vincent Massey musical theatre class has been actively working on King Artie and the Knights of the Rad Table since April 2018 to bring laughter, joy, and comedic adventure to the Brandon community. The show will be held on June 6th and 7th at 7:00 pm in the D.C. Wilson Lecture Theatre at Vincent Massey High School. The students of Vincent Massey’s musical theatre class have auditioned and the following have been selected for the amazing parts of Gwen the dreamer: Tina Censi Lu, Cool King Artie: Felix Gallardo Roque, the hilarious wizard Merlin: Azka Ahmed and many more. Some of these students made appearances in our past productions of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, and We Will Rock You. Go on an adventure with us, for a comedic musical night. You can get your tickets at the Vincent Massey main office, through a musical theatre student, or at the door, all for $10.00 per person. Vincent Massey’s High School musical theatre class invites all the king’s horses and all the king’s men and women to the wonderful musical adventure of King Artie and the Knights of the Rad Table at 7:00 pm on Wednesday and Thursday June 6th and 7th.

Scottish hard rock band Nazareth will be performing a concert in Brandon at The 40 sometime in August.  The band formed in 1968 and had several hits in the United Kingdom and other European countries prior to releasing their album “Hair of the Dog” in 1975.  That album featured the hit songs Hair of the Dog and a cover of the ballad Love Hurts.  The album helped establish Nazareth as an internationally popular rock band and sold over one million copies in the United States. Liz, the Manager at The 40 and the Trails West Motor Inn, tells bdnmb.ca that all the details (poster, tickets, etc) will be slowly announced within the week.  You can follow The 40’s Facebook page for more information as it becomes available.

Rockin’ the Fields of Minnedosa, RFM.  For the past 14 years, this has been the destination for thousands of fans - from Ontario to BC, from Thompson to South Dakota - as they converge to meet with friends old and new and enjoy some of the best live music to be found. The annual rock festival held each August long weekend overlooking Lake Minnedosa is in the midst of preparations for this their 15th anniversary. The Board of Directors has made some changes to the festival this year.  Many of our fans have told us what they want, and as a result we are pleased to announce that Canada’s Premiere Classic Rock Festival will focus on classic rock and that we will be bigger, louder and better than ever! The latest additions to the 2018 lineup are, Headpins, formed in the late 70’s and having had a string of hits they continue to provide fans with an energetic show of pure classic rock. Helix, a hard hitting Canadian rock and metal band that got together in 1974 spawning numerous hits and continues to tour. Honeymoon Suite, Formed in 1981 and the result was several successful albums and hits that continue to be a staple of air play today. Buckcherry is a veteran LA hard rock band that has been blowing fans away with their loud and over the top shows since 1995. Artists previously announced include, Snake Oil is not your average tribute band as they provide authentic theatrical tribute to rock’s biggest stars. Kim Mitchell, with an impressive list of hits from both his solo and Max Webster days, has been entertaining fans since the early 70’s. Trooper, widely recognized as Canada's #1 Party Band they are also Canada's oldest and coolest rock band. Chilliwack, with multiple hits from the early 70’s, they were the headliners at the first Rockin’ the Fields of Minnedosa festival. Three Days Grace's music has been described as post grunge, hard rock, and alternative rock. Whatever the label, this hard hitting band will be releasing their sixth album this March. Burton Cummings, few artists have achieved the level of public success and critical acclaim that Burton Cummings has enjoyed in a dazzling career, whether as lead singer and songwriter with The Guess Who or on his own. There are many more to be announced. The festival site itself features an amphitheatre with built in bench and folding chairs overlooking the main stage and lake.  An additional two stages ensure that there is music on throughout the day and evening as well.  With hot showers, vendors, ice, camping, water and septic service, garbage and recycling pick up, onsite security and first aid there are many ways to keep yourself comfortable. The festival is assisted by a virtual army of volunteers, both on the August long weekend and the weeks leading up to the festival.  Service clubs, businesses and individuals recognize the importance of the festival to the local economy and are eager to support RFM as needed. Ticket information is available at rockinthefields.ca or at 1-888-330-8333. Get the latest on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

On Music Monday students, teachers, and Brandon musicians will gather for a FREE PUBLIC CONCERT to celebrate music in our community! ALL ARE WELCOME WHO: Hundreds of local students and musicians of all ages WHAT: Free public concert (fourth annual) WHEN: Monday, May 7th, 2018 – 1:30 – 2:30pm WHERE: Healthy Living Center gymnasium – Brandon University, 2010 Louise Avenue WHY: To celebrate music and music education in our community BRANDON, MANITOBA – Annually on the first Monday in May musicians, students, and schools across Canada gather to celebrate Music Monday. “Launched in 2005 by The Coalition for Music Education, Music Monday is the world’s largest single event dedicated to raising awareness for music education. Each year, hundreds of thousands of students, educators, and music makers participate in a simultaneous nationwide concert.” (http://www.musicmonday.ca/ ) An exciting community of diverse musicians will gather again this year for a concert and world premiere . . . right here in Brandon. Hundreds of musicians of all ages from many schools and community groups across Brandon will gather to put on our fourth annual free public concert. Brandon School Division elementary choirs and ensembles, the Brandon Conservatory Youth Choir, Suzuki Talent Education Program, and the Brandon School Division Grade 8/9 Wind Ensemble will all be performing. For the concert finale all groups will join for a mass performance and world premiere of, “This Is Where I’m From” by Manitoban composer, Kenley Kristofferson. This piece was commissioned especially for this event and will feature all the groups and musicians involved in the program together. Several special guests from our community will also be in attendance and the event will once again be MC’d by Brandon’s own radio personality, Cam Clark. Some groups in attendance may also be performing separately before and/or after the concert in a variety of local venues to widen our musical reach to the community (see local listings for details). Come be a part of this exciting partnership between multiple local musical organizations as we celebrate music and music education in our community. Plenty of audience seating is available. Do not miss the chance to hear Brandon in concert.