Spring is being ushered in with the return of an iconic Foothills music festival.
The Highwood Lions Music Festival is back, with Okotoks and High River hosting hundreds of performances by acts of all ages throughout March.
Running until March 28, with an additional adjudicators' showcase on March 30, the festival will see performers take the stage at the Okotoks Alliance Church and High River United Church from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. each day.
The annual non-profit festival is sponsored by the Highwood Lions Club and offers professionally-adjudicated classes and sessions for students of all ages and levels of study, in addition to speech, poetry and other non-musical performance arts, explained festival director Chelsea Bustin.
"We would just love to invite the community to come and be supportive audience members for the youth that are performing," she said, adding that admission is free but donations are encouraged.
Bustin, back for her third year as festival director, had previously been involved with the board in a variety of capacities and formerly performed in the festival.
"You get to hear a variety of students from age six all the way to adults, but mostly elementary and high school age students, perform a variety of voice, musical theatre and speech performances," she continued.
With the long-running festival's popularity, Bustin said this year's performances will branch out into Okotoks more than past years, which focused primarily on High River.
"We started to kind of branch out and hold some of the disciplines in [Okotoks] just to spread it out a little bit for the public," she said.
Voice, musical theatre and speech arts sessions will take place in Okotoks, while all other sessions will happen in High River. A detailed schedule is available here.
Learn more about the Highwood Lions Music Festival, including further performance details and volunteer opportunities, on its website.
