Central Oregon is getting ready for WinterFest. LibertyBank Bend, Les Schwab and Seventh Mountain Resort are getting ready to host WinterFest in downtown Bend starting Friday February 8th through Sunday February 10, 2008. The event center will be located in the area extending from Troy Field to the Library with additional events held at the Seventh Mountain Resort. The closest lodging to Mt. Bachelor in Oregon’s premier ski and snowboard area, the resort will also host a special ice skating performance and other winter activities. WinterFest attracted more than 40,000 visitors in 2007, and is expected to attract more residents and visitors this year. Created as a way to celebrate arts, culture and winter sports in Central Oregon. Seventh Mountain has festival packages available, with amenities such as 3 swimming pools, 3 hot tubs, a fitness center, and tennis and basketball courts. For reservations or information call 800-452-6810 or check out the Seventh Mountain website.

Beginning Friday evening, downtown bustles at the Winter Wine Hop with art, music, foods, and wine sampling. A fireworks show will kick off the weekend followed by entertainment in the festival center, cross country ski competition on Louisiana Street as well as the ever popular U.S. Cellular snowboard and ski rail jam competition on Troy Field.

Saturday, the festival is alive with family entertainment, including a fine food marketplace. The festival hub will feature ice carving competitions, more cross country ski racing and demos, art, and vendors. Later that evening is the ski and snowboard rail competition. The festival pavilion will be jammed with concert goers eager to hear a Northwest favorite, The Blakes.  A band based in Seattle, The Blakes have concert dates scheduled this winter throughout the entire west, from L.A. to Bozeman. They have a new CD out, and plans to tour Europe later in the year. They tell people who are new to their music:  “We don’t try to take the cool retro vibe to an extreme degree - we are as influenced by the Everly Brothers as the Kinks.” They recently opened for Blue October to a sold out crowd at Portland’s Crystal Ballroom. 

Sunday, the festival closes with a full day of activities including snow bicycle racing, shopping in the WinterFest Marketplace, delicious food at the food court as well as numerous children and family activities. The festival culminates with closing ceremonies and a drawing for the WinterFest grand prize — a trip to Hawaii. Admission to WinterFest is free. However, everyone is encouraged to buy a $6.00 WinterFest button for discounted admission into certain events. Buttons may be purchased at all LibertyBank and Les Schwab Tire Centers as well as various Bend locations. A portion of all button sales is donated to Girls Go Outside, a non profit organization based in Bend.  For a complete list of activities or more activities call 541-323-0964 or click on the WinterFest website.

Your kids know the holidays are approaching, right? Help your family start off the holiday season early with an enchanting musical, “Disney’s Beauty and the Beast,” at the Tower Theatre in Bend. This gala production is presented by the Children’s Music Theatre Group, a non-profit group in Bend that offers classes and opportunities in music theater productions. The play is live, and shows are on Saturday, November 11, 2007 at 7:00 PM and Sunday, November 12th at 2:00 PM. This musical fairy tale, based on the Academy Award winning film, is set in provincial France and is chocked full of comedy, drama, dance and exhilarating music. Music is by Alan Menkin and lyrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice. The message is love and its power to heal and change even the hardest of hearts. It stars advanced teen students and features the talented young performers of CMTG plus an orchestra of Central Oregon Symphony members. The production includes all the songs of the original animated film plus new songs for the stage. This is definitely an enchanted way to start your family’s holiday season.  For information call the Tower Theatre Box Office at (541) 317-0700 or visit TowerTheatre.org.

The Central Oregon Symphony in Bend presents two major works, Bowerman, Man of Oregon by Rebecca Oswald and Symphony No. 1 by Gustav Mahler on October 27, 28 and 29, 2007 at 7:30 pm. The Central Oregon Symphony is under the music direction of Maestro Michael Gesme. Concerts will be held at Bend High School, 230 NE 6th Street. The Symphony is composed of approximately 85 musicians, all volunteers. Some have joined COS after having retired from renowned professional orchestras like the Seattle Symphony and Pacific Symphony. Many others are currently active as music teachers and performers.. Season subscriptions to the symphony are available for donations of $45 or more. The Symphony is committed to accessibility and affordability as well as to artistic excellence. Because they believe that classical music is a gift for all in the community they provide a limited number of complimentary tickets to the public through area outlets. Free tickets will also be available at the door of the auditorium on the day of the concert-while they last.  For more information, call 541-317-3941 or visit CoSymphony.com/.

Central Oregon’s High Desert Museum is exhibiting works from Andy Warhol’s athlete series to Bend’s Praegitzer Gallery. Their faces are familiar: Muhammad Ali, Pele, Jack Nicklaus, Dorothy Hamill, O.J. Simpson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Tom Seaver, Willie Shoemaker, Rod Gilbert, and Chris Evert are immortalized in Warhol’s signature silkscreens. The Praegitzer Gallery in downtown Bend is a branch of the High Desert Museum. The gallery is open Tues.-Sat. 11am-6pm. The exhibit runs through Oct. 7, and is free. The address is 916 NW Wall St.