Music fans from far and wide flocked to the Canadian Badlands Passion Play site on August 25 and 26 as Charlie Major opened for country legend John Michael Montgomery on Friday night and on Saturday, Juno award winning band Hey

Romeo opened for Randy Bachman, a former member of The Guess Who.

“As far as every single factor other than the finances, we knocked it out of the park,” said Executive Director Vance Neudorf.

“People had so much fun, they enjoyed the concerts and people came from all over the place.”

The venue definitely has its perks as the sound is incomparable to larger centres.

“It’s because the acoustics are phenomenal,” explained Neudorf. “You can whisper on that stage and be heard at the back so the sound of the music going out and then the sound of the audience reflecting back to the singers, they love it. It’s so intimate and wonderful and smaller than going to a big concert in the Saddledome.”

The Passion Play also takes pride in its values and unique venue. John Michael Montgomery even commented on it.

“He said ‘This is pure magic, this is a magical spot’ and it is,” said Neudorf.

The Passion Play also focuses on community engagement and accepting help from volunteers.

“We don’t even have to pay these people they just say they want to come and I want to be part of this.”

A large misconception about the Passion Play is that the area is simply used for that attraction. Bringing in these concerts was one way of engaging the local community and utilizing the space. Neudorf hopes that with this, the community will come to realize its potential.

“I don’t think people understand that the Passion Play originated as an arts organization,” Neudorf pointed out. “We are considerably broader than that for sure.”

Both concerts held over 1,000 people which helped the property break even.

“A weekend of concerts like that is a fairly expensive proposition,” said Neudorf. “The big stages and the rest of it – that’s expensive stuff.”

Many more concerts are lined up before winter settles in.

“We’ve got some other things up our sleeves that we can’t announce yet but I think they are going to be stellar. In fact, I think they are world class, one of them is coming to us from Europe.”

More Photos from John Michael Montgomery & Randy Bachman below:

(Mailphotos by Terri Huxley & Pat Kolafa)

The folks down in Wayne know how to cap off the summer in style with a whole lot of music and lots of fun at Waynestock.

This is the third year that the Last Chance Saloon has hosted the long weekend of music. Brittany Zlatnik of the Last Chance Saloon says in previous years another group hosted WayneFest, and where it left off, the Last Chance Saloon took over.

“We thought we would bring it back because it was an awesome event,” said Zlatnik. “It’s a nice thing because we have all these artists coming up here throughout the year, we want to show our appreciation to them with this show.”

This year they have 37 bands coming out. Zlatnik explains that The Last Chance Saloon has been a big supporter of Canadian music for years and the lineup reflects that.

“They are all more or less regulars that come to our bar, like Tim Hus, Joe Vickers, they are always around here, and Coots and the Hoots, we have a close relationship with them even though they are not from here,” she said.

She adds it is a good opportunity for the artist to mix.

“It is super nice for everybody to get to know each other, especially the young artists who are trying to make it, they can have the experience of seeing other artists.

The event gets going on Friday, September 1 with local act Denny Eddy. There are three stages with revolving musicians until Sunday night. It includes everything from the blues and rock to bluegrass and country. On Monday, there is a free amateur talent show.

There is a free shuttle running throughout the weekend with stops in Wayne, Rosedale and Canadian Tire in Drumheller.

For tickets go to www.brownpapertickts.com