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Winnipeg Free Press

Gallery: Folk festival opening always special

The Winnipeg Folk Festival opened Thursday night to sunny skies and a flock of fans eager to snag 50th-anniversary keepsakes. A line hundreds of people deep formed in front of the merch tent shortly after the gates opened. Mementoes were the first order of business for Ally Robertson and Todd Angus. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Lineups stretch far past the entrance before the gates open at Folk Fest on Thursday. 'We came in and immediately got in line, this is not the year to miss out on something you might want,' Robertson says. The couple waited for more than an hour to get their hands on a commemorative bandana, hat, T-shirts and patches. They also made sure to buy a mug to add to their collection, which dates back to their first festival, and the beginning of their relationship, in 2008. To Robertson, the pile of green, red and gold clothing in her arms is more than just stuff. They're tangible reminders of good memories made with friends. 'It becomes part of your history,' says the perennial festival camper. 'Some day at our memorial service or whatever, half the pictures are going to be from folk fest. It's just part of us.' Nearby, Ali Cameron bounded over to her friends triumphantly. She had secured the goods: a baby blue Peach Pit shirt and an orange tee with the silhouette of a yellow cat, a holdover from Fred Penner's recent Cat Came Back tour. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS The merch line at Folk Fest on Thursday. 'It's something I hold very near and dear to my heart because my mom had the cassette and she used to play it for us when we were little,' the 21-year-old says, pointing to her sister Katie Fleming. Penner's main stage set could be heard wafting over the trees and the group had just wrapped up an animated singalong to Sandwiches. 'I'm so glad they put him on the main stage,' Fleming says. 'He deserves it, he's a legend,' adds friend Aaron Feuer. The Winnipeg-born musician and beloved children's entertainer has appeared at the festival on nine separate occasions between 1978 and 2011, but never on the main stage. Judging by the reaction from fans, it was about time. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Ali Cameron shows off her classic Fred Penner t-shirt at Folk Fest on Thursday. Cheers of 'We love you Fred' could be heard during his performance, which opened with a cover of (Ghost) Riders in the Sky and featured an array of originals from his wide, feel-good catalogue, including, of course, The Cat Came Back. Penner's knack for audience engagement shone as listeners young, old and in-between sang and clapped along to his cues. The show was a star-studded, family affair with backing vocals from two of Penner's four children, Hayley and Kendra. Al Simmons and Allison Russell joined in for the finale, a cover of The Circle Game by Joni Mitchell — a moment Russell later described as a 'surreal childhood dream.' The weather was hot and muggy as Thursday's event opened with a blessing from Grandmother Chickadee Richard and a sweet performance by young singers from Winnipeg's Ojibwe bilingual program, Giinawind Riverbend Community School Abinoojiiyag Nagamog. Russell returned to the stage after a tweener performance by Manitoba two-piece Slow Spirit. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Ally Robertson and Todd Angus with their newly-bought merch at Folk Fest on Thursday. Every Second Friday The latest on food and drink in Winnipeg and beyond from arts writers Ben Sigurdson and Eva Wasney. The Montreal-born, Grammy-winning artist, whose solo career has skyrocketed in recent years, oscillated between the clarinet, banjo and her powerful vocals. Supported by an excellent all-female band, Russell had the crowd on its feet swaying along to hits from her latest albums, Outside Child and The Returner, as well as a potent performance of Superlover — a 2025 collaboration with Annie Lennox that calls for love in the face of ongoing international crises. At press time, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit had taken the stage for their first festival performance in a decade, opening with Crimson and Clay off the Alabama artist's 2025 release, Foxes in the Snow. Clouds rolled in for the final performance of the first night of the festival, which wraps Sunday and is set to include several special golden anniversary events. Visit for tickets and a full lineup. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Indigenous children's choir Giinawind Riverbend Community School Abinoojiiyag Nagamog sings for the opening blessing at Folk Fest on Thursday. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS The crowd listens to Allison Russell on the main stage as the sun sets at Folk Fest on Thursday. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Allison Russell on the main stage at Folk Fest on Thursday. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Five-year-old Mariel Ladouceur, (left) and Lauriane Bellefeuille, age four, listen to the music at Folk Fest on Thursday. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS After nine appearances at previous folk fests, Fred Penner finally got his moment on the main stage Thursday. Eva WasneyReporter Eva Wasney has been a reporter with the Free Press Arts & Life department since 2019. Read more about Eva. Every piece of reporting Eva produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. 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