Eleven diverse acts are scheduled to entertain inside the Pete and Ruth Leslie Fieldhouse at the Alva Recreation Complex while shoppers visit the fine artists and crafters' booths for the 54th Nescatunga Arts Festival June 6-7. The festival will take place on Friday from 4-9 p.m. and on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Although the festival will start on Friday, the traditional opening ceremonies will take place on Saturday at 9 a.m. with Alex Mantz singing the National Anthem. A prayer will be led by Drew Kirtley, pastor of the Alva First Christian Church.

Alva Chamber of Commerce co-directors Magen Lehr and JoDe Bradt will welcome everyone to the full day of festival fun on behalf of the City of Alva.

Jerad Bradt and the crew with Boss Music will be providing the sound for the entertainment.

Emcees for the stage on Friday will be Nick and Cara Bradt. Avery Goss will emcee on Saturday.

A full listing of the entertainment scheduled for the two days of the festival is below:

Nescatunga Arts Festival Entertainment Schedule

Friday, June 6  

5 p.m. / Nick and Cara Bradt

Nick and Cara Bradt began their relationship 20 years ago, playing tuba in the NWOSU Ranger Band. Presently, the couple works together at Alva High School, where Nick teaches speech, theatre, and debate, and Cara is the librarian. When they are not at school, they can be found with their two awesome kiddos, serving in their church, and making music for their enjoyment. Creating alternative arrangements of jazz, pop and country, the Bradt's music is best described as eclectic acoustic.

6 p.m. / Shades of Beige

Shades of Beige is a contemporary cover band based out of Alva, Oklahoma. This will be the group’s fourth Nescatunga performance. In addition to Nescatunga performances, the trio has also performed at Liberal’s Food Truck Saturday event, Alva’s Citizens’ Choice Awards Gala, Friday Night Art Walks, weddings, and more. The trio consists of three local musicians: Kalynn Samples of Alva; Isi Ofiu of Burlington, and Madison Hofen of Hopeton/Alva.

7 p.m. / Homemade and Handpicked

Homemade and Handpicked, a music duo of John and LeCena McDowell and Carmen’s Silver Strings, consisting of Robert Brown and Margaret Goss, will perform gospel, bluegrass, and folk music. The group performs at the Carmen Community Church as well as other venues. They feature violin, guitar, autoharp, hammered dulcimer and other folk instruments.

Saturday, June 7

9:15 a.m. / Avery Goss, Saturday emcee

Avery Goss is the 17-year-old daughter of Trent and Cindy Goss and will be a senior at Alva High School. She is the AHS Student Council president and is a member of GoldRush! Show Choir, AHS One-Act play, and Speech and Debate team. Goss is a varsity cheerleader, a member of the Oklahoma Hall of Fame Teen Board, and a member of her church youth group. She enjoys performing with music and acting, being active in her school, and participating in leadership activities and opportunities. She is honored to be selected to attend Youth Leadership Oklahoma this summer, to participate in additional leadership camps for Student Council and personal growth, and has been chosen to sing the national anthem for the last two years at the OSSAA State Basketball Tournament. Goss is committed to serving her school and community.

9:30 a.m. / Emma Cline

Emma Cline of Alva, Oklahoma, has been performing for more than 15 years with her guitar and voice. She is a proud alumna of Alva High School and Northwestern Oklahoma State University. Cline is the elementary music teacher at Washington, Longfellow, and Lincoln schools in Alva and also enjoys being a part of leading worship at the First United Methodist Church of Alva. She loves being involved with the Alva community through her music, which she describes as folk and acoustic pop. She has a passion for all kinds of music and is dedicated to fostering a love for the arts in young learners. She also is bringing her visual artistic skills to the festival with her face painting abilities with Cake Face.

10 a.m. / Standing Ovations - Dance Troupe

Standing Ovations Dance Studio is run by Kim Foster and her daughter, Natasha Foster. The studio offers a variety of classes including tap, jazz, ballet, lyrical, pointe and clogging. At Nescatunga, audience members will be able to watch dancers aged 2 through high school.

11 a.m. / David Engle, Robert Ford and Max Ridgway

David Engle, Robert Ford and Max Ridgway have been performing together since 2016 and specialize in classic rock.

Engle is from Alva, Oklahoma, and plays guitar. He has recorded a few self-released albums with local musicians. Some of the bands that Engle has been a member of include Destiny, The Imposters and Mother Nature’s Eyeball. These acts have been the opening act for Dr. Hook, Lariat (Ricochet), Great Divide, Highway 101, Navel Felts & Michael Hearne. His main influences are the Beatles, Eric Clapton & Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.

Ford is a self-taught drummer from Gage. He began seriously playing the drums at the age of 12. During high school, he was in the Tri-State Honor Chorus for four years. He then studied at NWOSU in Alva for two years as a music major and finished there with a 3.95 GPA. He has been in many bands over the years in Oklahoma and Colorado as a drummer and backup harmony vocalist. He currently plays in the Country Justice Band as well as with David Engle and Max Ridgway.

Ridgway of Alva studied guitar with Jon Damian at Berklee College of Music, graduating in 1990, Summa Cum Laude. He holds a master’s degree in music education from NWOSU, where he currently teaches as an adjunct instructor. He has recorded numerous albums of jazz and ambient music and is the author of several books on a variety of subjects. He performs frequently at a variety of venues as a jazz guitar soloist, with his band, the Max Ridgway Trio, and as a guest guitarist with David Engle and Robert Ford. See maxridgway.com for more information about his music and books.

Noon / Alva High School/Naicee Sutter

Various members of the Alva High School choir will perform during the hour.

1 p.m. / Katie Bradford

Katie Bradford has been performing in the Oklahoma City metro area for the last 10+ years as a solo vocalist, as well as the lead singer of the band Katie and The Elements. Some of her favorite venues and events to have performed at include: UCO Jazz Lab, Will Rogers Theatre, Edmond Arts Festival, Scissortail Park, Rococo, and R&J's. Her style of performance music varies from jazz standards to popular easy listening tunes of all genres to create a relaxing atmosphere. Whether you are in the mood for Norah Jones, The Carpenters, Peggy Lee, Elvis or Patsy Cline, plan to sit back, relax and enjoy a few favorite smooth tunes. Katie and her husband, Erick, are in the process of relocating to Waynoka, so she is excited to start performing in the northwest Oklahoma area.

2 p.m. / Eric Ryan-Johnson

Eric Ryan-Johnson, originally from Madison, Wisconsin, now living in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is a singer-songwriter who performs mostly original songs with a blend of acoustic alt-rock. Besides performing during the Nescatunga Arts Festival before, he has played at various other festivals including the Highlonesome Festival (Ava, Missouri), the Dancing Turtle Arts Festival (Stillwater, Oklahoma) and the Blue Note Roundup (Tahlequah, Oklahoma). He has 11 albums, which are available on all streaming platforms. He is also a member of Cairde na Gael (Irish traditional) and The Deadgummits (a Grateful Dead tribute band). For the Nescatunga Arts Festival 2025, he will be performing with Emelie Berke (fiddle) and Clayton Ussery (guitar).

3 p.m. / Savelina Ofiu and Isi Ofiu

Savelina Ofiu is the 14-year-old daughter of Isi and Rickie Ofiu of Burlington, Oklahoma. Savelina is a two-year American Choral Directors Association Junior High All-Stater and has recently performed in the prestigious Oklahoma FFA State Chorus. Savelina made her acting debut in Alva’s Act One production of Legally Blonde, Jr., as the lead role, Elle Woods, in the summer of 2024. Savelina made her Nescatunga debut in the summer of 2021. She is excited to share her talents with the community again this year.

More information about the Nescatunga Arts Festival may be found at www.nescatunga.org or on the Facebook page at www.facebook/NescatungaArts.

Additional news items about this year’s artists/crafters, as well as how the public can volunteer to help at the event and bring items for the Gourmet Food Booth, can be found at www.nescatunga.org/blog.

The Nescatunga Arts Festival is sponsored by the Nescatunga Arts and Humanities Council, Inc., in cooperation with the Alva Chamber of Commerce, the City of Alva Tourism Committee, the City of Alva and the Alva Recreation Complex.

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