Festival at Sandpoint Releases 2023 Annual Report

At the end of each fiscal year, the Festival at Sandpoint publishes its Annual Report, highlighting information and updates to the organization and its programs from October of the previous year to September of the current year. 

For the third consecutive year, the 2023 Summer Performance Series broke organizational records due in part to capacity increase and three sold-out performances. 

With one of the Festival’s best and highest-caliber lineups in the organization's history came record ticket sales, sponsorships, and donations.

The 2023 Summer Series sold more individual tickets than our previous record-breaking year. Our Family Show and Grand Finale with our inaugural Festival at Sandpoint Orchestra both broke ticket sale records for these historic programs. 

Over the past year, the Festival has expanded its year-round education programs and offerings. The Pre-K Outreach program completed its second year of programming at Little Lambs and Selkirk School and has added two additional schools for 2024.

In 2023, over 70 students participated in this free series of in-class lessons designed to engage students through rhythm, movement, and song. This rhythm-based approach helps students establish strong foundations at a pivotal age of 3-6 years, which is one of the largest gaps in music education nationwide.

Thanks to several generous donors, the Festival added 20 instruments to its extensive instrument library, including violins, basses, cellos, electric and bass guitars, trumpets, horns, and much more. The library also includes a variety of music accessories, including an assortment of amplifiers, stands, strings, and cases.

The rental fee to rent an instrument has been removed, with the nonprofit now offering free access to the Festival at Sandpoint’s instrument library. This program adjustment updates the previous rental program to help keep music education an affordable option for local families. 

The Festival at Sandpoint is proud to have given $6,500 in scholarships to five local students in 2023 in support of their endeavors in continuing education.

Thanks to the generous support from sponsors, donors, volunteers, and concertgoers, the Festival at Sandpoint is able to continue to actively work on new programming to expand and grow its musical education mission and positive impact on youth in the community.

In FY 2023, the Festival at Sandpoint welcomed three new full-time staff members: Marketing & Office Manager Cienna Roget, Operations Manager Veronica Knowlton, and Finance & Development Manager Tess Howell.

To learn more about the Festival at Sandpoint and view the complete 2023 Annual Report, visit www.festivalatsandpoint.com/annual-reports.