Celebrating our past and supporting women now

The Island will kick off October with two woman-centered festivals this weekend: the inaugural HERitage and the ninth annual Ladyfest, to platform women and nonbinary musicians and artists, and raise money to support domestic violence survivors. 

HERitage is a festival that celebrates the legacies of Island women from the past through the music, art, and food of contemporary Island women and nonbinary inhabitants. The festival will take place on Friday, Oct. 2 from 3 to 8 pm, at Stillpoint in West Tisbury. Proceeds from ticket sales will go to both the headlining performers and Stillpoint, an educational nonprofit that provides space for various community events.

MV Times reporter and musician Sarah Shaw Dawson launched HERitage as a way to add more events on the Island that celebrate women and nonbinary community members.

“I’m very drawn to events that uplift women and nonbinary people, people of color, and indigenous folk,” Dawson said. “There can never be enough events that uplift creative people, because of the incredible utility of creative events at building community and connection and inviting everybody into the space.”

The festival will begin with food, henna, and art showcases. Some of the artists in attendance include Ella Mahoney, a member of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah), who makes paintings and three-dimensional installations inspired by the tribe and Aquinnah, and Althea Freeman-Miller, an artist known for her colorful block-printed designs. At 6 pm, the live music performance lineup includes Sarah Shaw Dawson & Friends, harpist Thistle Jemison, and the Outskirts.

After attending community suppers at Stillpoint during the winter, Dawson said, she felt inspired to contact them about hosting her festival.

“Community events, third spaces, and having an opportunity to gather with each other is important,” Dawson said. “I felt like those dinners were a perfect example of that.”

After realizing that the festival’s scheduled date was on the same weekend as Ladyfest, Deb Klein, programs coordinator at Stillpoint, said that she and Dawson agreed to run their event “in solidarity” with Ladyfest.

“We’re doing a very woman-centric event. Let’s just extend Ladyfest’s reach to include us as sort of a satellite event, where we could help each other, promote it, and support each other,” Klein said.

Ladyfest will take place on Saturday, Oct. 3, at Waban/Alley Park in Oak Bluffs. The music festival raises money for Connect to End Violence, a Martha’s Vineyard Community Services initiative that provides services for victims and survivors of domestic violence. 

Kelly Feirtag co-founded Ladyfest at the Ritz Cafe with bartender and musician Rose Guerin in 2017. While remodeling the restaurant, then-general manager Feirtag said she noticed a lack of photos of female musicians displayed on the wall compared with male musicians. 

“There were a lot of pictures of the incredible, iconic men who play on Martha’s Vineyard all the time. There weren’t a lot of photos of the women who play,” Feirtag said. “We wanted to do a night where we would have that, and get great photos of all the women.” 

The first Ladyfest began as an evening of live music at the Ritz before expanding along the sidewalks of Circuit Avenue. Last year, the festival relocated to Waban/Alley Park.

This year, town officials permitted the festival to integrate its bar service into the festival grounds. Previously, bar service had to be fenced off, which made serving attendees a challenge.

Feirtag expressed her eagerness about this change. “Our bar setup will be a lot easier and more convenient,” Feirtag said. “I’m really excited to see how that goes.” 

From the folksy Appalachian rhythms of Kate Taylor and Delanie Pickering’s New Orleans–style blues to the indie rock melodies of the Los Angeles–based duo Wolftrap, this year’s artist lineup features both Island and off-Island musicians. Feirtag said that the festival’s organizers aim to have variety.

“There’s so many incredible musicians on Martha’s Vineyard. We try to get as many as we can, and switch it up every year,” Feirtag said. “We like to bring in some off-Island people as well.”

The festival will also feature a multitude of food vendors, including Reunion Pizza & Catering and the Swimming Pig, along with stands selling art and jewelry, and promoting local organizations.

Feirtag described last year’s Ladyfest as a success partially because of a surprise performance by Carly Simon. A record amount of $25,000 was raised for Connect to End Violence. This year, Feirtag wants to continue the momentum.

“I just hope we raise a ton of money for Connect, and that’s my ultimate goal,” she said. “And then just throw a really good party.” 

Emily Medeiros, programming manager for Connect to End Violence, highlighted how the funding earned from Ladyfest allows the organization to meet the domestic violence survivors’ needs — such as stays at retreats or assistance with moving out of state to flee unsafe environments — that are sometimes restricted by state organizations. “With the donation money, it can help us meet more of those creative needs that might come up,” Medeiros said.

For example, last year’s funds contributed to a daylong retreat for survivors, featuring yoga and a sound bath. Susan Mercier, division director of Connect to End Violence, expressed her deep appreciation for Ladyfest. 

“The event itself [last year] was such an incredible outpouring of support and love from our community for the value that they find in the work we do,” Mercier said. “It’s hard to put into words how grateful we are to Ladyfest for all the work that they’ve done on our behalf, and on behalf of all the people on the Island who are affected by domestic violence and sexual assault.”