AJ News

By Rachel Leggieri weekender@theweekender.com
Weekender Correspondent

When you think of a festival, sunny days and outdoor activities may be the first things that come to mind. The Abington Business and Professional Association is changing that idea, bringing you a frozen festival — the fifth annual Clarks Summit Festival of Ice.

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From February 12-16, you will have the opportunity to enjoy live ice carvings, as well as many other events within the Abington area.

The ABPA is a nonprofit company, allowing everything to be on a donation-only basis.

“Everything will be free, even parking,” said ABPA Executive Director Laura Ancherani. “All the profits will go towards the event and its businesses.”

Chairman Barry Kaplan expects a great turnout this year.

“Last year, we averaged around 20,000 people,” he said. “With the growth of the festival and the new theme, we expect an even greater amount.”

This year’s festival theme will be “A Frozen Renaissance Faire.”

“We are the first faire of any kind to do something in the winter,” said Kaplan. “I think that will bring a lot of attraction.”

Welcoming the event

Day one of the festival will kick off with a parade, making its way through Clarks Summit at 7 p.m. and ending at the borough building. It will have several acts in it, making it one of the biggest parades Clarks Summit will hold.

“There is going to be a lot of different stuff in the parade, including Middle Age performers and live ice carvings, as well as many local businesses,” said Ancherani. “We try our best to get everyone involved.”

Following the parade will be a party at the borough building. It will run until 9 p.m., featuring entertainment by emcee and DJ Frankie Carll, as well as the Abington Youth Theatre Company, which created a special performance just for the festival.

The party will also feature several things to keep the children occupied: complimentary face painting, sword balloon demonstrations and storytelling with Chris Arcangelo.

“We tried to incorporate things that will be fun for all generations,” said Ancherani.

Frozen artwork

Throughout the festival, you will find more than 40 sculptures in front of various businesses. There will also be live carvings done by Mark Crouthamel of Sculpted Ice Works, which provided all the sculptures for the event.

“The sculptures will revolve around the theme,” said Crouthamel. “There will be things such as a sword in the stone and mythical creatures … a lot of fun stuff like that.”

The unveiling of the sculptures will take place during Thursday’s parade, where Crouthamel will be sculpting live atop a float. He explained that there will also be several demonstrations all day Friday and Saturday, starting at roughly 9 each morning.

“I love watching them carve the ice from start to finish,” said Archerani. “It is especially beautiful at night.”

Although Crouthamel will have a live audience while he carves away, he explained he doesn’t feel nervous at all.

“It took years to get comfortable with the artwork itself,” said Crouthamel. “Now I am able to give people what they are expecting to see.”

Traveling back in time

Middle Age reenactments will be performed by the Barony of Endless Hills, which is part of the Society of Creative Anachronism.

“We will have everything from fighting demonstrations to scientific experiments,” said BOEH member Ron Cudworth. “There will be a lot to see, and we will be in full character throughout the whole event.”

Performances will be throughout the festival on Feb. 14 from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Some specific acts are an 11 a.m. fighting demonstration, a mock duel at noon and a mock court at 3 p.m., all taking place outside the borough building.

“There will be a lot of unique things going on this year because of the Middle Age theme,” said Kaplan. “With all the people in outfits, riding horses and jousting … it will really be a magical thing.”

Love is in the air

Attendees will have a chance to enjoy their Valentine’s Day with a horse and carriage ride sponsored by Pocono Equestrian. The rides will run from 2-8 p.m., starting from the borough building and will be on a first-come/first-serve, donation-only basis.

Your own chauffer will take you around town to view all the sculptures as well as the Christmas lights, which have been left up for the event.

“It will really be a romantic ride,” said Kaplan. “It will be nice to go through the night, observing all the sculptures and taking it all in.”

Other holiday events include a “sweetheart caf�” at the First Presbyterian Church and complimentary champagne and chocolate from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. You can also head to the Abington Journal from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. and get your picture taken with Cupid.

For those of you looking to celebrate a different holiday, there will also be a special event honoring Presidents’ Day and Lincoln’s birthday.

“We were lucky enough to have the festival fall on Valentine’s and President’s Day,” said Kaplan. “We decided it’d be a nice idea to have activities revolved around those holidays.”

Abington Community Library will host its “Pick a Penny” event where you will have a chance to win a paperback book of your choice by matching the date on your “lucky Lincoln penny” to one of the dates on a list. That will take place from 4-6 p.m. on Friday, and 1:30-3:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Other unique events include an ice wine tasting at Chinchilla Wine & Spirits, tons of live music and complimentary treats all festival long. Maps of the festival will be available at Classic Properties/Biondi Franklin Insurance (790 Northern Blvd.) and Frontier Communications (304 S. State St.). Visit the festival’s Web site for a full list of events.

Kaplan made a point to mention all the appreciated hard work from the committee and sponsors.

“It’s a huge amount of work,” he said. “Without the committee and the sponsors, it wouldn’t be possible … we really have them to thank for everything.”

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Clarks Summit Ice Festival, Feb. 12-16 throughout downtown Clarks Summit. Cost is donation-based. Info: www.csfestivalofice.com, www.sculptediceworks.com, www.endlesshills.aethelmearc.net