Music, The Bard and Strawberry Shortcake In Hamilton This Week

Occasionally, you can pick just the right time to be in the right place. This week, that place is Hamilton for all sorts of music, entertainment and even strawberry shortcake. Actually, things started last weekend, with the annual Hard Times Bluegrass Festival south of town. The Conroys invited their favorite bands to the stage, tucked away just off of US 93.

Then, there's this week. Tuesday at noon at the lawn of the Ravalli County Museum, the weekly Tuesday at 12 free concert series brings back the "Big Sky Mudflaps," one of the Bitterroot's favorite bands. In the evenings Tuesday and Wednesday, a double-feature of "Montana Shakespeare In The Parks" at the Large Lawn of Sapphire Lutheran Homes, with A Midsummer Night's Dream Tuesday and Cymbeline on Wednesday - free each night at 6 p.m.

Thursday, the "Bitterroot Community Band" returns to the Daly Mansion Grounds with their annual Strawberry Shortcake fundraiser. Y'know, it costs the band money to get the sheet music and have some gas money for the equipment rig. So, they have one concert a year where they charge admission. This is it - $5 per person or $15 for a family. The music starts at 7 p.m. But the added feature is at intermission, when they serve up big helpings of strawberry shortcake for $3 each. If you plan right, you can head to the mansion, maybe at 6 p.m. or so, and bring along a picnic. Listen to the music that starts at 7, and then, for dessert, have the strawberry shortcake!

But, we're not done. Friday is the start of the Hamilton Downtown Association's Daly Days. The Friday night Street Dance will feature "Who Dat," another of the valley's favorite local bands. That starts at 8 p.m. at corner of 4th and Main.

Saturday, The Daly Mansion has music by the "Bitterroot Ragtime Society" at 11 a.m. However, at 1 p.m. the Bitterroot Brew Fest takes over the Mansion grounds, with "Andrea Harsell" at 2 p.m. and from Portland, Oregon, "The Quick And Easy Boys" at 5:30 p.m. It's $35 to get into the Brew Fest. All kinds of music and all kinds of fun this week and weekend at Hamilton.