THE ESSENTIAL A&E PICKS FOR MAY 22 - MAY 28 

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Soldier Hollow Classic Sheepdog Championship & Festival
In 2024, after a 2023 hiatus during venue renovation, the Soldier Hollow Classic Sheepdog Championship & Festival returned to Midway, moving from its previous traditional Labor Day weekend time frame to Memorial Day weekend. But despite more than a year off, the fun was still on full display as crowds filled the bleachers to watch the fascinating sight of a sheepdog guiding a herd of sheep down a mountain, through various gates and into a pen, all while guided by a handler from great distances using only voice and whistle commands

A display of this ancient art of wrangling working dogs is back again this Memorial Day weekend, as more than 40 handlers from the U.S., Canada, Ireland, Wales, South Africa and Switzerland—including returning 2024 Gold Medalists Scott Glen and "Pip"—take on the challenging course. In addition to the competition taking place throughout the four days, the event includes a full festival, complete with children's activities, petting zoo exhibitions of activities like sheep-shearing and weaving, agility-course demonstrations, vendor booths, a beer garden and food.

The 2025 Classic takes place at Soldier Hollow Nordic Center (2002 Soldier Hollow Lane, Midway) May 23 – 26, 8 a.m. – approximately 4 p.m. daily. Tickets are available online, with prices $12 ages 5 – 17, $22 adult and $17 senior age 65+, and on-site each day for $3 additional per ticket; family passes are also available for $70 - $80 that admit up to two adults and four children. Visit soldierhollowclassic.com to purchase tickets and for schedule and additional event information. (Scott Renshaw)

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Utah Symphony: Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique
In December 2024, when Markus Poschner (pictured) spoke to City Weekly about his then-recent appointment as Artistic Director Designate for Utah Symphony, he talked about the connection he felt to the Symphony musicians during his first visit to conduct here, in 2022. "In music in general, it's never about wrong and right," Poschner said. "There are so many options and possibilities to interpret a symphony. And in the end, it's always a question of trust in the conductor, this bond of trust, how to get more meaning, more emotion. ... You realize you're speaking kind of the same language musically."

Maestro Poschner and the Utah Symphony once again get a chance to show off the way they speak that same language when the conductor—fresh off of a busy spring conducting in Europe—comes to Abravanel Hall to oversee a program headlined by Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique. The 1830 composition offered a then-revolutionary approach to incorporating narrative into a symphonic work, telling the story of a heartbroken artist who takes too much opium and experiences drug-fueled hallucinations, full of murder, execution and a commune of witches. It shares the evening with For a Younger Self, a new concerto by contemporary composer and Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker Kris Bowers (Bridgerton, Green Book) featuring violin soloist Charles Yang.

Utah Symphony's program featuring Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique comes to Abravanel Hall (123 W. South Temple) May 23 – 24, with performances at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $14.50 - $100; visit saltlakecountyarts.org to purchase tickets, and usuo.org for additional program information. (SR)

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Scandinavian Heritage Festival
With all the Jensens, Christensens, Hansens and the like who populate the state of Utah, it can sometimes feel like the Venn diagram of "23 & Me reports of Utahns with Scandinavian heritage" and "inhabitants of Scandinavia" is a single circle. It's certainly true that folks with roots in Sweden, Norway and Denmark are a big part of the state's overall makeup, and every year, the city of Ephraim brings a focus to that reality with its biggest-of-its-kind-in-the-American-West Scandinavian Heritage Festival.

This Memorial Day weekend is no different, with two days of entertainment, information and general merriment. Events include the annual Heritage Conference with history talks, art exhibitions, car show, chalk art and demonstrations of vintage trades like leather-making and blacksmithing. Live performances feature storytelling, traditional Scandinavian music from Madeline LeBaron, the Valhalla Viking Rock Opera Showcase, and music headliners like the ABBA tribute band ABBAFAB. A Scandinavian Village offers plenty of crafts to peruse and purchase, while dozens of food vendors provide sustenance for visitors. If you're feeling particularly participatory, you can even sign up for the pickleball tournament, tennis tournament or—I am not making this up—a wife-carrying contest (marital status and gender-specific carrying not enforced).

The 2024 Scandinavian Heritage Festival takes place in various venues—including Snow College's campus (150 E. College Ave.) and Pioneer Park (42 N. 100 West)—on Friday, May 23 (approximately noon – 9 p.m.) and Saturday, May 24 (approximately noon – 6 p.m.). Events are free and open to the public. Visit scandinavianfestival.org for full schedule and additional event information. (SR)