The 39th National Cowboy Poetry Gathering

The Gathering Experience

Shows

Open Mics & Jams

Livestreams

Western Mercantile

Workshops

Dances

Volunteering

Films

Special Sessions

Exhibitions

Youth Programs

Community

Schedule :

While the Gathering really ramps up Thursday through Saturday, the early-week experience is full of unassuming gems. Make a full week of it for all the Gathering has to offer—intimate evening shows, hands-on workshops, Wednesday night’s band extravaganza, and the delight of enjoying Elko before the crowds descend.

January 28, 2024

9:00am - 5:00pm :Rawhide

Doug Groves

In this four-day workshop, Doug Groves and his assistants will guide each student in creating a handsome set of leather reins complete with 12-strand rawhide romal, decorated and balanced with rawhide buttons. Learn Doug’s techniques for processing rawhide—from hide harvest to finished string. The camaraderie and cooperative learning among fellow braiders makes this a veritable celebration of rawhide! For beginning and intermediate experience levels.

January 29, 2024

9:00am - 5:00pm : BELT BASKET STAMPING

Mark Barcus

Mark Barcus of Cow Camp Saddlery combines his extensive experience working ranches and working leather with a passion for teaching and promoting handmade leather goods. Join Mark for this three-day class in which you’ll make your own basket-stamped, single-ply belt. Learn the subtleties of layout and tool control. And leave with a new appreciation for handiworking hides. If you took Belt Basket Stamping last year, this year’s version is a bit more advanced. For this class, you will need to bring a maul/mallet around 28oz, a swivel knife, and a basket stamp. Mark will help you choose the appropriate tools ahead of time. For intermediate levels.

3:00pm - 4:30pm : Perfect Pour

Nick Heguy

Throughout modern history, our obsession with the cocktail has been one of adoration mixed with innovation, weighing creative passion with our capacity for vice. We continue this tradition with an examination of the cocktail’s evolution over the decades and its impact on our own local history. Join us for this year’s installation of Perfect Pour at Duncan LittleCreek. Learn tips and tricks to create your own stunning libations. Take some poetic license on a few classic cocktails, and learn to make some of the DLC’s exclusive signature drinks with Nick Heguy. Must be 21+ with valid ID.

This workshop is also offered on Tuesday and Wednesday.

7:00pm - 8:30pm : RIGHT WHERE WE BELONG

Carin Mari, Olivia Romo, Forrest VanTuyl

Setting the tone for this year’s Gathering, this lineup packs a punch with poetry and music reflecting pride of place. Carin Mari’s musical storytelling is formed in the Rocky Mountains. Olivia Romo’s poignant poetics echo the feel of the Sangre de Cristos. And, Forrest VanTuyl’s cowboy music and verse gleans character from the Wallowa range. They may get their inspiration from very different high countries, but they get it. This evening sparkles with the real, relevant, rural sensibility that resonates in the High Desert. Right here, in this moment, the realization will hit ya, that you’re right where you belong.
Signed up for an early-week workshop? Don’t forget to request your discounts to the Monday and Tuesday night shows.

January 30, 2024

9:00am - 12:00pm : Write On!

Doris Daley

Story. Pacing. Originality. Revision. Technique. Sparkle. Doris Daley makes the case that writing cowboy poetry is like a sports event (maybe even rodeo, but in this workshop, nobody gets bucked off!). Natural talent is good; natural talent plus knowledge and hard work are even better. If you write in a traditional rhymed-and-metered style, this is the workshop for you. If you write in any style, this is also the workshop for you. Doris promises a fun experience that blends the “work” of poetry (pattern, meter, figures of speech, the importance of sound, editing) with the inspirational. For all ages and all levels.

9:00am - 12:00pm : Homestead Brunch

Jordan Wright

Do you love brunch? Well, look no further! Tuscarora, Nevada’s Jordan Wright shares some of his favorite recipes straight from the Wright Ranch. Once the early-morning chores are done, sometimes a homestead crew needs a little bit of special “looking after” for themselves. Join Jordan to create the ultimate mid-morning meal, including his very own creation of a cowboy coffee—a caffeinated Basque liqueur cocktail topped off with a dollop of homemade whip cream. (The cowboys might not be able to stomach the thought of scattering any more hay, but they’ll likely stomach this!) Next, get innovative with tortilla de patatas, starring hearty potatoes, fluffy eggs, and your choice of taste-tempting toppings. Pair this with a fresh salad, and now you are on your way to a delicious, fertile day.

1:00pm - 4:00pm : LIFE-LINES—AN INTRODUCTION TO NATURE JOURNALING

Sean Sexton

Cattleman, artist, and writer Sean Sexton has been keeping sketch-journals since 1973, drawn in word and image from his life working on his family’s Treasure Hammock Ranch in Florida. His journals have grown to 120 volumes to date, serving as a record of a lifetime of creative endeavors. This workshop intends to speak to and enable the writer and artist in you and reveal parallels in seeking inspiration from the natural world. Examples and discussion will draw from all sources of the past, including the Horn Island Logs of Walter Inglis Anderson, writings of Thoreau, Rilke, and Wendell Berry, and drawings of Vincent van Gogh. Your own Moleskine journal, pencils, and first assignment will be provided to start you on your way in what might become one of the most essential activities of your life.

1:00pm - 4:00pm : BASQUE COOKING

Choch Goicoechea & Carolyn Walther

Choch Goicoechea & Carolyn Walther will be the first to tell you that they are right where they belong. Having known each other since sixth grade, the Basque guy finally convinced the Irish gal to move home to Elko. In 2022, they bought local favorite Ogi Deli, and they’re honored to be teaching you the preparation of Basque seafood paella, sourdough sheepherder bread, and a green salad with a homemade Basque dressing. Enjoy your meal! On Egin!

1:00pm - 4:00pm : HOW TO: MUSIC DISTRIBUTION

Paige Callaway

In this course, Paige Callaway will walk musicians through the process of preparing and distributing their music. By gaining knowledge and abilities on how to distribute music, you will have an opportunity to spread your music worldwide and increase your following, while also creating a residual income stream. Follow along as one of your fellow musicians brings their music for a walk-through case study and learn how to apply this example to your own work.

Pair this with the How To: Music Marketing session and get both workshops for the combined price of $150.

3:00pm - 4:30pm : Perfect Pour

Nick Heguy

Throughout modern history, our obsession with the cocktail has been one of adoration mixed with innovation, weighing creative passion with our capacity for vice. We continue this tradition with an examination of the cocktail’s evolution over the decades and its impact on our own local history. Join us for this year’s installation of Perfect Pour at Duncan LittleCreek. Learn tips and tricks to create your own stunning libations. Take some poetic license on a few classic cocktails, and learn to make some of the DLC’s exclusive signature drinks with Nick Heguy. Must be 21+ with valid ID.

This workshop is also offered on Monday and Wednesday.

7:00pm - 8:30pm : HOME IS WHERE THE HORSES ARE

Juni Fisher, Amy M. Hale, Gail Steiger

What does home mean? For these three accomplished performers, home means the gentle nuzzle, soft nicker, and warm breath of a trusted partner. Home means a shared respect between human and animal that allows complex work to feel effortless. Home means starting fresh, riding hard, and cooling down together. Home means all the places we come from and the places we come back to…and, the horses we come back to. Juni Fisher, Amy M. Hale, and Gail Steiger share odes to steadfast steeds in this poetry and music filled evening dedicated to all the horses who feel like home.

Signed up for an early-week workshop? Don’t forget to request your discounts to the Monday and Tuesday night shows.  

January 31, 2024

9:00am - 12:00pm : POETRY & SENSE OF PLACE

Amy M. Hale

Join author, poet, and cowboy Amy M. Hale for a three-hour writing workshop to explore how sense of place informs our identity and voice when we come to the page. Amy writes from a place of intimacy with the land, embracing solitude, silence, and stillness, cultivating the discipline to show up at the page every day, even when she wakes up in cow camp. As we highlight the details of our experiences and particular spaces, we may find that we have more in common than the miles or weather or terrains that separate us. Come to this workshop prepared to write, prepared to explore both new and old definitions of our place in the world, prepared to face up to what both hinders and helps our practice on a daily basis.

9:00am - 4:00pm : ADAYATTHERANCH

Jon Griggs, Shane Sutton

Join retired Elko High School agriculture teacher Shane Sutton on this day-long trip to Maggie Creek Ranch in Nevada’s scenic high desert. On the bus, Shane will discuss issues of agricultural interest and importance. At the ranch, you’ll see firsthand how these issues play out on the ground, with a tour led by ranch manager Jon Griggs. The cow herd is close to headquarters during the winter, so you might even be treated to Jon giving his talk from the back of his horse Moose. And you’ll definitely be treated to some ranch hospitality! Following lunch, Casey Bieroth will discuss the history and value of the American Quarter Horse. Dress warm for winter weather, and don’t forget your mud-worthy shoes. Lunch included.

9:00am - 12:00pm : Beef & Baklava

Reem Odeh

Reem Odeh, proprietor of Odeh’s Mediterranean Restaurant, the cowboy-approved local joint known to have the best cheeseburger in town, leads this cooking workshop where the Mediterranean Sea meets the sagebrush sea. First up, learn how to make pistachio baklava. Baklava holds the distinction of being the most notable traditional dessert in the Middle East. Reem is constantly sought after for guidance on how to prepare this staple dessert which pairs great with Arabic coffee, any time of day! Then, learn to make the spiced beef dish known as kofta, prepared in the oven with potatoes and onions, and served with tahini sauce. Join Reem for a bit of beef, a bit of baklava, and a bountiful experience for your tastebuds.

9:00am - 1:00pm : HOW TO: MUSIC MARKETING

Paige Callaway

This course provides an overview of how to optimize online social media marketing for a cowboy singer-songwriter. Review key aspects for success with social media marketing, factoring in remote life and jam-packed schedules, to create a plan and direction as a busy musician. Paige Callaway will lead you through tips and tricks to stay connected, get your music out in the world, and keep cowboyin’.

Pair this with the How To: Music Distribution session and get both workshops for the combined price of $150.

1:00pm - 4:00pm : Katrina & Cara Parlato

Dining tables are one of the most important places of human connection—a central place to gather, share a meal, talk, and reconnect while cultivating a sense of kinship that lives on for generations. Sisters Katrina & Cara Parlato share recipes and traditions from their family restaurant, Parlato’s, which was a gathering place for ranchers, dairymen, farmers, and loggers (and all of their neighbors) from California’s fog-shrouded north coast near the Oregon border. Featuring Italian recipes made with locally sourced meats and produce, the Parlato family provided a place for the community to connect night after night over good food and drink for years. Somehow, they also managed to maintain the same for themselves, eating together each night at a "family table" while running the family business. Join Katrina and Cara as they share antipasti, cacciatore, polenta, lumberjack cake, and more. It’s the art of Italian dining, ‘family style!’

1:00pm - 4:00pm : THE WORLD IS AN ARENA

Juni Fisher

Don’t call Juni Fisher a cowgirl. She’s a horseman and entertainer! Bantering onstage with other songwriters and the audience, she learned to draw in and engage the toughest audiences. Training and showing cutting horses offstage, she’s learned to respond quickly and read a different type of audience. From “cow sense” to “people sense,” she’ll share with you some tricks of the trade. A multi-award-winning singer, songwriter, and entertainer who’s toured throughout the United States and Canada, Juni will teach you to hone your performance skills, sharpen your senses, and earn points in the “arena” of showmanship. Learn to banter and read a room like Juni, as you spend an afternoon together digging into the details of performance and why they matter to your audience.

3:00pm - 4:30pm : PERFECT POUR

Nick Heguy

Throughout modern history, our obsession with the cocktail has been one of adoration mixed with innovation, weighing creative passion with our capacity for vice. We continue this tradition with an examination of the cocktail’s evolution over the decades and its impact on our own local history. Join us for this year’s installation of Perfect Pour at Duncan LittleCreek. Learn tips and tricks to create your own stunning libations. Take some poetic license on a few classic cocktails, and learn to make some of the DLC’s exclusive signature drinks with Nick Heguy. Must be 21+ with valid ID.

This workshop is also offered on Monday and Tuesday.

5:00pm - 6:45pm : DINNER AT THE SAGARDOTEGI - Elko Euzkaldunak Clubhouse

Jordan Wright with Txori Baltza

Experience the delights of the sagardotegi, a Basque cider house, right here in Elko, where ranch country meets Basque country. Your guide for the evening, northeast Nevada rancher and chef Jordan Wright, turns his agricultural and culinary knowledge to the real star of the show–the apple. A dinner of exciting Basque delicacies awaits you. Learn about the ingredients and the dishes' significance to Basque culture, while being entertained by contemporary Basque dance company Txori Baltza, who showcase traditional ways of making sagardoa cider. You may even learn a few dances and the proper way to pour this Basque “apple wine.” Tickle your tastebuds and your spirits with the culture, drink, food, dance, music, warm hospitality, friendly company, and all-around sustenance of the sagardotegi. Txotx!*

Don’t know what this means? You’ll learn!

Fill up on dinner at the sagardotegi and still have time to catch The Big Band Show at 7pm.

Want to get your hands dirty? Sign up for a participatory Homestead Brunch workshop with Jordan, Tuesday at 9am.

7:00pm - 8:30pm : THE BIG BAND SHOW

Geno Delafose & French Rockin' Boogie, Sam Platts & the Plainsmen, Wylie & the Wild West

From Louisiana’s great bayous and Montana’s huge prairies, these three bands bring it big to the first big-stage show of the week. Warm up your Gathering haunches with the booty-shaking nouveau zydeco of Geno Delafose & French Rockin’ Boogie. Break in those dress boots with the toe-tapping, new-fashioned swing of Sam Platts & the Plainsmen. And, get downright raring to go with the body-bending newfangled country music of Wylie & the Wild West. These roof-raising (and cattle-raising) crews know their bunchgrasses and their cordgrasses…and, heck, they know a bunch of chords. You’ll have a hard time staying in your seat. Big swingin’, big yodelin’, and big boogie-in’—ain’t nothing small about these outfits. Or this show.

Febuary 1, 2024

11:00am - 6:00pm LEATHER WORKING BASICS

Mark Barcus

Mark is back with a basics-based class for the leather curious. Whether you are thinking about taking up leather working, or just want to make a cool project, this is the class for you! Make your very own neck scarf, or tie, hanger—just the thing to keep your wild rags tidy. Artisan Mark Barcus, leatherman extraordinaire, will guide you through the two-day process of stamping small designs into four pieces of leather and riveting them to a strip of leather that will hold up to 12 scarves or ties. All tools and materials will be supplied. For beginners (and those who want to go back to basics to corral some neckwear).

1:00pm - 2:15pm : COW COUNTRY BY THE SEA - Elko Convention Center Auditorium

Geno Delafose & French Rockin’ Boogie, Gary Haleamau & K?wili, Ismay, Sean Sexton (host)

A cowboy doesn’t have to see the open sea to smell it. Salt air wafts overland with a sense of boundlessness that, when mingled with the aroma of cow patties, does something to a person. Pushing the bounds while staying aground, these ocean-adjacent musical acts express their ranchiness with overtones from the bayou, the islands, and the “California Alps” (yes, the marine sensibility drifts that far inland). Geno Delafose & French Rockin’ Boogie, Gary Haleamau & K?wili, and Ismay bring the sonic waves with poetic interludes from Sean Sexton, the host from the “Treasure Coast.” Give this show the ocean sniff test. It’s sure to pass.

Become a member and get free tickets to this show!  

6:00pm - 7:30pm : IF YOU AIN'T LIVIN' - G Three Bar Theater

Kristyn Harris, Andy Nelson, Sam Platts & the Plainsmen

A bit ranchy, a bit retro, and a whole lot of real livin’. Fresh songsters Kristyn Harris and Sam Platts & the Plainsmen join seasoned bard Andy Nelson to dish up their day-to-day drama through cowboy poetry and western swing. Kristyn jazzes up her swing music with horse-y habits. Esteemed reciter Andy addresses his life as a cowboy and farrier. And Sam and the Plainsmen spin off-hand phrases from everyday ag work into rootsy country music. Want to know what their everyday life is all about? Listen up! As Andy says, “If you ain’t livin’, you’re dyin’.”

Sponsored by Alaethes Wealth, LLC

6:00pm - 7:30pm  : THE COWBOY VARIETY SHOW - Elko Convention Center Auditorium

Ned LeDoux, Waddie Mitchell, Henry Real Bird, Matt Robertson

Consider this your cowboy sampler platter. Get a little taste of some different flavors of what it means to be western. Nibble on Ned LeDoux’s musical country stylings. Take a bite of buckaroo aesthetics with Waddie Mitchell’s cowboy poetry. Soak up the spice of horses and Crow land with Henry Real Bird’s poetic musings. And, tickle your palate with Matt Robertson’s story-filled songwriting. It may seem like small bites, but these crooners and virtuosos of the range will leave you with an inexplicable sense of fullness.

8:00pm - 9:30pm : PRETTY RANCHY - G Three Bar Theater

Yvonne Hollenbeck, Annie Mackenzie, Carin Mari, Jessie Veeder

These ranch women are doing the work, and doing their thing—and they’re doing it pretty. From North and South Dakota to Oregon and Colorado, with a bit of ***** and a whole lot of style, they lilt, they lope, they rhyme, and they rope. Join poets Yvonne Hollenbeck and Annie Mackenzie, and musicians Carin Mari and Jessie Veeder, for an evening that’s peachy and punchy, and full of the beauty of hard living.

Sponsored by Alex Benna & Chrissy Menicucci Benna

8:00pm - 9:30pm : ALL ABOUT THAT BASS - Elko Convention Center Auditorium

Mike Beck, Lara Manzanares, The Quebe Sisters

Every crew has that one undersung player who keeps things moving along, steadily strumming in the background. But, sometimes they get their moment to shine. This one’s for the bassists. An evening of toe-tapping, rhythm-jumping slap-happy thumping, featuring tight-knit bands and their even tighter bass players. Mike Beck, Lara Manzanares, and The Quebe Sisters show off the saunter in their low lines with a musical extravaganza built on the back of that biggest, baritone-iest bull of them all, that western standard whether acoustic or electric, the one that puts the boom in the boom-chick—the bass.

Febuary 2, 2024

10:00am - 2:00pm : Hula

Sheldeen Haleamau with Gary Haleamau & K?wili

A good horseman knows the importance of voice and hand movements in conveying subtle communication. And, so does a hula dancer. Hula (Ha?a) is a Hawaiian dance form expressing chant (oli) and song (mele) through a dancer’s (??lapa) voice, facial expressions, hand gestures, and foot movement. There are two styles of hula—Hula Kahiko (ancient) prior to western influence and Hula ?Auana (modern) accompanied by musical instruments—which transmit legends, genealogy, history, and aloha of the Hawaiian people. Learning hula takes discipline, commitment, and attention to the detail of a composer’s thoughts and emotions...hula describes everything you feel, see, and hear…hula is life. In this hula workshop with Sheldeen Haleamau accompanied by Gary Haleamau & K?wili, you will learn basic hula steps and motions to a beautiful Hula ?Auana.

10:00am - 1:00pm : THE NITTY GRITTY GUITAR WORKSHOP

Mike Beck

As deft with a guitar as with a horse, musician Mike Beck says renowned horsemen Tom and Bill Dorrance could have been his music instructors because of everything they taught him about "feel." And, Mike credits Bill for helping him learn how to learn. Put this in-tune horseman knowledge to work on the strings, as Mike passes along some of his schooling. This workshop is open to guitar players and music fans who are interested in exploring what separates good playing from what Mike calls "surface work," a concept that can be applied to many parts of our lives. Mike's approach to playing music is the same as his work with horses—it needs to have feel and timing and balance...and some heart and soul, or it won't really reach the listener.

1:00pm - 2:15pm : FROM ALL OVER THE RANGE - Elko Convention Center Auditorium

Amy M. Hale, Sam Platts & the Plainsmen, R.P. Smith, Gail Steiger

What happens when you combine a musician and a poet from Arizona, a few plainsmen from Montana, and a humorist from Nebraska? You get laughs, smiles, and home-grown heartiness from all corners. From the Spider Ranch in Arizona, author Amy M. Hale and singer-songwriter Gail Steiger bring their best. From their sweep in Montana, musicians Sam Platts & the Plainsmen pack in tradition-inspired originals and honky-tonk standards. And from that vast expanse in the middle, R.P. Smith represents Pine Crest Ranch with rollicking rhymes and a few well-placed tugs on the heart strings. With talent from home places all over, this show is the place to be.

Become a member and get free tickets to this show!  

1:30pm - 2:15pm : YODELING101

Wylie Gustafson

Learn about the history of yodeling and the basics of how to use your vocal chords to call the cows home at night from master yodeler and musician Wylie Gustafson. As the voice of yodels used by many well-known media advertisements and the author of How to Yodel: Lessons to Tickle Your Tonsils, Wylie is perhaps the most recognizable yodeler in the internet world. But, his technique comes straight from the range. He learned to yodel from his cowboy-singer father and perfected his warbles and breaks on the high plains of his Montana ranch where he raises cows and cow horses. The foundations taught in this workshop will give you a solid start in the high art of cattle calling and mountain hollering.

2:00pm - 4:00pm : ZYDECO & CAJUN DANCE

Amy Mills with Geno Delafose & French Rockin' Boogie

There’s something joyfully infectious about the music of rural Louisiana. ‘Catch the bug’ with Amy Mills as you learn to jig to the ting-and-hum of Cajun triangle and accordion, and jitterbug to the driving, funky beat of zydeco. Experience the quick-stepping techniques in this workshop before hitting the dance floor later Friday night to boogie the night away to the incomparable Geno Delafose & French Rockin’ Boogie. This class is for everyone. Beginners are welcome, and you don’t need a partner to attend.

Show off your new moves later in the evening at the Friday Night Dance with music by none other than Geno Delafose & French Rockin’ Boogie.

6:00pm - 7:30pm : PAYING TRIBUTE - G Three Bar Theater

Annie Mackenzie, Waddie Mitchell, Terry Nash, Gail Steiger, Forrest VanTuyl

Attributing their words to those they admire, and contributing their wit to those who inspire, this group pays tribute to the poets and people who have influenced them. Poets Annie Mackenzie, Waddie Mitchell, and Terry Nash join musical poets Gail Steiger and Forrest VanTuyl to mix the cornerstones of their repertoire with an homage to the people who breathed life into them, from Gail I. Gardner to Drum Hadley. Whether retelling a classic poem or reminiscing about a classic person, this bunch brings you an evening of classics shaped by the voices of their families, their communities, and their muses.

6:00pm - 7:30pm : THE WHOLE BEEF - Elko Convention Center Auditorium

Andy Hedges, Brenn Hill, Andy Nelson

A little bit of everything! This show’s sure to satisfy your cowboy poetry cravings and keep you (and the crew) fed on beefy western music for the rest of the winter. So, bring your friends, divvy up the seats, and dig in for an evening of thorough cowboy sustenance. Feast on the all-round catalog of Andy Hedges, the tender-not-tough tunes of Brenn Hill, and the ribbing-and-wry humor of Andy Nelson. With this kind of variety, you’re sure to get your favorite cut.

8:00pm - 9:30pm : 'ROUND THE CAMPFIRE - G Three Bar Theater

Doris Daley, Ryan Fritz, Yvonne Hollenbeck, Matt Robertson

Starved for entertainment? These four show that sometimes you have to make your own fun! Riding in from their respective corners, these performers know the trials and travails of being isolated and landlocked. And, when the chores are done, the internet’s down (or nonexistent), and the neighbors are 100 miles away, they also know the joys of making their own merriment. Get creative with poets Doris Daley and Yvonne Hollenbeck and musicians Ryan Fritz and Matt Robertson. Shake off your solitude, circle ’round the metaphorical campfire, and get ready to feed the flames of a good time.

8:00pm - 9:30pm : LIFE WORTH LEADING - Elko Convention Center Auditorium

Trinity Seely, Dave Stamey, Wylie & the Wild West

“Some folks regret the lives they lead. Stare out windows and yearn to be free.” Then there are the other folks…the ones leading life wild and free. Whether you live unfettered and unrestrained, or simply daydream of the long ride, untie yourself and let loose with the genuine, invigorating sounds of these powerhouse musical acts. Trinity Seely guarantees free-spirited whistling and wit, none of that artificial intelligence. Dave Stamey embodies that western state of mind, no artificial reality. And, Wylie & the Wild West promise straight-up cowboy sugar, no artificial sweeteners. Ditch the stables. Blow the cubicle. Make your Friday worthwhile.

lyrics from Song for Jake, Dave Stamey

Sponsored by Oniya–Heart Brand Ranch

10:00pm - midnight : FRIDAY NIGHT DANCE

Geno Delafose & French Rockin' Boogie

When he’s not harvesting 200 acres of grass, Geno is coaxing couples to the dance floor with his low-slung accordion and killer backing band. From grass-cutting to rug-cutting, these Creole cowboys know how to pass a good time. With their red-hot rhythms and nouveau zydeco style, Geno Delafose & French Rockin’ Boogie bring you bayou-soaked boogie beats all the way from Louisiana. Melding Cajun and blues with a good dash of soul and country and western, this band is sure to spice up your two-steps, waltzes, and swing. Bring your best boogie spirit to the dancefloor—your feet will follow!

Does your boogie spirit need some coaxing? Try the Zydeco & Cajun dance workshop earlier on Friday at 2pm.

Febuary 3, 2024

10:00am - 3:00pm : TELLING A STORY WITH ART

Teal Blake

Join this year’s poster artist Teal Blake and spend the day sketching and painting while learning to illustrate your own handwritten letters. Teal will guide you through this watercolor class, taking inspiration from illustrated ledgers in the traditional vein (think Charlie Russell). As Teal shares examples and tells stories, you’ll learn why he paints what he does on each ledger and delve further into your own creative process while carrying forward this traditional method. This class emphasizes the minimalist approach—no easel necessary, you can do this anywhere on a book balanced in your lap. Materials will be provided and you’ll take home your own watercolor kit with board and brushes. All levels welcome—beginner to advanced.

10:00am - 12:00pm : FAMILY DANCE

Mike Cottle with Southwind

Activities where entire families can participate together are rare—but dancing can be an incredible experience for the whole family. Kids get a thrill from dancing with their parents, and parents remember forever those brief years when they get to dance with their kids. This workshop, led by Mike Cottle with live music by Southwind, will focus on family-friendly dances that are entertaining for children and adults alike—no experience necessary. So parents, bring your kids! Kids, bring your parents! We’ll have some big, big fun together!

1:00pm - 2:15pm  : RANCH FAMILY SHOW - Elko Convention Center Auditorium

Maria Lisa Eastman, Juni Fisher, Deanna Dickinson McCall, Trinity Seely

The theme for this show is one that will be familiar to ranch families—ranch things getting done by women with a proclivity toward horses! Join self-proclaimed “horse-crazy” poet Maria Lisa Eastman, cutting horse expert and musical performer Juni Fisher, writer Deanna Dickinson McCall who has horses in her veins, and “Horse Director” and songstress Trinity Seely for an afternoon of entertainment that never strays far from equine inspiration. Expect songs and rhymes about the ranch business of keeping the forelocked family members happy.

Making the trip to town just for this show? Consider sticking around and making an afternoon of it with Tearin’ It Up in Elkotown, which follows in the same venue at 2:45.

2:00pm - 4:00pm : Two-step

Amy Mills with Sam Platts & the Plainsmen

Are your boots already shuffling when you hear the boom-shik-ka of your favorite two-step? Do you love gliding across the floor with your sweetheart, but wish you had a bit more flair? If you find yourself looking over your partner’s shoulder trying to figure out that fancy move your neighbor is doing, then it’s time to take your two-step to the next level. Join Amy Mills, accompanied by Sam Platts & the Plainsmen, for a quick refresher on the fundamentals before jumping right in for some intricate spins and wraps, as well as pointers on rhythm and musicality. Bring your boots and your basics. No partner necessary.

A few new moves will keep you looking cool while you’re losing your cool at Saturday’s back-to-back dances, with Wylie and the Wild West at 10pm, followed by Jesse Dayne and the Sagebrush Drifters at midnight.

2:45 - 4:00pm : Tearin' It Up In Elkotown - Elko Convention Center Auditorium

Jesse Dayne & the Sagebrush Drifters, Ned LeDoux, Carin Mari

You came all the way in from the ranch, why wait until Saturday evening to tear up the town? Warm up with the best show to jumpstart a long night in the best little high-desert buckaroo outpost around. Get the afternoon bucking with Idaho’s own red dirt honky-tonkers Jesse Dayne & the Sagebrush Drifters, rodeo country royalty Ned LeDoux, and Colorado crooner Carin Mari. This show promises the melodic bucks of a roughstock ride, the rock and roll of a cowboy soul, and all the wild vibes of blowing your walk-around money the minute you hit town.

6:00pm - 7:30pm : HIGHLIGHTS OFTHEOPEN MIC - G Three Bar Theater

Back for a third year, the G Three stage hosts favorite performers from the week’s poetry and music open mics. You cast your votes and your votes cast this show. Selected by audience feedback, these wordslingers and tunesmiths—amateur and professional alike—speak (and sing) to the spirit of the Gathering. They demonstrate the value of participation, the vitality of tradition, and the sheer delight of self-expression. Drawing from the connections to life, land, and the lot of you, the evening’s performers lend credence to a Gathering credo: the voices in your midst can both entertain and enlighten…lend an ear!

6:00pm - 7:30pm : HUMOR & HORROR - Elko Convention Center Auditorium

DW Groethe, Jake Riley, R.P. Smith, Dave Stamey

There’s something about daily life in cow country and its, well…daily-ness…that cuts right to the truth of existence. It’s a rollercoaster of highs and lows, from the funniest of happenstances to the most horrifying of affairs. Hang tight for an evening of quotidian delight…and disaster…as poets DW Groethe, Jake Riley, and R.P Smith elevate the events of the everyday while musician Dave Stamey cuts to the core of the commonplace. It’s gut-busting. It’s gut-wrenching. It’s an unrestrained romp through the humor and horror of everyday agrarian life.

8:00pm - 9:30pm : FREE LIFE & FRESH AIR - G Three Bar Theater

Mike Beck, Margo Cilker, Forrest VanTuyl

These trail-worn troubadours find their stories in years on the road, and their songs in years of working together. Balancing wanderlust and rootedness, their sonic paths converge in a folky state of mind. With the slow dash and virtuosic danger of Mike Beck’s laidback Americana, and the sensory life of Margo Cilker and Forrest VanTuyl’s songwriting, their musical trails all lead back to the belonging found in free life and fresh air. As they sigh for the green beneath and the blue above, these roamers always return to the musical places they love.

8:00pm - 9:30pm : BACK WHERE WE BEGAN - Elko Convention Center Auditorium

The Quebe Sisters with special guests

Wrapping up a spectacular 23-year run, The Quebe Sisters bring it back to where they belong. From their beginnings as Texas State Champion fiddlers (yes, all three of them!), to their first Gathering appearance in 2005 (as teenagers, accompanied by their teachers Joey and Sherry McKenzie), to their current standing as world-touring western swing innovators, The Quebes have come a long way while staying true to their old-timey roots. It’s only fitting that they say goodbye to the old and hello to the new on the stage where they got their start. Join the sisters and their band, along with special guests, for this farewell performance which will be the Quebes’ last before they go on indefinite hiatus.

10:00pm - Midnight : SATURDAY NIGHT DANCE

Wylie & the Wild West

Whoop it up with Wylie & the Wild West at the first of the double-hitter dances Saturday night. Wylie and Co. will rev you up with their rugged yet refined rhythms. A little bit western swing, a little bit old-school country, a little bit rootsy rock, and a little bit yodel-ay-ay-cool, they hit all the right notes to orchestrate a stellar evening of bootie-scooting.

Saddle legs got you rusty on your own two feet? Check out the Two-Step workshop earlier on Saturday at 2pm.

Midnight - 2:00am : MIDNIGHT DANCE - G Three Bar Theater

Jesse Dayne & the Sagebrush Drifters

Before the cows call you home, enjoy one last dance, order one last call, and close out the Gathering with one last hurrah. Jesse Dayne & the Sagebrush Drifters will make the dancefloor the wildest of the west with their blend of outlaw country, renegade honky-tonk, twangy blues, and cattle-rustler soul. When you get home tomorrow, don’t tell the herd. What happens in Elko, stays in Elko.

New boots weighing you down? Get lighter on your toes at the Two-Step workshop offered Saturday at 2pm.

Date : January 28, 2024 - Febuary 3, 2024

Location : Various Location

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