Great news came down the pipe this week.
The ever-enthusiastic Rien Vesseur of the Mercury Players had been desperately looking for a particular actor for The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and was finally able to report: “Update: We have our Christopher! Thanks, everyone who auditioned.”
Theatregoers had been waiting with bated breath after a post on Facebook: “It looked like we had the lead roll cast but unfortunately the actor had to cancel. We are now urgently looking for a young male (possibly a female, if boyish in voice and demeanour) between 16 and, say, 26, who could take on this challenging but very interesting role of Christopher, a 15-year-old boy who is on the autistic spectrum. We decided to go with someone at least 16 years old because there is some profanity and the play is rather dramatic in places.”
Now, we can all await the upcoming production of this intriguing work.
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Jennifer Lawson has passed along a notice saying that because the opera on Jan. 12 is three and a half hours long, her “artist’s reception and talk” about the display of her art work on the walls of the theatre gallery will be held from 1:30 to 4:30 p.m. that day.
The wine bar will be open, she says.
“It was a huge show to mount and it will be another three year gap before I can get another show there.”
She’ll love to chat with you about the favourite paintings and new work she has on display there.
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I’ve had a couple of notes put aboard a paper boat and sailed down to Duncan from Chemainus lately.
The Chemainus Valley Cultural Arts Society is holding a country concert and dance on Feb. 9.
It all takes place at the Chemainus Legion, starting at 7:30 p.m. So, who’s on stage?
Those great entertainers: Wayne Montgomery and Montgomery County.
Tickets are a mere $10 per person.
“There will be refreshments and a bar, with plenty of space to listen to the great music, or to dance to it. Tickets will be available at the door.”
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Cowichan Hospice’s film series at the Cowichan Performing Arts Centre has really been attracting big crowds of late.
Great shows are the answer.
Tickets for Three Identical Strangers, on the big screen Monday, Jan. 21 at 7 p.m. are already at a premium.
Tickets are $14 for general admission, and $9 for students and rows A-C.
This multi-award winning show is set in New York of 1980. Three complete strangers accidentally discover that they are identical triplets, separated at birth and adopted by three different families. The 19-year-olds’ jaw-dropping, feel-good story instantly becomes a global sensation and their joyous reunion catapults them to international fame, but the fairy-tale reunion sets in motion a series of events that unearths an extraordinary and disturbing secret.
No wonder everyone wants to see it. Want tickets? Hurry to https://ctcentre.bc.ca/TheatreManager/1/online?performance=2474
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Salt Spring Island singer songwriter Marianne Grittani hasn’t released a recording since her West Coast Music Award nominated Into the Shimmering in 2000.
She’s long overdue for another.
On Sunday, Jan. 13, The Marianne Grittani Quartet will be recording a live album at the Duncan Showroom at 7:30 p.m. The show will feature her ‘California Suite’, written last year on a road trip south, as well as some of her most popular work from the past 18 years.
If you’d like to be part of the audience to hear this veteran folk/roots artist, you can get tickets in advance for $10 at the Showroom in Duncan, or call 250-748-7246 for a reservation. You may also get tickets at the door for $13.
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The Lonely, featuring the music of Roy Orbison plus hits of The Traveling Wilburys and The Everly Brothers, takes the stage at the Cowichan Theatre Saturday, Jan. 19 starting at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets are $48.50 for this tribute to The BIG O, who was unmistakable for his trademark sunglasses, his distinctive, powerful voice, and the emotional ballads we all love.
From 1960-64, Roy Orbison landed 22 songs on the Billboard Top 40, including ‘Only The Lonely’, ‘Crying’, and ‘Pretty Woman’ plus such hits as ‘Dream Baby’, ‘Ooby Dooby’, ‘Blue Angel’, ‘Blue Bayou’, ‘You Got It’ and ‘In Dreams’.
Orbison also contributed his genius to The Travelling Wilburys and The Everly Brothers, and these efforts are also included in the show.
lexi.bainas@cowichanvalleycitizen.com
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