By Dan White – Special to the Sydenham Current
As I write this Joni and I are in La Peche, Quebec visiting our niece.
You may recall Laura from earlier columns.
She has been battling leukemia and was engaged in encouraging people to get swabbed to register as stem cell donors.
For those wondering, Laura found a match but is currently managing her disease and, while she is often quite tired from side effects of the meds, she is doing well.
This column will discuss upcoming shows and a quick review of one we just attended.
I will begin with upcoming shows.
This fall there is an abundance of great shows to see locally.
Theatre Kent is presenting Jesus Christ Superstar November 14-16.
This is a wonderful show and I have spoken to friends involved in the production and the show is already sounding great.
This will be mounted at the Capitol, get your tickets early.
From Theatre Sarnia, Cinderella will play mid-September and again, I have spoken to friends in TS and seen videos of the rehearsals in progress.
It looks amazing, and I’m not just saying that because my nephew Ryan Metzler is a lead in the show.
The construction of the props is well underway and this is going to be a spectacle that you, and your little ones, will not want to miss.
I’m sure Dave will be updating the community regarding the Wallaceburg Concert Band as there are a few new gigs this fall.
Watch for information on the WCB Facebook page or in Dave’s column.
Joni, myself, Bill Hainer, and Gavin Warren are resurrecting the Octoberfest Quartet for this October.
We cobbled the group together last year when the quintet was unable to play at a gig and it was such a hit, and so much fun, that we decided to do it again this fall.
This time, we have a few new charts that will feature Gavin and we will be looking to play at several locations throughout C-K.
Actually, we have already been asked to play in Sarnia, so maybe it will be the Octoberfest world tour, 2024.
Watch for dates and locations in the coming weeks.
If meeting incredibly talented visual artists is something you would like, plan to take in the CKACN Studio Tour on September 28 and 29.
It has 31 artists showing their work in several studios across C-K.
It will be a great day, you will be inspired, awed, and engaged by these wonderful C-K artists.
Put it in your calendar now.
Before I forget, in my next column I will be highlighting opportunities for youth and adults to get involved in the arts as the new school year and routine return to our lives.
If you have or know young people who would benefit from arts opportunities or are looking to pick up your high school instrument or a pottery class, be sure to look for my September 4th column.
Fun fact, that day is also the 20th birthday of our cat Gracie!
If you offer classes for artists, please contact me at danlwhite62@gmail.com so I can follow up and give your program/course/class a plug.
Finally, Joni and I once more made the trek to Stratford.
This time it was to take in 12th Night.
A disclaimer here, Joni is a saint.
I love Shakespeare, so last December when we selected our shows, I wanted to see Cymbeline and 12th Night.
Joni is not that engaged by The Bard but happily agreed to include these two in our five shows.
I have seen Joni relax during Shakespeare to the point of, well… okay, she slept through more than a few minutes of some over the years.
But she never complains and it is always a lovely outing.
This trip to The Festival City we met up with our friend Mark Smith.
I have penned a column about Mark in the past: he is a scenic carpenter in Stratford.
We had a great visit prior to the show and even met a lovely elderly woman who was attending with a large group called the Stratford Seminar Society.
The four of us chatted about all things Stratford until just before the show when we were surprised with a ticket upgrade to the 4th row from the stage.
It was amazing.
Even more impressive, Joni liked the show so much she didn’t nod off.
She was engaged and we both loved it.
It was funny, moved along at a good pace and the entire cast was wonderful.
The standouts for us were definitely Jessica Hill as Viola, Laura Condllnas as Malvolio was hilarious.
Deborah Hay as Feste was spectacular, her singing was exceptional, comedy brilliant, and she stitched the components of the story together beautifully!
Rylan Wilkie as Andrew and Scott Wentworth as Sir Toby Belch played off of each other brilliantly and their comic timing was delightful!
Director Seana McKenna brought together the whimsy of this story and highlighted it with exceptional music throughout – in a play that opens with the line, “If music be the food of love, play on” it truly needs an outstanding score to bring that line home, and this production did not disappoint.
Next up for us is Something Rotten which we are attending with our family.
We have heard nothing but rave reviews and can’t wait.
There are still great deals to be had for this season.
Look for them online, sign up for email notifications or call the box office – they are always incredibly helpful.
