Imagine for a moment reliving a simple family Christmas of decades gone by: The family gathers around the radio while snow falls outside. In this cozy room, candlelight sparkles on the tinsel, glass ornaments shine in the reflected light of the fireplace and the family sings along to beloved Christmas classics while stockings hang from the mantle awaiting the arrival of jolly Saint Nick.

 The world may have changed a lot but popular Vancouver Island singer Ken Lavigne hopes to bring the past to life this winter as he tours the Island, B.C.’s Interior and Alberta with his freshly-revamped second annual Ken Lavigne’s Christmas Musical Roadshow.

 Ken and his road show crew will be in Oliver on Sunday, December 4 at 7:30 on at the Frank Venables Theatre. Buy tickets online here.

 “This is year two and we are so excited. It’s a throwback to the golden age of live radio, evoking the sounds of radio drama, with special sound-effects, and presenting a Christmas story, putting our own modern spin on it, Lavigne says. “We will be dressing the stage as an old time radio studio, as best we can. It’s entertainment, sharing stories and the Christmas spirit – which is all about joy.”

Lavigne, who has charmed his way into the hearts of concert goers across North America with his exciting blend of classical tenor sound and modern style, was a founding member of The Canadian Tenors and co-founder of the successful tenor trio ROMANZA, and has been touring and recording solo since 2008. He has performed at Carnegie Hall, worked extensively with famed producer David Foster and toured across North America.

A lifelong fan of the festive season, the multi-faceted entertainer can be counted on to showcase Christmas favourites, ballads, show tunes and classical crossover hits as well as telling funny and touching seasonal tales.  “Everybody has their favourite Christmas songs and you can’t do them all. I think I know my audience pretty well now and know what they are going to like,” he says. “The beloved classics such as White Christmas and Deck the Halls will be well represented – Blue Christmas may make an appearance as well.”

 As well as getting ready for tours, Lavigne has been busy recording this year.

Grab a mug of hot chocolate and have a listen to one of Ken’s Christmas songs by clicking here. Beautiful! 

Cindy Church, Caitlin Hanford, Gwen Swick, and Sylvia Tyson are Quartette and they are coming HERE for Christmas. Medici’s and their co-sponsors, Oliver Grandmothers for Africa, are bringing them to the Venables Auditorium on December 7th. 

Since their debut in 1993, the four members of Quartette have been both publicly and critically acclaimed for their lush harmonies and delightfully diverse repertoire. These incredibly talented women are seasoned singer/songwriters whose influences range from blues and gospel to folk and country to jazz and pop.

The ladies have two Christmas CDs under their belts, “A Quartette Christmas.” and “It’s Christmas!” They deliver a unique blend of Christmas music in their trademark harmonies for a show that is truly reverent. They are, more than anything else, ultimate professionals.

If you were lucky enough to catch them in an intimate concert setting at Medici’s two summers ago, then you know just how good they are. We could have sold out that show 2 or 3 times over, so we are moving to the big venue at Venables to give you the concert of the season. 

An evening with Quartette is always magical and oh so amazing. Come have one of those!
Quartette performs at the Frank Venables Theatre on Wednesday, December 7th at 7:30 PM. Tickets are $45 each and seating is assigned. Get yours quickly at the Venables box office, online at venablestheatre.ca or at Medici’s at 522 Fairview Road. 250-498-2228