The Sage Valley Voices Community Choir had their audiences singing along at their “Sixties with a Twist” concerts on April 24 and 25, 2010. The choir got into the spirit wearing a variety of costume styles from Kennedy chic to Mod to Hippy.
Left: Tamara and Brad get their groove on performing House of the Rising Sun.
Left: Choir members Carolyn, Linda N., Bernice, and Linda B. take advantage of summery day in April to tie-dye their own T-shirts for the concert.
Left: Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikinis. Who are these masked ladies? They’ll never tell.
Juno award winner Shari Ulrich sings about finding her son in her new release ‘Find Our Way’. She is touring the Okanagan with a stop in Oliver. Be sure not to miss this amazing performer! You will be in for a treat!
Wed. May 26th, 7:30 pm,Quails Nest Art Center34274 – 95th St. (past the RCMP Stn.)Tickets $22.50Available at Handworks Gallery, Main St., Oliver, B.C.Or call 250-868-8255 to charge by phone
Joining Shari on tour are special guests daughter Julia Graff (violin, piano, accordion, mandolin, vocals) and partner Bill Runge (piano, bass, accordion, soprano saxophone).
Originally a California girl, BC Entertainment Hall of Fame Inductee and Juno award winner Ulrich’s career took her through the Pied Pumkin and The Hometown Band to become a Canadian solo artist who continues to inspire audiences, and set the bar for two generations of female singer/songwriters.
The multi talented singer, songwriter and instrumentalist is now joined on her solo shows by her 19 year old daughter Julia on violin, piano, guitar and vocals along with partner and Jazz great Bill Runge. She continues to tour and record with the Pied Pumkin, Ulrich Henderson Forbes, and recently with Barney Bentall and Tom Taylor. She also composes for film and television and produces the Vancouver Bluebird North concert series for the Songwriters Association of Canada.
In August of 2007, Juno-winning recording artist Shari Ulrich spontaneously signed up for one of those web sites that helps reunite adopted children with their birth parents. Within 48 hours, she was talking on the phone with the son she had handed over at the unwed mother’s home 39 years earlier. She had been barely 16 at the time. The joyful reunion is chronicled on “By the Grace of Goodbye,” one of the highlights of Ulrich’s new CD, Find Our Way—her seventh solo album and her first ever fully self-produced project. Best of all, the May 7th CD release concert at the Rogue Folk Club will see the whole family perform together for the first time—including son Mike Magee, who, it turns out, plays percussion.
A member of the B.C. Entertainment Hall of Fame, Ulrich has absolutely nothing to prove as a singer, musician or composer, so to say that Find Our Way maintains the consistency of her previous recordings is a compliment of the highest order. That she achieves this having taken control of the production for the first time is a toast to both her skill and—she says—to the influence of the producers she worked wit along the way.
Ulrich, who has always been exceptionally generous about sharing her personal joys and sorrows with her fans—whether in her lyrics, on her web blog, or in her public advocacy for survivors of assault—offers more glimpses into life and family on Find Our Way, sharing thoughts and stories that countless others will be able to relate to. “(Now You’re) Gone” is inspired by her daughter Julia’s leaving home to go to university. “Life Goes On” and “Everlasting Great Regret” are reflections on life’s unexpected turns. “What She Left for Us” is a tribute to her late mother. Then, of course, there’s “By the Grace of Goodbye,” a moving number that avoids both sentimentality and melodrama while tackling a subject that has been surprisingly under-sung-about.
The arrangements on Find Our Way are a true family affair, with violin parts performed by Ulrich’s daughter, Julia Graff, and piano and bass lines provided by her partner, jazz legend Bill Runge. Ulrich herself plays guitar, mandolin, fiddle, piano, cello and accordion. Additional contributions come from friends Barney Bentall (harmonica), Karen Savoca (percussion) and David Celia (guitars), among others. The classic roots instrumentation provides a tasteful backdrop for Ulrich’s voice, which is every bit as pure and expressive as it was in the 70s, when, as a member of Valdy’s Hometown Band, she first won audiences over with her rendition of Joe Mock’s “Flying.”
Transplanted from San Rafael, California during the height of the flower child era, Ulrich made a name for herself in Canada as a member of the seminal West Coast folk outfit, Pied Pumkin. Her breakthrough came when she joined the Hometown Band, with whom she won a Juno for Most Promising Group. She went on to release two solo albums with A&M Records and one with MCA, earning a second Juno—for Most Promising Female Vocalist of the Year—and two subsequent nominations for Best Female Vocalist. When the majors released her from her contract in the wake of corporate mergers, Ulrich began recording as an independent artist, while also pursuing a wealth of other projects. She produced segments for Sesame Street, wrote and hosted CTV’s Inside Trax, co-hosted Futurescan with David Suzuki and composed for film and television. Ulrich has recorded three independent albums and released a Best Of compilation. She is also a member of the folk supergroup UHF, along with Bill Henderson and Roy Forbes. Most recently, she has been recording and touring with Barney Bentall and She Stole My Beer’s Tom Taylor.
The South Okanagan Concert Society has recently signed contracts with musicians of exceptional talent for their 2010-2011 season. The time is now to get your season flex pass at early bird prices.
Opening the season are Andi and Peter Alexander, singing a programme of “Opera Spice and Everything Nice” on Thursday October 14, 2010. We can expect a fun-filled evening of fabulous song and crazy antics by two performers who have a true love story. They will entertain you with their wit and wisdom and their vast repertoire of operatic arias and duets from The Magic Flute, La Boheme, Carmen, La Traviata and favourite songs from Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables, Sweeney Todd and more.
Andi Alexander, Mezzo Soprano, is an accomplished singer, stage director and producer. Her previous opera roles include the roles of “Suor Dolcina” in Puccini’s “Suor Angelica” and Dorabella in “Cosi Fan Tutte Unhinged.” She is in demand as a soloist in oratorio; highlights include Messiah, Elijah and Schubert’s Mass in E-Flat, Mozart’s Requiem and Beethoven’s Mass in C.
Peter Alexander, Baritone, has opera roles including Zuniga in Carmen, Belcore in Elixir of Love, Antonio in The Marriage of Figaro, Schaunard in La Boheme, and Frank in Die Fledermaus. Opera Canada magazine recently stated “Peter Alexander dominated the evening by exhibiting excellent vocal command eminently suited to the Baroque period,” for his performance of the title role in Pimpinone. Oratorio highlights include Elijah, Messiah, Haydn’s Creation and Carmina Burana.
On Friday November 19, the audience will be treated to the lively music of Daniel Gervais, who plays in a variety of fiddle styles as well as classical violin, performing with special guest, stepdancer Aline Dupuis. Aline has 15 years of training at the Edmonton School of Ballet, and is a skilled step-dancer and choreographer.
Daniel has also appeared on countless television and radio programs such as Good Morning Canada and various CBC broadcasts. In November 2002, he travelled to London, Ontario to receive the Conservatory Canada Speake Medal of Excellence for Grade 8 Strings for having attained the highest mark in Canada.
Daniel was honoured to have competed at the Canadian Grand Masters Fiddle Championship in August of 2003, representing Alberta. In 2004, Daniel returned to this competition and was a top eleven finalist.
In the spring of 2003 Daniel released his debut album Flying Fiddle. Daniel’s second album entitled Endless Possibilities was released in April 2005.
He was recently nominated for “Young Performer of the Year” at the Canadian Folk Music Awards.
Concert pianist Sara Buechner performs on Friday january 14, 2011. She is a dazzling pianist and witty speaker, with a gregarious personality that leaps from the stage. In informal concerts she will chat delightfully about her cosmopolitan range of interests — from baseball and classic cartoons, to New York art deco architecture and Japanese kabuki — to connect with her audience on an intimate level, and make her music a personal and enchanting experience for everyone.
Her extensive repertoire includes over 100 different piano concertos spanning the breadth of keyboard music from Bach to the music of prominent composers of our time. Her affinities range from Mozart (InTune magazine: “the closest thing to a perfect disc of Mozart piano music known”) to Chopin to Japanese music to Ragtime, Novelty Classics and Gershwin.
She is Associate Professor of Piano and Piano Literature at the University of British Columbia.
The Foothills Brass Quintet returns to our stage on friday March 11, 2011. Since 1981, their trademark performance style has combined quality, entertainment, variety and high energy. Five wersatile and exceptional musicians perfoirm on two trumpets, a tuba, a trombone, and a French horn. Expect a delightfully aclectic and accessible program. Those who have heard them perform in the past will surely be back!
Early bird 4-way flex passes are on sale for $50 until May 31st at Miss Molly’s Quilt Shoppe in Oliver and at Imperial Office Pro in Osoyoos. The regular flex pass sale starts June 1 for $60 for four tickets. The four admission pass allows one person to attend 4 concerts, two people to attend two concerts, or four people to attend one concert for maximum flexibility. Single entrance tickets are $20 throughout the year.
Young people 17 and under are always welcome for FREE at every concert.
All concerts are held at the Frank Venables Theatre, Oliver (in Southern Okanagan Secondary School on 350th Ave) and begin at 8 p.m. The venue is wheelchair accessible.
Handworks Gallery exhibits fascinating and stunning works by individuals with acquired brain injury. The 15 artists represented in the exhibit attest to the success of the popular Relaxation through Art program, which encourages the brain injured to develop their artistic skills. The South Okanagan Similkameen Brain Injury Society (SOSBIS) has offered Relaxation through Art to its members since May 2000, as part of their psycho-social program.
After acquiring a brain injury, patients are faced with physical and cognitve deficits such as loss of motor skills, reduced concentration, faulty memory, or inability to talk. They must then learn to make physical and cognitive changes in a world which often has no patience for disability. Art becomes a powerful tool to cope with stressors, express thoughts and feelings, and improve brain function. Member artists attest that they have gained “patience, self-confidence, encouragement, friendship, and pleasure” from their artistic endeavours.
It is a special pleasure for Handworks Gallery to be presenting the artwork of individuals who have an acquired brain injury. Ken Ballyntyne, vice chair of the SOSBIS and a brain injury survivor, adds: “What many of the participants didn’t realize is that they show real talent. The art they have produced and are showing at Handworks Gallery is indeed excellent. The show is worth your time to view it. ”
Drop by the gallery from April 6 -28 … and be prepared to be inspired!
Due to a double-booking in Osoyoos, the South Okanagan Amateur Players are rescheduling their spring production of Rumors. The comedy still opens in Oliver on April 15 – 17 at the Frank Venables Theatre at SOSS highschool. The Osoyoos dates are now April 22 – 24 at the OSS Minitheatre.
Anyone who purchased tickets for Osoyoos already (April 8 – 10) can do one of the following:
1. return them to place of purchase for a refund
2. see the play on the same evening of the later week, keep their ticket, but just write the new date on it (say, Thursday 8th changed to Thursday 22)
3. exchange the tickets at the vendor or the door for a different evening of the week (say, Thursday 8th to Friday 23rd).
or contact SOAP@telus.net or olivercac@gmail.com for assistance and information.
The plot: Four couples arrive at a New York residence to celebrate the 10th wedding anniversary of the deputy mayor of New York. They find the wife Myra missing along with the servants, and the host lying unconscious in an upstairs bedroom suffering from a superficial gunshot wound. The couples represent some of the most powerful institutions in the state: the legal, financial, and medical professions, the media, and politicians. So, how do they handle a potentially explosive, gossip-laden situation? By spreading rumors and lies, of course. Be prepared to laugh as things go from bad to farce.
After two months of rehearsals, the cast and production team are still cracking up laughing at the humour, which is a good sign that audiences can expect a very funny play. Who’s involved? Ted Osborne (Sound of Music, 2008) directs. A very capable newcomer to SOAP is assistant director and stage manager, Christine Rothwell. The ensemble cast includes several actors who’ve joined SOAP within the last two productions, Sand Mountain (2009) or Sound of Music (2008): Aimee Grice, Paul Everest, Patrick Turner, and David Badger. We welcome back Sera Lean (All in the Timing, 2003) after a too-long hiatus from SOAP. And two newcomers to the stage join the troupe: Garth Robinson and Calgary snowbird Paul Butler. Rounding out the cast are longtime SOAPers Penelope Johnson, Diane Gludovatz, and Jen Jensen.
Cool mod to protest songs to California -dreamy beach songs, to groovy psychedelic … the Sage Valley Voices takes you on a magical mystical tour of the sixties at their upcoming concert: Sixties with a Twist! You can expect the choir to get their groove on wearing tie-dye T-shirts and headbands or mod suits with narrow ties. This group is always sure to entertain.
Paul Butler, a visiting snowbird from Alberta, is taking the plunge. Not off the diving board or hurtling from a ski jump, but something almost as daring. An early retiree from the forest product industry with no previous acting experience, Butler is taking centre stage in his first theatrical production. He joins the cast of Rumors by Neil Simon, a comic farce presented by the South Okanagan Amateur Players (SOAP). The same playwright also penned the comedy classics California Suite and The Odd Couple.
“My wife and I saw all the posters around town advertising the audition, and I thought, why not?” The production runs Thursday April 8 to Saturday April 10 at the OSS Minitheatre (Osoyoos), and Thursday April 15 to Saturday April 17 at the Venables Auditorium (Oliver). The dates suited the Butlers’ holiday in the Okanagan, and so, much to the surprise and amusement of his wife, Paul auditioned and won a role.
At left: Four desperate dinner guests play “Ones and Twos” to determine who will have to impersonate their unconscious host when the police arrive. The actors (left to right) are Garth Robinson, Paul Butler, Paul Everest, and Patrick Turner. Photo: Penelope Johnson
Butler plays “Ernie”, a psychoanalyst who is one of eight dinner guests invited to the tenth anniversary of the deputy mayor of New York. When the first couple comes on the scene, they discover the hostess is missing, the servants have disappeared, and their host is lying unconscious with a bullet hole through his ear. As guests continue to arrive, the attempted cover-up becomes more complicated and rumors run wild. When the police inevitably turn up, the socialites become desperate to maintain the facade, and the evening dissolves into deception and impersonation with hilarious results.
“It ends up like a case of the patients running the asylum,” chuckles Butler, taking his cue from his role as the shrink. At first, his character keeps a professional calm, but as the tension mounts, Ernie’s composure begins to crack and he joins in the frenzied physical comedy.
Butler admits rehearsals are a “big challenge”: learning stage right from stage left, how to stand and move in such a way as to remain visible to the audience, how to memorize lines, how to listen and react naturally to other characters. It’s a lot for a new actor to absorb. But director Ted Osborne gave him kudos at a recent rehearsal. After Butler delivered a particularly emotional speech, Osborne spontaneously jumped up to applaud: “That was fantastic! You absolutely nailed it! Keep it up!”
Judging by the nods and smiles from the rest of the cast, they agree: Butler’s daring plunge into acting has been worth it.
Tickets for Rumors are $15 adults and $12 seniors, and are on sale now at Your Dollar Store with More (Osoyoos) and Sundance Video (Oliver). The curtain rises at 8:00 p.m., all performances. For more information, contact 250-498-3597 or SOAP@telus.net
The South Okanagan Concert Society presents the final two concerts in their 2009-2010 series. All concerts are at the Frank Venables Auditorium, Southern Okanagan Secondary School on 350th Avenue. Tickets are available for $20 at Miss Molly’s on Main Street Oliver BC or at the door.
EZEADI ONUKWULU AND ONE HUMAN RACEFriday, February 5, 2010
Ezeadi’s charismatic presence, versatility and soothing voice have endeared him to audiences. Ezeadi is an innovator, motivator and instigator in the African and World Music scene.
Ezeadi’s music, based on traditional Igbo rhythms, evokes the spirit of highlife and afrobeat with a splash of funk, jazz, blues and reggae. The lyrics are prayers and appeals to universal consciousness and our conscience to make the world a better place for all.
His unique mastery of the pennywhistle, other instruments and vocal styling will take you to beautiful new places.
“This music uses gentle African rhythms and bubbling vocals to deliver peaceful idealism emphatically. It is new kind of African roots based world music cooked and ready to be served to the world from British Columbia.” – The Province
VANCOUVER CHAMBER CHOIR
Friday March 5, 2010
The Vancouver Chamber Choir is Canada’s outstanding professional vocal ensemble. The choir impresses audiences with the depth and range of their repertoire and interpretive skills.
“… When it comes to unearthly beauty and awe-inspiring power, they’re a pretty fine mortal approximation of how celestial singers should sound.” – North Shore News
“Jon Washburn’s Choir remains at the forefront of Canadian vocal ensembles. ….“Canada’s leading professional vocal ensemble.” – Toronto Star
“…the choir’s performance… began with admiration and finally left you in awe.” – Vancouver Sun
After a brief hiatus during the fall, the South Okanagan Amateur Players are back treading the boards this spring with a production of the comedy Rumors by Neil Simon. The prolific and award-winning playwright also penned The Odd Couple and California Suite.
Rumors is set at a posh dinner party to which several of New York’s socialites have been invited. When the first couple arrives, they discover that the hostess is missing along with the household staff, and that their host, the deputy mayor of New York City, has shot himself through the earlobe. Neither host nor hostess makes an onstage appearance during the entire play. As the evening progresses and more dinner guests arrive, wild rumours begin to circulate about their hosts’ marital problems. Comic complications arise when, given everyone’s upper class status, the couples decide they need to conceal the evening’s events from law enforcement and the media. As confusion and miscommunication mount, the evening spins off into classic farce culminating in an hilariously befuddled explanation to the police.
Director Ted Osborne, last at the helm of SOAP’s production of The Sound of Music, is looking for a cast of 10 adults. Four men and four women are needed to play the dinner guests, ranging in age from 30s to early 60s. Two smaller parts are available for the police officers arriving on the scene, one middle-age man and one younger woman. No previous theatrical experience is required.
Production dates are tentatively set for April 8-10 in Osoyoos and April 15-17 in Oliver. Actors must be available for a minimum of two rehearsals a week beginning in mid-January, but times and locations will be negotiated according to cast schedules. Closer to production, rehearsals may increase, as required, to three times per week.
Auditions are on Monday January 11 at the Osoyoos Art Gallery (upstairs) on 8713 Main St., and on Tuesday January 12 at the Quail’s Nest Arts Centre, Studio Building, 34274 95th St., Oliver, just south of the Fire Hall. Both auditions run from 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. No prepared monologue is necessary. Actors will be reading from the script. Drop-in auditions are welcome, but hopeful actors are encouraged to stay for as much of one evening as possible to work through a variety of roles with other actors.
For more information, or to arrange an alternate audition time, please contact director Ted Osborne. Volunteers who would like to assist backstage with construction, set painting, costumes, or crew, are asked to contact producer Jennifer Mapplebeck. Both can be reached by emailing SOAP@telus.net
The Sage Valley Voices present “Merry Christmas!” Concert Saturday December 12 7:00 p.m. Sunday December 13 2:30 p.m. Oliver United Church Admission: $8.00 Donations to the foodbank welcome Admission includes tea, coffee and goodies after the performance.
The Sage Valley Voices present “Merry Christmas!” Concert Saturday December 12 7:00 p.m. Sunday December 13 2:30 p.m. Oliver United Church Admission: $8.00 Donations to the foodbank welcome Admission includes tea, coffee and goodies after the performance.
MC Stephanie Salsnek introduces the Penticton Concert Band and conductor Gerald Nadeau to Oliver’s Frank Venables Auditorium. The concert, a fundraiser for the Oliver Community Arts Council, was quite the success and the crowd definitley enjoyed the outing.
On the crisp clear nights of winter, we look up to see cold twinkling stars, close enough to touch. Our eyes and our dreams rise heavenward, to the music of the stars. “A Starry Night” opens with the Penticton Concert Band performing the Star Wars Medley.
Back on earth we have stars of our own. Composers whose music glitters and sparkles and doesn’t fade with time, evoking the glamour of a bygone age. The Penticton Concert Band plays Gershwin classics guaranteed to put stars in your champagne glass.
Stars of stage and screen are evoked with music by 70’s soft rock band Bread and the film Shaft. Romantic hits like Bread’s “Baby I’m-a Want You” and “Make It with You” will put stars in your eyes. Composer Isaac Hayes became a star himself, winning the Academy Award for Best Original Song from the Shaft soundtrack. We’ll hear a medley from the band, including guest R&B guitarist Kyle Anderson (of The Amazing Rubber Band).
Rounding out the first half of the programme is a medley from one of the best loved musicals with “star ” in the title: Jesus Christ Superstar. Soprano Liz Harris is featured in “I Don’t Know How to Love Him”.
The second half of the concert is dedicated to one special “starry night” , with a number of Christmas favourites ranging from traditional carols to jazzy seasonal numbers.
After you leave the concert… don’t forget to look up at the sky. You’ll sure to be making a wish on one of the brightest stars : that the Penticton Concert Band will be back again soon!
Proceeds from the concert will fund Oliver Community Arts Council programs. During these economic hard times, the council is especially grateful for this support from another arts organization. We are truly “banding together for the arts”.
Penticton Concert Band presentsA Starry Night
a fundraiser for the Oliver Community Arts Council
Tuesday November 24, 20097:30 p.m. Frank Venables Auditorium. SOSS Highschool, Oliver, BC$10 Adults $5 Students (17 and under)Tickets at Handworks Gallery and Sundance Video, Oliver
“Banding Together for the Arts”
EZEADI ONUKWULU AND ONE HUMAN RACE
Friday, February 5, 2010
VANCOUVER CHAMBER CHOIR
The Sage Valley Voices present
