Heads of for these upcoming treats:

Theatres might be closed, for the time being, but there is theatre out there worth checking out, on line.

Thurs. Jan. 20, 2022, 7:00

From the Stratford Festival on line…..

Henry VIII

Stratford@home.

Join our free prèmiere of Henry VIII on Thursday, January 20 at 7 p.m. EST, or become a subscriber and watch this production now, with unlimited access.

Watch this searing drama about one of the most fascinating, romantic, yet brutal periods in English history. When England’s King Henry (Jonathan Goad) falls for the young and beautiful Anne Boleyn (Alexandra Lainfiesta), he must somehow remove his beloved Queen Katherine (Irene Poole) from his life. As church and state collide, the King’s closest advisor, Cardinal Wolsey (Rod Beattie), suffers calamitous consequences, and the course of history is changed forever.

This was the last production that Martha Henry directed. It’s terrific and worth a look.

https://www.stratfordfestival.ca

Monday, January 24, 2022 beginning at noon.

From 4^th Line Theatre

Digital Festival of Light and Dark Programming Announcement

We are pleased to announce the programming for the 2nd annual Digital Festival of Light and Dark. The Festival has provided 10 regional artists with micro-grants to create five-minute digital showcases of their work. The Digital Festival of Light and Dark will launch online on January 24, 2022. The Festival enables audiences to engage with the artists’ creations from the safety of their own homes, through 4th Line’s digital gallery. The Festival is free of charge to watch.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel here

“We wanted to support local artists. That was the genesis for the idea which ultimately became the Festival of Light and Dark. These short, digital pieces will be a chance for 4th Line audiences to explore the nature of light and dark through the work of regional artists.” – Kim Blackwell, Managing Artistic Director

The projects encompass a myriad of artistic styles from experimental music to abstract painting to short film and more. The topics and issues explored include: the synesthetic experience of nature; fear of the dark; and finding the light within during the darkest times, to name only three.   The eight video projects will be released on 4th Line Theatre’s website and YouTube channel for viewing as of Monday, January 24, 2022 at 12:00 PM.   To view please visit 4th Line Theatre’s website at www.4thlinetheatre.on.ca/festival-of-light-and-dark, or on 4th Line Theatre’s YouTube channel.

Digital Festival of Light and Dark Details

This is a fantastic festival if last year’s iteration was any indication. Lots of talent in the Peterborough area.

Tuesday, Jan. 25-Feb. 1, 2022

From Thousand Island Playhouse.

A wonderful opportunity to see the whole 2021 season digitally. It’s a fundraiser for the AFC (Actors Fund of Canada), an important organization. Funds donated to AFC are used to help actors and other members through hard times, and these are hard times.

The line up is eclectic and first rate. I saw Sexy Laundry and Serving Elizabeth when both were performed live at the theatre.

Now you can see them digitally. With Serving Elizabeth  by Marcia Johnson, you have the added bonus of seeing Marcia Johnson in her own play playing Mercy.

Announcing: 2021 Replay   JANUARY 25 – FEBRUARY 1 4 PRODUCTIONS | AT HOME | ON-DEMAND | PAY WHAT YOU CAN

For one week only, stream all four productions from the 2021 Season at home.   Best of all, Pay What You Can to access the series. You decide on the contribution amount and all proceeds go to The AFC, a national charity with a mission to help Canada’s arts and entertainment professionals maintain their health, dignity, and ability to work.

To gain access to the 2021 Replay series, click the button below and donate to The AFC. After your donation is processed, a link will be sent to you by email where you can watch all four productions any day and any time from January 25 at 10am to February 1 at 5pm.

Sign Up to Watch 2021 Replay

2021 Replay: The Line-up

Sexy Laundry

Armed with a copy of “Sex for Dummies,” Alice and Henry check themselves into a trendy spa hotel with a mission: to jump-start their 25-year marriage. Can they embrace all the wild suggestions Alice keeps pulling from her handy-dandy marriage-saving manual? Is Henry prepared to see his fifty-plus wife, and mother of his children, dressed in black leather?

Back in ’59

Four friends attending their 10-year high school reunion sneak away to an old hangout to reminisce and remember the music of their youth. Join them on this nostalgic trip through the 50s and 60s featuring over 70 hit songs, including Let’s Twist Again, Leader of the Pack, and It’s My Party. This musical mashup features incredible harmonies, clever medleys, and snappy choreography.

Serving Elizabeth

Mercy, a Kenyan independence activist, is asked to cook for the visiting princess Elizabeth, who turns out to have a few surprises of her own. Sixty years later, the making of a TV series about the royal family causes more than a few culture clashes for a young Kenyan-Canadian production intern. A fresh, funny, and smart new play about colonialism, monarchy, and who is serving whom.

Miss Caledonia

It’s 1955, and Peggy Ann Douglas is hitching her wagon to the pageant circuit in the hope it’ll steer her from her farm to the bright lights of a Hollywood movie set. A play packed with baton twirling, big laughs, and some fantastic fiddle playing. This is a play for anyone who knows what it’s like to dream big and hustle to make it happen.

ABOUT THE AFC   Proceeds from 2021 Replay will support The AFC. The AFC provides vital services to our community in the areas of emergency financial assistance, mental health support, financial wellness, career sustainability, mental health first aid training, personal support and advocacy, and more. Find out more about their programs, one-on-one supports, peer groups, workshops and events at AFChelps.ca.   Donate to The AFC Today

Thursday, Jan. 27, 2022 7:30 pm

From the Harold Green Jewish Theatre Company

THE SHOAH SONGBOOK RETURNS WITH RARE
MUSIC FROM KOVNO AND VILNA GHETTOS,
SHOWCASING HOLOCAUST COMPOSERS
New concert includes historic songs virtually unknown to Canadian audiences, to be released on the anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz

Today, the Harold Green Jewish Theatre Company announced the
much-awaited return of The Shoah Songbook series. This time, the Likht
Ensemble transports listeners to the ghettos of Lithuania in Part Two:
Kovno/Vilna. The recital, to be released on January 27, International Holocaust Rememberance Day, is part of a series sharing rarely performed music by Jewish composers from the Holocaust.

Part Two: Kovno/Vilna features the first ever North American recording of Edwin Geist’s Three Lithuanian Songs; a premiere recording from songwriter Percy Haid; and original arrangements of Yiddish songs from the Kovno/Vilna ghettos by pianist and co-creator Nate Ben-Horin.

The Shoah Songbook Part Two: Kovno/Vilna will be presented on January 27th, at 7:30PM ET through”

https://www.hgjewishtheatre.com

The performance is free for all attendees, tickets are available now.
Note: Content may be sensitive for some audiences.