St. Peter CSS Returns To the Showplace Stage With 'GREASE: The Musical'
/St. Peter Catholic Secondary School is set to return to the Showplace Performance Centre with the production of GREASE The Musical starting Feb. 15.
Peterborough Blogs
Nominate a Local Business to ‘Beat the Blue Monday’ with Showplace
/The Showplace Performance Centre presents Beat the Blue Monday, bringing free music performances to brighten workplaces across Peterborough on Jan. 16.
Photo courtesy of Mary Zita Payne.
Between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on the third Monday of the year, various local businesses throughout central Peterborough will have the opportunity to beat the Monday blues with various local talents.
“The third Monday in January is said to be ‘the most depressing day of the year,’ says Showplace in a press release. “The sub-zero temperatures, the lack of daylight, the arrival of our post-Christmas credit card bill. Don’t worry, Showplace is here to help!”
Photo courtesy of Showplace Performance Centre.
Kate Suhr, Melissa Payne and The Weber Brothers will be visiting nominated businesses on their lunch break to spread some light and cheer in the community through the sharing of art.
To nominate a local business, reach out to Showplace via email and tell them which business could use some cheering up. Remember to include the business name and address.
Visit the Showplace website for more information on Beat the Blue Monday and other event listings.
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St. James Players Enter Final Performances of Beauty and The Beast
/The St. James Players’ production of Beauty and The Beast takes the stage from Nov. 11 to 19, preparing for final nights of performances at the Showplace Performance Centre.
Photo courtesy of Natalie Dorsett.
After 127 auditions, director Natalie Dorsett says the chosen cast and crew take ‘local and amateur theatre to a whole new level.’
“We have 41 people in this cast and the level of enthusiasm and professionalism is all top-notch,” she says. “We were really able to get a cast that is super solid. Everyone had lived, breathed and ate Beauty and The Beast for the past six months without complaint.”
With a ‘beautiful mix’ of both experienced and first-time performers, Dorsett says the cast’s dedication towards the production was ‘unparalleled.’
She reflects on the story-telling skills of Whitney Paget, who plays Belle, and Andrew Little, who plays Beast.
“Their ability to story-tell and captivate an audience is unreal. It’s hard doing a show that has such iconic characters. You know what they look like, you know what they sound like, and we all know a lot of the music. So bringing that to life can be a little bit difficult because people are comparing you,” she said.
As for the ensemble and other supporting cast, Dorsett says they have ‘really come into the characters.’
“I mean, they’re playing a clock or a feather duster,” laughs Dorsett. “It’s the most asinine thing when you look at it but they’re absolutely unreal. They brought these characters to life.”
Photo courtesy of Natalie Dorsett.
Dorsett says she proposed the iconic Disney musical to the St. James Players in 2019. After two years of COVID-19 pandemic delays, the St. James Players’ group is finally taking the production to the stage.
“(Beauty and The Beast) is about loving somebody for who they are, not what they are. I feel like sometimes we lose that in life. It has connection and friendship. That’s what this show is all about,” she says. “We’ve stayed really true to the essence of what that story is however, we’ve put our own unique spin on it.”
From costumes and makeup to set design and choreography, Dorsett says the cast and crew worked together to bring the classic ‘Disney magic’ to their production.
“Shelley Moody did our makeup and she has taken a vision and surpassed every single expectation I had,” says Dorsett. “Belle’s yellow dress is so iconic, what (costume designers) were able to do with the dress blows my mind. Every night she comes out on stage I am practically in tears.”
Dorsett designed and built the set with the help of her husband.
“You’ll never see him on stage. He’s not a singer, he doesn’t dance, he’s so shy,” she remarks with a laugh. “But I am not.”
The family affair also includes her daughter, Lucy Dorsett, as part of the play’s junior ensemble.
“I feel like we were really able to take it to the next level, a level I didn’t even know we were going to be capable of doing when I had all these grandeur ideas,” says Dorsett about the production. “The picture we’ve been able to create is awesome and I am incredibly proud.”
Photo courtesy of Natalie Dorsett.
With a number of shows under their belt and the final performances on the horizon, Dorsett says she has enjoyed seeing the production come to life as an audience member.
“My job is essentially done now, but for the past six months it’s been my life and I’ve worked every minute of it,” she said. “To bring up the Showplace website and see it say “sold out”, my heart was just so full, it was wonderful. The cast and crew deserve that sold-out audience.”
The remaining tickets are $35 for adults and $32 for seniors or students and can be purchased online at tickets.showplace.org.
“I’m so grateful for Peterborough for coming out and supporting St. James Players. It’s been a humbling, great experience,” Dorsett says.
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St. James Players Presents Disney's Beauty and the Beast Musical at Showplace
/The St James Players’ production of Beauty and the Beast is running for eight performances at the Showplace Performance Centre from Nov. 11 to 19, announced on Monday.
Photo by David Tuan Bui.
After an over two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, St. James Players are taking the stage for the all-ages performance of the iconic Disney musical.
The production is being directed by Natalie Dorsett and includes an all-local cast, with Whitney Paget as Belle and Andrew Little as the Beast.
Tickets are available at https://www.showplace.org.
Tribute Band Against the Wind Bringing the Bob Seger Experience Back to Peterborough
/Tribute band Against the Wind is bringing the Bob Seger Experience back to Peterborough on Sept. 24 at 7:30 p.m. on the main stage of the Showplace Performance Centre.
Photo courtesy of Against the Wind.
The group consists of an eight-piece band, lead singer and three female backup singers in the band. The show will play through five decades of Seger jams such as “Night Moves”, “Roll Me Away” and the Grammy Award-winning hit “Against The Wind.”
The Toronto-based tribute band’s “Heartland Rock” performance guarantees an authentic vocal portrayal of Seger-Rock.
“(The audience) is going to get a very high-calibre representation of Bob Seger’s music,” said Jeffrey Dean Goldstein, Against the Wind’s drummer. “It’s energetic, it’s tight, it’s powerful. The show is very well-paced.“
He says Against the Wind emulates the same Seger-style rock performance Bob Seger and The Silver Bullet band, a group Seger formed in 1974, would give the crowd.
“It’s going to be a feel-good type of experience because when people hear this music they think back to their youth,” explained Goldstein. “There’s so many things that people did in life to this music, and (the show) brings back these memories.”
For the younger crowd, Goldstein assures the calibre of the high-energy show will entertain them.
“People will be up in the aisles dancing, like they do at every show, and singing along. That’s what we encourage,” he said.
Photo courtesy of Against the Wind.
Goldstein formed the tribute band in 2012. He says he’s been a Seger fan since he was 13.
Due to COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns, the band was unable to tour for the last couple of years and say that they are happy to be back now in 2022.
“Peterborough’s been wonderful to Against the Wind,” said Goldstein. “We played at Musicfest in 2018 and we’re trying to get a spot for next year. We used to play at Market Hall, we performed there three times and we were very well-supported.”
Doors open for the show at 6:30 p.m. and it will start at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets are available online or contact the Showplace box office at 705-742-7469.
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Showplace Performance Centre Stage Receives Brand New Flooring
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Over the course of a year, the stage floor at Showplace Performance Centre sees a lot of foot traffic. Performances with a full cast, dance competitions, and stage props and sets being wheeled on and off the stage can really wear out parts of the floor.
Whelan's Flooring Centre graciously stepped up to replace the 18-year-old stage floor, and in return the stage will now be known as the Whelan's Flooring Stage.
Canadian stand-up comedian Ron James—who also has a show there on October 25th & 26th—even dropped by to raise a glass and toast the occasion as well!
We're floored by this news—congrats Showplace!
[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]
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St. James Players "White Christmas" Opens At Showplace
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St. James Players are performing the broadway production of Irving Berlin's White Christmas, and it kicks off Friday (November 16th) at Showplace.
Your beloved holiday favourite is back! Make your days merry and bright by warming to this unforgettable musical about love and friendship. Based on the classic holiday film, this tap-dancing delight brims with tunes—including “Blue Skies,” “Sisters,” and the ever-popular “White Christmas”—that will fill you with the joy of the season.
There are shows on the 16th, 17th, 18th, 22nd, 23rd and 24th.
[Contributed by PtboCanada's Evan Holt]
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Peterborough Symphony Orchestra and Peterborough Pop Ensemble Will Rock You
/Check out the Peterborough Symphony Orchestra and the Peterborough Pop Ensemble as they perform the music of Queen with the rock band Jeans 'n Classics at Showplace Performance Centre this Saturday (June 11, 2011). Tickets are $50.
[Contributed by PtboCanada's Julie Morris]
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"Canada Rocks" Makes A Stop in Peterborough (Which Also Rocks)
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Canada Rocks is a musical tribute to our history from the 1950s to the present. It will be playing one night only at Showplace Performance Centre this Monday (May 30th) at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $20 for adults/seniors, and $6 for students. Come on out and experience the journey that has brought us to today!
[Contributed by PtboCanada's Julie Morris]
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Stuff to Do in Peterborough This Weekend
/Friday
The Art of the Turtle, Peterborough Public Library, 7 p.m. - 10 p.m. Tickets $20 for members/$30 for non-members.
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels presented by The Peterborough Theatre Guild, Showplace Performance Centre, 8 p.m. Tickets $25/Adults, $22/Senior, $15 Student
Saturday
Walk to Cure Huntington's Disease, Registration 9 a.m. at City Hall
Giant Indoor Yard Sale, Peterborough Armoury, (220 Murray Street) 9 a.m. -1 p.m.
Red Pashmina Walk, starting from the Silver Bean Cafe, 10:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Dancing with the Docs - Disco Fever, The Venue, 6:30 p.m.
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels presented by The Peterborough Theatre Guild, Showplace Performance Centre, 8 p.m. Tickets $25/Adults, $22/Senior, $15 Student
Sunday
2011 Walk of Hope, Beavermead Park, Registration 9:30 a.m.
Humanwave, Showplace Performance Centre, 1 p.m.
Sean McCann with Jeremy Fisher, Gordon Best Theatre, 7 p.m. Tickets $26 at Moondance
To submit info for "Stuff to do in the Patch This Weekend", email evan@ptbocanada.com. Follow us on Twitter @Ptbo_Canada.
