Lots to do this weekend in Niagara!

Even though the weather doesn't hold out much promise other than the fact we'll likely lose most or all of our remaining snow over the weekend, we have lots of entertainment to take in as we celebrate the great indoors in Niagara!

First off, tomorrow morning (Saturday), Primavera Concerts celebrates the International Women's Day Centenary at St. Barnabas Church in St. Catharines, with three short concerts celebrating the achievements of women in the arts: music, painting, sculpture and cuisine. Concerts are by Musathena, featuring baroque and renaissance music and a specially-commissioned setting by Elizabeth Raum of a poem celebrating Queen Elizabeth I; the Oriana Women's Choir will be heard in a programme of works by contemporary Canadian composers such as Ruth Watson Henderson and Eleanor Daley; and finally, soprano Agnes Zsigovics, accompanied by flute and piano, will perform music by Hildegard von Bingen, Handel and Vivaldi.

Lunch will be available, along with a brief talk about women and music by professor Karin de Bella of Brock University's music department. The event kicks off at 10:30 in the morning and runs to 3 in the afternoon. Tickets should still be available at the door at St. Barnabas prior to the start of the first concert in the morning.

Speaking of Womens' Day Concerts, Broadband's 19th annual celebration of women in music takes place Sunday afternoon at 4 at the Ukrainian Black Sea Hall at 455 Welland Avenue in St. Catharines, with Laura Thomas and friends entertaining for the afternoon. Proceeds go to Hospice Niagara and tickets are on a pay-what-you can basis, with the suggested price being $ 20 a ticket. Tickets should be available at the door, or in advance at Ryson's Music downtown and The Peanut Mill on Welland Avenue.

Saturday evening, the next concert by Chorus Niagara takes place at the Cathedral of St. Catherine of Alexandria at Church and Lyman Streets downtown. Titled "Sounds of Light", the concert, featuring the chorus along with members of the Niagara Symphony conducted by Artistic Director Robert Cooper, will feature visual projections selected by film and culture historian Joan Nicks, and inspired by the textures and themes of light expressed in the music to be performed at the concert.

Speaking of music, the concert features choral works from Canada, the United States, Latvia, New Zealand and Russia, with the centerpiece being the lovely Lux Aeterna by Morten Lauridsen. Also featured will be music by the American composer Eric Whitacre, whose music is featured on the newest Naxos release by the Elora Festival Singers, conducted by Noel Edison. The disc, nominated this year for a Grammy award, is available through my website, www.finemusic.ca, and is well worth having in your collection if you love great contemporary choral music.

Tickets should be available at the door, or in advance through the Brock box office at 905-688-5550, ext. 3257.

Finally, although the opening is still a week away, I wanted to get the interest going early for the latest production by Lyndesfarne Theatre Projects, who peform at the Sullivan Mahoney Courthouse Theatre in downtown St. Catharines. I was down there this morning for a media preview of the new play, John Buchan's The 39 Steps, and from what little I saw rehearsed today, we're in for a fun evening's entertainment starting next Saturday evening. Basically it is Monty Python meets Alfred Hitchcock, so that should give you an idea how far-ranging the play is. The cast of four, featuring jason Cadieux from Essential Collective Theatre, Jon Osbaldeston, and Lorne Kennedy and Jenny L. Wright from the Shaw Festival, runs through to March 27th.

I'll write more about this show once I attend a performance later this month, but if you are already interested and want tickets, call the Lyndesfarne box office at 905-938-1222.

So you see, lots to see and do in Niagara to kick off the month of March!

March 4th, 2011.