Hard to believe the Canada Day long holiday weekend is upon us already! If like me you remember when it was still called Dominion Day in this country, well, award yourself an extra gold star today. If you are not currently on the road heading out of town for the weekend or worse still, in that two-hour lineup to cross the border at the moment I am writing this, you might be looking for something to do in the area to keep you entertained this holiday weekend.
Obviously, the big musical event this weekend is Saturday night in Niagara-on-the-Lake when The Tragically Hip headline the big concert at Butler's Barracks in the evening. It is not a sellout, so if you still harbour some masochistic tendencies that involve lineups that last forever and traffic like you wouldn't believe, go ahead and knock yourself out. It should be quite an event, but if you were relying on the promoters of the concert to come forward with lots of up-front information on the thing, well, as I found out this week, you had better just consult their website. They just didn't have the time to talk about it on the CKTB morning show this week, as I tried several times to book someone to do just that. But I digress...anyway, don't take blankets and lawn chairs as you can't use them, and enjoy the music if you get close enough to hear it.
That's not the only game in town this weekend, of course, but it has necessitated a program change for the Shaw Festival for Saturday evening. While afternoon performances will go ahead as planned today, the evening performances at all Shaw venues have been cancelled and rescheduled, because the traffic management plan would prove to be a nightmare for those trying to get to any of the theatres tonight. You can go to the Shaw website at www.shawfest.com/calendar to see the rescheduled dates for tonight's shows.
In St. Catharines tonight, there is an organ recital at the Cathedral of St. Catherine of Alexandria at the corner of Church & Lyman Streets beginning at 7:30. It may not be The Tragically Hip, but for those of us who go we can happily refer to ourselves as the tragically unhip, perhaps... The performers tonight, incidentally, are Dr. Gordon Atkinson, the former organist and music director at the Cathedral from 1981 to 1987, who now lives in his native Melbourne, Australia, and Christopher Trikilis, who also is based in Melbourne. Just think, they left the dead of winter down under in order to enjoy our hot summer weather here in Niagara! I will be introducing the performance this evening but not the music individually, as Gordon and Christopher will be doing that themselves, and if you go, it is a free-will offering concert.
The funny thing about Canada Day weekend this year is some of the events are on Sunday, July 1st, and others are on the statutory holiday, Monday, July 2nd. So we get to spread it over two days this year which is kind of nice; you just have to know which day your event is. The Niagara Symphony, for example, will be part of the City of St. Catharines' Canada Day festivities at Market Square downtown, with their annual free Canada Day concert from 4 to 5 pm. Guest artist is Lisa Brillon, from Phantom of the Opera fame, and Associate Conductor Laura Thomas will be leading the orchestra for the concert. Bring your lawn chair, even though there is no lawn, and enjoy the free concert at Market Square!
Finally, there are lots of 1812 events going on around the Region in the coming days and weeks, so you will not be able to escape the pomp and pageantry associated with the Bicentennial this summer. For example, the annual Friendship Festival in Fort Erie at Mather Arch this weekend is geared toward the celebrations, and the Fireworks displays over Niagara Falls this weekend will likely tie in to the celebrations as well. On July 5th, there is a Battle of Chippawa Memorial Ceremony planned at 7 pm at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 396 in Chippawa to honour those who served on the Chippawa Battlefield on July 5th in 1814. Throughout the summer, the RiverBrink Art Museum in the Village of Queenston presents RiverBrink's War of 1812 Exhibition through to October 28th. Included in the exhibition is the only known portrait of General Isaac Brock created during his lifetime. It is on loan from the States of Guernsey Museums and Galleries and is back in Canada for the first time in 200 years. That's reason enough to go to the museum this summer!
So there you go. Lots to see and do if you want to go out and enjoy the Canada Day holiday weekend. But one request I will make in closing: if you are celebrating the Euro Cup Soccer Final on Sunday, please be mindful of where you live on Monday and take down your flag of choice in soccer and put up a Canada flag. That goes for flags on cars, too. I think it would be a nice gesture to show support for the country you choose to call home now - Canada.
Happy Canada Day weekend!
June 30th, 2012.
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