For nearly a half-century, the Saskatoon Fireside Singers have entertained and inspired audience members of all ages with their annual holiday shows.
This year’s Christmas Memories concerts are scheduled for Dec. 21 and 22 at 7:30 p.m., marking the 47th year artistic director Marilyn Whitehead has organized the popular productions. Taking to the TCU Place stage this year will be a choir comprised of about 80 to 100 voices, along with returning performers such as Guy Few, Allen Harrington and Kerry DuWors. This year’s special guest artist will be soprano Danika Loren. Bonnie Nicholson will serve as orchestral director, while Albert Couture will be the stage director and Kelsey Stone will be the choreographer.
The Christmas Memories concerts are among Saskatoon’s longest-running holiday entertainment traditions, predominantly featuring students from Whitehead’s private voice studio as well as her former students’ students. Grandparents and grandchildren have even served as members of the choir at the same time in past years. “It’s a large chorus of really dedicated, dynamic people,” Whitehead said. Joy is the theme for this year’s concerts, she said.
Whitehead wants her audiences to experience the inspiring, nostalgic, exciting and magical emotions associated with Christmas — and that goal helps guide her decision-making as she chooses the repertoire the singers will perform. “We do the whole gamut and every genre — from the traditional carols to some classics and some classical, to almost some country with choreo and fun,” she said.
Whitehead started the Christmas Memories program back in 1972 and has watched the concerts flourish each year since then. “It’s still a tremendously gratifying experience, so I guess it’s not a job yet,” she said. “It’s a passion still, so we still carry on.” Tickets for Christmas Memories can be purchased online at tcutickets.ca or by calling 306-975-7799.
almost 50 years. (Photo by Stephen Nicholson)
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Another highly-anticipated seasonal concert in Saskatoon is the performance of Handel’s Messiah. It’s a long-standing tradition for the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra (SSO) to perform Messiah during Christmastime. In fact, the SSO has performed the Baroque-era oratorio — composed in 1741 by George Frideric Handel — every year since the orchestra was founded in 1931. While Messiah tells the story of Christ, it’s become a favourite of people worldwide regardless of religious beliefs. This year’s performances of Messiah will take place on Dec. 13 and Dec. 14 at Knox United Church, marking the 106th year in a row the music has been performed in Saskatoon. Before the SSO began playing it, the Saskatoon Oratorio Society, the SSO’s precursor, performed Messiah for local audiences.
The Dec. 13 concert will start at 7:30 p.m., with Eric Paetkau serving as music director. Danika Loren (soprano), Lisa Hornung (alto), Spencer McKnight (tenor) and Adam Harris (bass) will perform, as well as the Saskatoon Symphony Chorus. On Dec. 14, the audience will take centre stage at an afternoon concert set to begin at 2 p.m. Members of the public will be invited to sing along, and the same soloists will perform as at the Dec. 13 event. However, the Dec. 14 concert will be a slightly shorter performance suitable for families.
For more information, or to purchase tickets, go online to saskatoonsymphony.org.
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Due to unprecedented advance ticket demand, the run for Persephone Theatre’s production of Elf: The Musical was extended before the show even opened. Elf: The Musical, directed by Sarah Rodgers and based on the popular film starring Will Ferrell and Zooey Deschanel, opened on Dec. 4 and will now run until Jan.
5, 2020.
The show stars Saskatoon actor and singer Felix LeBlanc as Buddy the Elf, as well other talented Canadian musical theatre artists and a locally cast children’s chorus. Like the movie, Elf: The Musical tells the story of Buddy, who was accidentally transported to the North Pole as a child. He is unaware that he is actually a human, although his large size and poor toy-making skills make it obvious that he isn’t an elf. With the permission of Santa Claus, Buddy travels to New York City to find his birth father and to discover his true identity.
In addition to LeBlanc, the cast of Elf: The Musical includes Alyssa Billingsley, Jacqueline Block, Rachelle Block, Janet Gigliotti, Taylor Hanley, Aerhyn Lau, Casey McMaster, Mark Oddan, Ben Thomas, Lindsay Warnock and Leon Wiley. Tickets can be purchased online at persephonetheatre.org or by calling 306-384-7727.
-Shannon Boklaschuk