Songs Strings
& Steps presents
Home for ChristmasFeaturing: Calvin Dyck and the Abbotsford Youth Orchestra
Jubilate!, directed by Larry Nickel
The Pilkey Sisters, Courteney Rodda, MEI Drumline, Mel Bowker
Stage Direction: Sylvia Friesen
Friday, December 20, 7 p.m.
Saturday, December 21, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.
Central Heights Church, 1661 McCallum Road, Abbotsford
Tickets at House of James and Kings Music (Abbotsford and Chilliwack) and by calling 604-853-5996
Just steaming along - Home for Christmas!
By Rosemary Phillips
It’s time to pack the suitcases and get to the station for a musical
journey Home for Christmas! You won’t want to miss the train in this
spectacular Songs Strings & Steps production. On board: over 150
performers; dancers, actors, singers and musicians. The station: Central
Heights Church, 1661 McCallum Road, Abbotsford. Scheduled departures: Friday,
December 20 at 7 p.m. and Saturday, December 21 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.
Destination: Home for Christmas.
All aboard! Directed by Calvin Dyck and staged by Sylvia Friesen
with a host of exceptional talent, Home for Christmas takes the audience on a
memorable journey – as in days of not long ago – by steam train. Featured are
the sights and sounds of the station, the old fashioned ticket wicket, the
train and its steam, porters, ticket punchers, and of course, a conductor
(played by guess who?). The passengers include the soaring strings of the
Abbotsford Youth Orchestra, the embracing voices of Vancouver’s Jubilate choir
conducted by Larry Nickel, the ever entertaining pianist Mel Bowker, the
youthful charm of the Pilkey Sisters, jazz singer Courteney Rodda, dancers, the
popular MEI Drumline – and the audience.
The schedule: From its departure with Polar Express, and I’ll
Be Home for Christmas the train stops along the way with so many
traditional and new favourites like White Christmas, Song for a
Winter’s Night, Christmas in Killarney and the Christmas Waltz
(with dancers). Says Calvin, “We still have traditional carols such as Little
Drummer Boy, I Heard the Bells, and
For Unto Us a Child is Born.” Upon arriving at the final stop – everyone
will sing the inspiring O Holy Night.
Passenger participation and the Carol Contest: If there’s
one thing the Songs Strings & Steps team loves, it’s audience
participation. “Along with travel experiences, we have several sing-alongs, and
the return of the highly successful Carol Contest,” explains Calvin. “The
audience has three carols to vote on during intermission. Two of the carols are
by local Fraser Valley composers, Stan
Gubiotti and Joyce Janzen,
and the last by Gail Poulsen from
Ontario. In addition to prize money, the winning carol will be
published. A jury selected the top three submissions to be performed during
Home for Christmas. This year the audience can even vote by iPhone, and the
winner will be announced during the Saturday evening performance.”
Surprises: “We always have to have surprises,” adds Calvin
laughing. “My wife Heather, Sylvia and I started planning this show six months
ago, dreaming about what could happen. We also asked the cast and the youth for
their ideas. So yes, there are surprises. And at the end of the concert as
everyone leaves the station, they get a special treat. Yes, it’s a surprise!”
Tickets: To be sure of your seat on this exciting trip Home
for Christmas, visit your local musical travel agent (House of James and Kings
Music and by calling 604-853-5996) before
tickets sell out.
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