SUMMER AT BANFF CENTRE
Events galore for 85th birthday
What began as a single drama course in 1933 has grown into a world-class arts organization with myriad programs and schools catering to thousands of students and creators.
The Banff Centre is celebrating 85 years this summer and has more than 125 events planned, from music concerts, jazz workshops and outdoor opera to classical and modern dance. Ninety-four events are free to the public and tickets for the others are now on sale at banffcentre.ca/events
The summer season kicks off with multiple Juno-winner Serena Ryder who performs in the Eric Harvie Theatre on June 14.
That’s followed up by the Shaw Amphitheatre Outdoor Concert Series with eight diverse performances in June, July and August. Highlights include: Xavier Rudd (June 16); Blue Rodeo (July 6); trumpet virtuoso Jens Lindemann (July 22); electronic dubstep musicians A Tribe Called Red (July 29); and blues rock group The Sheepdogs (Aug. 4). The summer program will also feature 12 new commissioned works and world premieres by masterclass composers: George Lewis, Tyshawn Sorey and Chris Derksen, a Juno Award-nominated cellist from northern Alberta.
Opera will continue to be a big draw this summer with the groundbreaking Orphée+ July 12 and 14. The classical tale will be told through a modern lens and features the first global and virtual chorus. Opera students in the Banff Centre’s Opera in the 21st Century program will mount Candide on July 15. And the everpopular #OperaPub will run June 15, 22, 29. This brings Opera to the Banff Legion for the fifth year.
More music will flow in August with the Jazz and Creative Music Series. Internationally acclaimed artists Sorey and Vijay Iyer will lead participants in nearly nightly shows at The Club.
Dance lovers will want to check out The Hamlet Complex, July 2628. The artistic director of dance at the Banff Centre, Emily Molnar, will guide participants in the Creative Gesture Dance Residency in a reworking of the classic Shakespeare tale.