May will be a month of music and mirth.
Shirley MacLaine, Neil Diamond, Crows among top acts in town
An acclaimed ballet, a Tony Award-winning play and one of the longest-lasting singer-songwriters from the ’60s are among the entertainment highlights you can check out this May in Edmonton.
Her songs are taught in songwriting courses in several universities, and she’s caught the ear of Bob Dylan and Tom Waits, but Mary Gauthier remains something of a cult figure. She’s performing from April 30 to May 2 at the tiny Blue Chair Cafe, and tickets will go fast. Speaking of Dylan, Counting Crows made their initial rep by name checking his Mr. Jones back in the early ’90s; they’ll be playing the Jubilee Auditorium on May 4.
Maybe he lied about staying forever in blue jeans, but Neil Diamond still rocks a glittery jacket like nobody’s business. Hopefully he’s still got that new beard! Diamond is at Rexall Place on May 5.
Joel Plaskett has a new album, The Park Avenue Sobriety Test, and he’s bringing it to Union Hall on May 9.
Speaking of new albums, Diana Krall’s Wallflower is full of soft-rock covers, and she’ll be performing chunks of it at the Jube on May 11.
They call it power metal, but Dungeons & Dragons rock might be a good way to describe Kamelot and Dragonforce, who are at Union Hall on May 12.
The opposite of Dungeons & Dragons rock might well be Brazilian metal icons Sepultura, who are on a 30th-anniversary tour that sees them at the Starlite on May 16.
Punjabi singer and actor Diljit Dosanjh is huge back in India and starting to make inroads with his music in North America; he’ll be at the Jube on May 18.
The non-stop good-times machine that is Doug and the Slugs (sans Doug, who died over 10 years ago) is parking at the Century Casino on May 23 while indefatigable Charlie Pride will no doubt invite us to kiss an angel good morning at the Jube on May 25.
Jose Gonzalez is over at the Myer Horowitz on May 26, while Great Lake Swimmers are at the Royal Alberta Museum on May 29.
Finally, ’60s rockers Iron Butterfly have reformed yet again and are performing at Century Casino on May 29, while singer-songwriter Jesse Cook brings the smooth to the Jube on May 31.
Classical music options wind down a little during May, but there’s still plenty to do. Pro Coro brings music from Brahms, Whitacre and other composers to the Winspear on May 10 with The Stolen Child, followed by a Winspear visit by violin virtuoso Tianwa Yang, playing with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra on May 21. Kokopelli is over at McDougall United Church for Colours, their final concert of the season on May 23, while I Coristi end their season on May 30 with Sticks and Songs at Holy Trinity Anglican Church.
Are you excited? You should be excited that Kids in the Hall are reuniting for a tour that brings them to the Jubilee Auditorium on May 19.
Over at the Winspear on May 25, actress/author and new-age believer Shirley MacLaine will speak about her life, career, beliefs, and maybe even her puzzling recent comments about Steven Hawking and karma.
Kill Your Television Theatre tackles image, identity and social conformity, with a production of German playwright Marius von Mayenburg’s The Ugly One; it runs from May 13 to May 23 at the Arts Barns. At the Backstage Theatre, Teatro La Quindicina presents Anthony Shaffer’s whodunnit Sleuth, from May 28 to June 13. And kids are not forgotten, thanks to a multitude of music, theatre, and fun activities taking place from May 26 to May 30, as the International Children’s Festival takes over St. Albert Place Promenade.
As for dance, options include a guest visit by the Houston Ballet for a performance of La Bayadere: The Temple Dancer. It’s at the Jubilee Auditorium on May 8 and 9. May 7 to 9, Nancy Sandercock guests with the Brian Webb Dance Company at the University of Alberta’s Timms Centre for a performance of Frost Flowers/Arctic Death Machine, with help from visual artist Blair Brenna and composer Dave Wall.