Arts, culture, performing arts, and literature
According to MP Denis Paradis, the Brome-missisquoi region is steeped with rich artistic talent. He says that there are more artists per capita than anywhere in Canada. This past year has clearly confirmed the presence of such talent in the form of visual and performing arts, music, and literature.
Community organizers are acutely aware of what is here and also want to inspire and enrich citizens by bringing talent to their doorstep. They also know that communities can bolster economic development by showcasing the fruits of their labour. The Knowlton Literary Festival, The Celtic International Festival, Sutton Jazz Festival, Tour des Arts, and Circuit des Arts welcoming visitors into artists’ and craftsmen’s workshops, and the third annual Arts Alive are but a handful of examples of well-honed events that all have reached enormous success and continue to gain strength.
On the literary front, local authors who have been published are Louise Penny with “Glass Houses,” Peter Turner who penned 12 stories of the Townships in “Bullpout, Old Dogs, and Stone Walls,” “In Search of Miss Birdie” by Bea Santori (Grampa Bob) whose writing is inspired by St. Armand’s little-known rock where it is said that black Americans came to the area by the underground railway in escape from slavery. “Granby Liar” is Maurice Crossfield’s fast-paced story of crime and intrigue. Alex Roslin’s “Police Wife” (second edition) is based on years of research and highlights the secret epidemic of police domestic violence. And David Marler recounts his personal experience with his wife in a remote community in northern Quebec. Louise Abbott’s “Volume 2 of Memphrémagog: An Illustrated History” was launched in July and part of the proceeds were donated to Memphremagog Conservation. Sheryl Taylor and Lucy Hoblyn of TBL were two of the 25 contributors in “Our Stories: The Eastern Townships Chapter of Canada’s 150-year story,” a special project of Townshippers’ Association that examines the nuances of this community’s experiences, characters contributions and spirit. Penny’s book has already been dubbed as the most popular book of 2017 and has made it to the best seller list and won awards on the international front while Roslin is raking in prestigious accolades in the United States for his work too, including being short-listed at the 14th annual Best Book Awards at the American Book Fest in the category of Women’s Issues.
The Knowlton Literary Association pulled off it best Literary Festival in its seventh year with every event at maximum capacity. Its new format allowed for 12 local authors to be spotlighted in the midst of learning from eight highly recognized Canadian authors. Publishing icon Douglas Gibson delivered an extensive presentation that was purely Canadian, highlighting his own most recent work, “150 years of Great Canadian Storytellers.” He also captivated neophyte writers with his insight on the merits of a good editor and the future of publishing.
With completion of a long overhaul and edition in the form of a reception room to the Théatre Lac-brome, there has been little shortage of talent clambering to use the space. A federal grant from the Ministry of Heritage that enabled the project to become a reality stipulated the enduring support to the anglophone community. Balancing amateur and professional time along with appeasing the linguistic communities has been a challenge for the theatre’s artistic director, Nicholas Pynes. On the local front, Pynes collaborated strongly with Anastasia Usenko, director of l’école Ballet du Sutton, to present “The Nutcracker” in December. The indomitable Lucy Hoblyn brought back “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat,” a lively, vibrant musical production with cast of 40 individuals between 6 and 80-plus years old. Amongst other productions presented at Théatre Lac-brome theatre-goers were treated to “Around the World in 80 Days” in a modern-day adaptation by Toby Hulse of the Jules Verne classic adventure story. Bringing bellyaching laughter to even the most sober, actor and director Mike Payette described it as being rowdy and playful, inviting imagination to both actors and audience.
Not to be forgotten is Laura Teasdale’s “Home Child,” a play that brings to life the challenges and victories of the alleged orphaned British children who came to the Townships where many were fostered by farm families. It gained momentum in its second season with the two-person cast on the road to the Maritimes as well as to Ontario. And the Knowlton Literary Association brought rave reviews about Repercussion Theatre’s Shakespeare in the Park when they performed the modern rendition of “Much Ado About Nothing.”
The third annual Arts Alive festival featured a special 150th tribute to Canada with a play written by TBL’S Roger de la Mare called “United We Stand.” Performed several times over the course of the week-long festival, the play featured Bevan Skerratt’s song that truly touched all in attendance.
On the music scene, Melisande Corriveau and Eric Milne of Harmonies des Saisons were invited to be part of the MSO Summer Festival, “Virée Classique.” The Juno Award winners treated the local audience to their rehearsal in Knowlton in gratitude to all the local support they have been given through the years. Amos J. (Joanides) rocketed to the finals in Quebec’s version of “The Voice” with internationally recognized songird Isabelle Boulay as coach. Angel Forrest, known for her gravelly Joplinlike voice, qualified for the Maple Blues Festival in Toronto and also the Memphis Blues Festival. Knowlton Players’ Bevan Skerratt, with the support of videographer Louise Abbott, sound engineer John Cameron and choral composer Don Cameron was able to record his song “O
Canada, My Canada” before Skerratt’s untimely death. Thanks to April O’donoughue and Frank Salvatori the region came alive with the magical sounds of Ireland, Scotland, and Brittany during the Celtic International Festival, a biennial event, while Stanley Lake and the Sutton Jazz folks organized four weekends of everything jazzy in the early autumn of 2017. Thanks to a $100,000 grant, the Bishop’s University Singers, accompanied by a 50-piece orchestra, soloists Melinda Enns, Marie Magistry, Jacques-olivier Chartier and Alexandre Sylvestre, and director Fannie Gaudet were able to take “Bach in D Minor” to the Abbaye St. Benoit near Austin as well as to l’église St-françois-xavier de Bromont. Both performances met with full-capacity audiences.