An immersive, musical folk experience will touch down at the Heritage Playhouse on May 3, blending ancient Celtic folklore with artful time travel.
Multi-instrumentalist and storyteller Bronwyn Claire Asha premiered As I Roved Out at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival last year. She expanded her one-woman show into a full-length performance for her current tour of Salish Sea communities.
“It includes a combination of really old traditional Celtic folk songs that I’ve been singing for years and years,” said Asha, who was born in Ontario of mixed Irish and Scottish ancestry. Her great-grandfather was an 11-year-old orphan sent from Scotland to become an Ontario farm labourer.
“They are songs that I grew up listening to as my mom sang to me,” she added. “My parents were really into traditional music. That’s been my life: collecting and singing, performing these songs to keep them alive and to bring back these historical themes that are so relevant.”
During her performance, Asha portrays The Bardesse, an everywoman time-traveling troubadour who guides the audience through Celtic lore while accompanying herself on guitar and violin.
“There’s an ancient and mystical feel about Celtic history that is really rooted in the land and rooted in our connection with nature,” Asha said. “I think that rootedness can exist anywhere; it doesn’t have to be on [Scottish, Welsh or Irish] land in particular.”
Tickets for the 7:30 p.m. performance of Friday, May 3 are available by browsing to heritageplayhouse.com or checking local EventBrite listings.
Serenade for springtime
The Sunshine Coast Community Orchestra Association’s Suncoast Concert Band will be performing this Sunday, May 5 at the Heritage Playhouse in Gibsons.
The popular instrumental ensemble plays under the direction of the always-colourful conductor Tak Maeda.
Tickets ($20 for adults, $5 for children) are available in advance at Strait Music in Sechelt and at the Passionista Garage in Gibsons (at the Sunnycrest Mall).
Welcoming a star of astronomy
The Sunshine Coast chapter of the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada plans to welcome Randy Enkin, a geophysicist and past president of the organization’s Victoria branch, as a guest lecturer on May 10.
Enkin admits to being moon-struck for 30 years. He catalogues his observations of the moon, sketches detailed drawings, and maintains a Facebook page titled “EnkinsDailyMoon.”
The Royal Canadian Mint has consulted with Enkin when minting coins bearing images of the moon.
During his lecture at the Sechelt Seniors Activity Centre on Friday, May 10 (starting at 7 p.m.), Enkin will speak about his 30 years spent studying the moon — and how his observations may have solved a conundrum of ancient Babylonian knowledge.
So good it’s criminal
A book by Gibsons author Charlotte Morganti has been named as a finalist for the Crime Writers of Canada’s 2024 award of excellence for Best Crime First Novel.
Morganti’s novel The End Game was published in September 2023. Set in the B.C. Interior, The End Game follows part-time bartender/part-time private investigator Gabe Gabrieli as he races to solve deadly sabotage of mining sites in the mountains in order to save his kid brother from a murder charge.
The novel is a story of redemption, belonging, and the dynamics of friendship and family.
Two of Morganti’s earlier manuscripts were previously shortlisted for the Crime Writers’s Best Unpublished Novel prize and her short story “All My Darlings” was a finalist for Best Crime Short Story in 2022.
Driftwood delights
The full company of the Driftwood Theatre School took to the stage on April 28 for its spring performance, featuring a preview of the forthcoming Children’s Theatre production The Brave Little Tailor.
The group performed at the Heritage Playhouse in Gibsons, enchanting audience members with displays of musicality and dramatic proficiency. Upcoming performances of the youthful theatrical corps will be announced via the school’s newsletter, which is accessible at driftwoodplayers.net.
