An original play by Gibsons writer Peter Hill — 1983 ... (A Merman I should turn to be) — will have a reprise reading at the Pender Harbour School of Music on Sunday, Nov. 24.
The script debuted earlier this fall as part of the Off the Page reading series at the Heritage Playhouse in Gibsons.
Hill’s plot was inspired by a 1970 song by Jimi Hendrix and borrowed its title. In his lyrics, Hendrix imagined an escape from the materialistic and mechanical world by walking into the sea.
The comedic play depicts an ex-hippie turned small-time cocaine dealer who wants to commemorate Hendrix’s song by performing it at midnight in English Bay.
“The play shows us the past we thought we’d left behind but lives with us still,” said Hill.
The performance, which starts at 1 p.m., will be delivered by readers Melissah Charboneau, Lisa Furfaro, Justin Huston and Steve Schwabl. Admission is by donation.
Every valley to be exalted
Local musicians are inviting the public to participate in a sing-a-long version of George Frideric Handel’s 1741 oratorio Messiah.
The interactive concert will take place at St. John’s United Church in Davis Bay on Sunday, December 8 at 4 p.m. “You’re always welcome, no matter how late,” said organizer Lise Kreps. “We’ll sing through Part One of Handel’s Messiah just for the pleasure of singing it with each other.”
Instrumentalists from the Sunshine Coast will accompany the singers.
A limited number of music scores are available to borrow; copies can also be purchased in advance. A donation of $20 upon admission is suggested to defray costs.
Full details and information on Messiah scores are available by browsing to www.stjohns-united.org.
Reverent voices raised
Vespersong, a choir founded by local organist and choir director David Poon for the purpose of providing music for evening prayer services, will present sacred selections on the last Sunday before the season of Advent.
Marking the day known as Christ the King Sunday, choral evensong on Nov. 24 features organ and choral music at St. Bartholomew’s Anglican Church in Gibsons.
Choral evensong is a pattern of worship dating back a thousand years that uses a centuries-old adaptation into English.
“Designed to accompany the passing of the day from light into darkness, it provides a moment of calm and a pause for reflection amongst the busyness of our days before the terminality of our nights,” noted Poon.
Vespersong’s selected pieces were composed by Edward Cuthbert Bairstow (born 150 years ago) and Charles Villiers Stanford (who died 100 years ago), in the context of the 1662 Book of Common Prayer liturgy.
The responses are by 17th-century composer William Smith, whose setting is one of a handful that are common to every Anglican cathedral in the United Kingdom. The evening’s introit will include text written by English hymnologist Henry Ramsden Bramley, poetically parallelling the pattern of evening prayer: “Let thy bright beam disperse the gloom of sin: / our nature all shall feel eternal day.”
The presentation by Vespersong begins at 5 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 24.
