Confederation Centre gears up for busy winter season

When it comes to entertaining Islanders in the winter, Darcy Campbell is a busy man.

The director of winter programming at Charlottetown's Confederation Centre of the Arts just completed the line-up for this season's Live at the Centreshows.

Campbell said the centre will feature everything from live music, to dance, cabaret, comedy and theatre.

He always tries to please everyone's tastes - at least a little bit, he said.

"Everybody has an idea and everybody has an opinion on what they want to see," he told Mainstreet P.E.I. on Monday.

"And I try to listen to all of that and give a little bit of something to everybody."

Singers and song writers

This year's line-up includes performances for everyone from the classical music lover to date night seekers, he said.

As part of the centre's song writer series, Vancouver-based Lion, Bear, Fox will be performing at The Mack theatre in Charlottetown on Feb. 2.

Campbell said the band visited Atlantic Canada before and were well received.

"I've had some people stop me and saying they are excited to see them back," he said.

Other artists in the series are husband and wife duo James Hill and Anne Janelle, who will perform at The Mack on March 18, and Darthmouth, Nova Scotia-based singer Mo Kenney, who's scheduled for April 1.

Hill and Janelle are master-class ukulele and cello players, said Campbell. And Kenney just recorded a new album with producer and mentor Joel Plaskett.

"Hopefully we'll hear some new music from her that night as well," he said.

Boys choir and one-man with 100 voices

Campbell said he's also excited to bring in the Vienna Boys Choir at The Homburg Theatreon March 17.

The choir has existed since 1296 and includes singers between the ages of nine and 14.

It's their first time performing onthe Island, he said.

Another big eventthis spring will be Boom, also playing at The Homburg Theatre on March 31.

This show has one artistwith 100 voices, andtakes viewers through the history of the 1945 to 1969 Boom generation, said Campbell.

The performer plays everyone frominfluential politicians, activists and musicians of the time, he said.

"That is a really incredible show that people need to get out and check out," he said.

Hardly any no-shows due to weather

Other events include a performance by Islandsinger-songwriterRose Cousins, an evening withJust For Laughs veteranDerek Edwards, and a Valentine's Day cabaret show.

Campbell said that tickets for all of these and more shows canbe ordered online or at the box office.

He also stressed that in the past nine years, only two shows were cancelled due to the bad weather.

Both of them were on the same night, he said.

"We've been really lucky that we were able to make (the other shows)happen," he said.

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