Can’t Stop the Beat! promises a great night for a great cause: the Huntsville Hospital Auxiliary

Two doctors and a pharmacist walk on stage… It’s not the beginning of a joke, but when you throw in a cast of singers, dancers and comedians it adds up to a night of laughter and feel-good entertainment, all in support of the Huntsville Hospital Auxiliary.

Can’t Stop the Beat is the fifth fundraising show organized by SNS Productions – Sherisse Stevens, Neil Barlow and Suzanne Baxter – but its roots go back much further. “We started doing them with Lynn Sargeant’s big band years and years ago,” remembers Stevens. “Over the years, we’ve done a number of plays and the present form is a variety show. It’s a highly entertaining evening.”

Since 2010, SNS has raised $35,000 for much-needed, updated hospital equipment.

This year’s show features Parres Allen, Suzanne Baxter, Serge Charlebois, Kip Daynard, Tracy Hoehner, Nicholas Kulchar, Bridget Lougheed, Sherisse Stevens, Jennifer Strype, Selah Tate, and The Neil Barlow Band; dancers from the Muskoka Dance Academy; comedians Paul Fiest (as Dorkin Barnes) and Aussa Penniall; and, from the medical community, Dr. Jennifer MacMillan, Dr. John Rea, and pharmacist Bill Coon.

The volunteer cast has been rehearsing twice a week for several months, putting in many hours to ensure that the show is just right.

“The thing that makes this show great is what I call the layering,” says Baxter. “It’s not just someone up there singing, it’s not just someone up there dancing, it’s not just someone up there playing an instrument. There’s a live band, and on top of that you have live singers, choreography, great costumes, and then add in some comedy. We also have the Muskoka Dance Academy dancers which adds another layer. And there’s a variety of music – we have ballads, up-tempo, funk, the 80s, the 60s.”

There is some amazing talent, and you get the opportunity to see some of our fabulous medical professionals on stage, having fun.
Suzanne Baxter

In addition to being a great show, it’s also a fundraiser, of course. The Huntsville Hospital Auxiliary has been providing volunteer and fundraising support – $1.8 million to date – to Huntsville District Memorial Hospital for more than 60 years.

“The hospital is such an important aspect of our community,” says Baxter. “It’s a good cause.”

It’s supports the hospital – there are so many people who contribute time and effort to the hospital and this is a way of celebrating them and also having a wonderful evening out.
Sherisse Stevens

It’s great value, too – tickets are just $30 each.

Can’t Stop the Beat plays in Huntsville at the Algonquin Theatre on Friday, October 20 and Saturday, October 21. Tickets are available at the Algonquin Theatre box office or online here.

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