Twenty-six years ago, Huntsville Festival of the Arts (HFA) presented its first show at Deerhurst Resort. Now, it’s returning to those roots for at least two performances this season in a new partnership with the resort.
“It’s nice to see we’re still good friends,” says HFA’s General Manager, Rob Saunders.
They’ll launch that partnership in impressive style, presenting Randy Bachman of The Guess Who and Bachman-Turner Overdrive (BTO) fame, for the first performance of his 2018 Canadian tour on March 2, the same day his new album By George – By Bachman: Songs of George Harrison is released.
“I saw that Bachman had this cross-country tour starting in Ottawa on the Saturday night [March 3] so I emailed the agent and asked if they would consider starting it on the Friday night and kicking it off in Huntsville, so we are the front end of this national tour which is kind of a neat thing,” says Saunders.
Along with former hits from his The Guess Who and BTO days and with a full-band accompaniment, Bachman will be playing songs from the new album. They aren’t your standard tributes, but rather re-imaginings of George Harrison’s music.
“This truly is a ‘Harrison by Bachman’ concept with Bachman’s distinctively personal stamp and style placed on The Quiet Beatle’s music,” notes a release on Bachman’s website. “For this album I figured I would take George’s songs and give them new grooves. I wanted the tempos and arrangements to be different but still recognizable by the lyrics. I took the major keys and turned them into minors. It was a whole new interpretation of a familiar song. I was quite excited about the prospect of re-imagining George Harrison’s songs.”
The show will be in Deerhurst’s Legacy Theatre with assigned seating — tickets are $60 for the rows closer to the stage and $55 for those nearer the back. (Get them here.)
“Presenting shows at Deerhurst gives us the opportunity to have upwards of 700 people in the house,” notes Saunders, adding that the Legacy Theatre has a full stage and full lighting rig. And while there will be seats for this show, the theatre also offers the opportunity for flat-floor, stand-up shows. They’ll be using that format when the HFA presents Choir!Choir!Choir! in mid-July.
“It opens up some different programming options that we’ve been talking about having but when you look around town there’s no other venue that offers that that’s any size and has a production facility,” says Saunders. There may also be a third HFA show at Deerhurst in the fall but details haven’t been firmed up yet.
“This partnership is a win-win for both the resort and the Huntsville Festival of the Arts – and for
everyone who loves live entertainment in Huntsville, really. Deerhurst’s largest venue, Legacy Hall, can
accommodate up to 900 people which allows the festival to book bigger acts that require more ticket
sales. And for Deerhurst to be able to market great concerts like Randy Bachman not only helps sell
tickets but attracts guests to Huntsville and the resort as well,” says Laura Kennedy, Deerhurst’s Director of Marketing.
“It’s really an extension of a partnership we’ve had with the festival from day one, when Deerhurst was a
host venue for their very first season. We’re excited to be working together again to explore new opportunities to bring more great shows to the area.”
The Festival will continue with it’s regular season programming, primarily at the Algonquin Theatre, and also its fringe events, like the ever-popular Nuit Blanche North and smaller offerings like Cocktails and Canvas — a painting night — and the recent A Play, A Pie and A Pint which sold out all 70 tickets through word-of-mouth before they had even begun advertising the event.
“I think we’ve got a model that works, especially in the summer time,” says Saunders, adding that the HFA needs the continued support of individuals and sponsors to keep its programming going. “We’re not going to change the eclectic variety we offer, and I think off-season I could see us doing a bit more programming and there’s going to be more of a focus on fringe-type events.”
For more information on Huntsville Festival of the Arts, visit huntsvillefestival.on.ca
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Linda bastedo says
I ORDERED TWO TICKETS FOR RANDY BACHMAN AT DEERHURST MAR 2nd do you know if they mail them to you