Drama, ballet, classical music, kids’ shows and more will fill the stage at Nanaimo’s Port Theatre this season.
The city’s premier arts and entertainment venue announced earlier this month its Spotlight Series schedule for the 2024-25 season.
“The Spotlight Series is the Port Theatre Society’s nationally acclaimed presentation series that includes some of the most exciting touring artists available, every one of them showcasing artistic excellence and innovation,” noted a press release. “At the heart of the Spotlight Series is a passion to create access to a variety of diverse and authentic experiences for audiences across Vancouver Island.”
The series includes 11 mainstage shows and four coffee concerts.
The season begins Oct. 15 with the “scorching solo show” As You Like It, or the Land Acknowledgement, presented by Crow Theatre’s Cliff Cardinal. Despite the show’s name, it has nothing to do with the William Shakespeare play, noted a release, as the protagonist comes on stage to offer a land acknowledgement – and keeps going and going.
“[It] gets longer and more challenging, and saltier and funnier, until it becomes clear that the land acknowledgment in fact is the show itself,” the release noted.
From there, Ballet Victoria will present Frankenstein on Oct. 25 in a show that is inspired by the romantic classical ballet Giselle, “blending the dark elements of the gothic tale of eternal life and resurrection with the beauty and tragedy of a love story born in death.”
The Belgian cello octet Ô-Celli will perform Nov. 22, showcasing an instrument that is said to be “the closest to the human voice,” and lends itself to being multiplied in one ensemble.
The holiday classic Nutcracker, presented by the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, will be performed at the Port for three straight days Dec. 6-8, and more holiday fare follows on Dec. 14 with the Port Theatre tradition Winter Harp performed by an ensemble of musicians playing harps, flutes, percussion and medieval instruments and singing.
In the new year, the Spotlight Series resumes with International Guitar Night on Jan. 31, featuring Lulo Reinhardt and Soenke Meinen of Germany, Alexandra Whittingham of the U.K., and Niwel Tsumbu of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Next up on Feb. 5 is Les Ballets Trockadero De Monte Carlo, mixing technical skill with slapstick humour in “lovingly satirical takes on the tropes of classical ballet repertory.”
After that are two productions aimed at young audiences, first Yes Yes Yes on March 11, “created for young people that explores the knotty and necessary topics of healthy relationships, consent, and desire,” then the Alphabet of Awesome Science on April 9, described as carefully crafted chaos that floats, flies, squirts, sprays, ignites and erupts.
The cinematic shadow theatre experience Song of the North will be presented May 14, and the Spotlight Series will conclude May 21 with the Australian circus show A Simple Space, involving acrobatics, but also personal narratives and honesty.
Also part of the Spotlight Series will be morning concerts featuring Jacob Cordover, Bergmann Piano Duo, Tissa Rahim and Sarah Hagen.
For tickets and more information, visit http://porttheatre.com/spotlight.