Media Centre
Prairie stars Colin James, Brent Butt, Buffy Sainte-Marie and Bachman & Turner to shine at Prairie Scene festival
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Tickets on Sale February 10
Canada’s National Arts Centre today announced the addition of rocker Colin James and red-hot comedian Brent Butt to its growing Prairie Scene festival lineup, which already includes renowned singer-songwriter Buffy Sainte-Marie, as well as rock and roll legends Bachman & Turner. Tickets for the Saskatchewan-born Colin James (April 27) and Brent Butt (May 1) will go on sale on Thursday, February 10, at 10 a.m., along with tickets for Buffy Sainte-Marie (May 7) and Bachman & Turner (May 8), which went on sale several weeks ago.
Prairie Scene is an eclectic, multi-disciplinary arts festival featuring 500 of the best established and emerging artists from Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Prairie Scene will present 80 different events in music, theatre, dance, visual and media arts, literature, film and culinary arts in more than 30 venues in Ottawa-Gatineau from April 26 to May 8, 2011. The entire programming lineup will be announced on February 28.
Tickets for Colin James, Brent Butt, Buffy Sainte-Marie and Bachman & Turner can be purchased at www.prairiescene.ca , in person at the NAC Box Office, or through Ticketmaster at 1.888.991.2787.
Colin James April 27 at 7:30 p.m. National Arts Centre, Theatre Tickets : $39.00+
Get up close and personal with Colin James as he brings his acoustic duo show to Prairie Scene. In a career spanning over two decades, Colin was mentored by legend Stevie Ray Vaughan, flourishing into a multi-platinum artist many times over. His self-titled album debuted worldwide in 1989 garnering him two hit singles, “Voodoo Thing” and “Five Long Years,” as well as the first of many JUNO Awards. The emergence of The Little Big Band in the early 90s saw Colin’s career soar to new heights, and he remains one of the country’s most revered musicians. 2009 saw him release his 12th CD, Rooftops and Satellites featuring rock radio hit “Man’s Gotta Be a Stone.” His forthcoming greatest hits Take it From the Top will be released on March 15, 2011 with EMI, featuring bonus tracks recorded with legendary producer Bob Rock, bringing Colin full circle back to his original label. Look for Colin’s 13th studio album to hit stores in fall 2011. Today he captivates audiences everywhere with his seductive vocals and lush guitar playing in an exceptionally intimate acoustic duo with guest guitarist Chris Caddell. Saskatchewan songstress sisters Jen andMegan Lane with noted guitarist John Antoniuk (aka Smokekiller) open the show.
Brent Butt May 1 at 7:30 p.m. National Arts Centre, Theatre Tickets : $34.00+
Dog River comes to Ottawa! Brent Butt is the creator, star and executive producer of CTV's hit comedy Hiccups as well as Corner Gas, the most successful Canadian sitcom in history. The comedy about the fictional town of Dog River, Saskatchewan garnered over a million viewers each week for its last five seasons and became a staple of Canadian television, earning countless Canadian Comedy, Gemini, and Writers Guild of Canada Screenwriting awards. Long before he created Corner Gas andHiccups, Brent developed his unique brand of stand-up comedy and garnered a legion of devoted fans. His style, which he refers to as "coffee shop humour," is conversational, relaxed, and very funny. "My friends and I used to sit in the local coffee shop, literally for hours, just talking. We would discuss everything from world domination to the best kind of socks," he says. "That's what I try to recapture onstage, that easy style.” Spend an evening with Brent and see why he’s one of Canada’s funniest people. Winnipeg’s Dean Jenkinson, a favorite on the Canadian comedy circuit, will open for Brent.
Buffy Sainte-Marie (with Romi Mayes) May 7 at 8 p.m. Bronson Centre (211 Bronson Ave) Tickets : $20.00
Buffy Sainte-Marieis a Canadian icon – it’s as simple as that. From her earliest days in the tumultuous sixties, to having her award-winning songs recorded by musical legends such as Elvis Presley, Barbra Streisand, and Cher, to her five-year stint on Sesame Street, and a recording career that dwarfs the accomplishments of most of her contemporaries, Buffy Sainte-Marie has been and continues to be a music-maker with a unique and irresistible voice. Now, and with an almost legendary creative energy, Buffy Sainte-Marie is on tour across North America and Europe with her high-octane band, including guitarist Jesse Green, drummer Mike Bruyere, and bassist Donny Ducharme. She’s blazing a trail with a stage show that blends great music, both new and revisited, staggering showmanship, and a hard-hitting rock and roll vibe that takes you up, where you most definitely belong! Romi Mayes is a straight shooter with heart-on-your-sleeve lyrics and some seriously edgy guitar playing. She writes about sex, drugs, love, and the road. Her latest release Achin In Yer Bones was nominated for a 2010 Juno award for Album of The Year and won 2009 Western Canadian Music Awards for Songwriter and Album of The Year.
Bachman & Turner May 8 at 8 p.m. National Arts Centre, Southam Hall Tickets: $64.50+
In the mid-70s, Bachman-Turner Overdrive sold over 30 million records, earning a staggering 120 platinum, gold and silver discs, and notching up hits worldwide. When the band broke up, millions of fans were bereft. Now, after a long wait, rock and roll aficionados are rejoicing that the rockers at the heart of BTO, Randy Bachman and Fred Turner, are reuniting, recording and touring again as a full-throttle rock machine: Bachman &Turner. The new incarnation is grabbing attention with an electrifying album that channels all the guitar pounding, catchy lyrics and musical hooks of their famous hits. This NAC date gives fans a long-awaited chance to hear Bachman & Turner performing tunes from their vast catalogue of hits, including favourites such as "You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet," "Roll on Down the Highway" and "Let it Ride”, alongside songs from their new self-titled album inspired by their Prairie roots and life-long love for music.
Prairie Scene Partners
Prairie Scene would like to thank the Government of Canada, the Government of Manitoba, the Government of Saskatchewan and the Canada Council for the Arts for their generous support of this event.
The National Arts Centre and National Arts Centre Foundation gratefully acknowledge the support of Co-Presenting Partners MTS Allstream (Manitoba) and PotashCorp (Saskatchewan), Major Partner Enbridge Inc, Supporting Partners James Richardson & Sons, Limited and Holiday Inn, and Programming Partners The Mosaic Company, Manitoba Film and Music andIceland Naturally. Prairie Scene Media Partners include Major Partner CBC/Radio-Canada, and Partners National Post, Ottawa Citizen, Winnipeg Free Press, Regina Leader-Post, Saskatoon StarPhoenix and Dollco Printing.For their commitment to supporting Prairie arts and artists, we give special thanks to Gail Asper and Michael Paterson, Marjorie andMorley Blankstein, the John andBonnie Buhler Foundation, Adrian Burns and Gregory Kane, Q.C., Ian andKiki Delaney, David and Margaret Fountain, Susan Glass and Arni Thorsteinson, Deborah Gray, Stephen andJocelyn Greenberg, Peter Herrndorf and Eva Czigler, Doris andCharles Knight, Craig andPamela Lothian, Stefan andMagdalena Opalski, Harriett andIsadore Wolfe as well asJim andLisa Yuel.
The NAC Foundation also extends a warm thank you to the Prairie Scene Council, a committed group of individuals whose leadership, support and guidance are key to the success of Prairie Scene. The Prairie Scene Council is led by Manitoba Honorary Chairs John andBonnie Buhler, Saskatchewan Honorary Chair Tami Wall, Manitoba Chair Gail Asper and Saskatchewan Chair E. Craig Lothian. Members include Adrian Burns, Catherine A. (Kiki) Delaney, Leslie Gales, Susan Glass and Arni Thorsteinson, Wayne Goranson and Heather Quale, Lynda Haverstock and Harley Olsen, Charles andDoris Knight, D’Arcy Levesque, Brian andGail Saunders, Pamela Wallin, and Harriett Wolfe.
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For more information please contact:
Rosemary Thompson Director of Public Affairs National Arts Centre 613-947-7000- ext. 260 Cell: 613-762-4118 rthompson@nac-cna.ca
Media Contacts
Laura Denker
LOF Communications
(613) 299-8844
(613) 747-5949
laura@lofcomm.com
Carl Martin
Communications, NAC
(613) 947-7000, ext. 560
Cell : (613) 291-8880
cmartin@nac-cna.ca
