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Stratford Festival veteran Marcus Nance is no stranger to small, intimate cabarets, the type of casual musical performances found at cosy downtown clubs before they were sacrificed in this era of physical distancing.
But what about a cabaret curated by Nance himself about his own life experiences, past and present, performed on the famous Festival Theatre stage, thoughtfully recorded and then broadcast on YouTube to theatre fans in Stratford and across the globe?
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That’s something different.
“Part of me was very nervous (about) sharing some personal stories,” said Nance, whose cabaret, Voice of a Preacher’s Son, premieres on the Festival’s YouTube channel Thursday. “But … because of COVID, because of being locked up in my home, because of observing all of the Black Lives Matter (protests) and the political landscape in the U.S., I was – I am – still very emotional abou
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For the first time since the start of the pandemic, the Stratford Festival is bringing people inside its theatre (virtually) through a series of nine cabaret performances. The production, called Up Close and Musical, has strong ties to Windsor both in front of and behind the camera. CBC News spoke with UWindsor grad and cabaret singer Alexis Gordon along with Nick Shields, co-owner of Suede Productions which shot and edited the series. Show clips courtesy of Stratford Festival and Suede Productions.
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Lights, stars and hope once again shine on Stratford’s iconic Festival Theatre stage.
Up Close and Musical is the Stratford Festival’s first major musical project since COVID-19 cancelled last season, and a contingent of Windsor talent is helping bring it to you.
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Try refreshing your browser, or Stratford Festival s new cabaret series has strong Windsor connections Back to video
The series of nine intimate cabarets also takes fans back inside virtually, at least the Festival Theatre for the first time.
Windsor’s Suede Productions filmed and edited the concerts, University of Windsor graduate Alexis Gordon is one of the stars and Antoni Cimolino, another University of Windsor grad, is the festival’s artistic director.
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STRATFORD – Live theatre is still be out of the question, but Stratford Festival fans still have plenty to look forward to in 2021, including new content and the return of its Thursday night online viewing parties.
The festival has announced that three of its filmed Shakespeare productions and 10 weeks of original programming safely created during the pandemic will be free to watch for a limited time on YouTube, beginning Thursday with The Merry Wives of Windsor.
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Try refreshing your browser. COVID-shut Stratford Festival: To thine own YouTube channel, be true Back to video