Newfoundlanders and Labradorians came home for Come Home 2022 celebrations and the province welcomed many first time visitors too.  The weather coorperated with record breaking sunshine for one record setting NL  summer.

There was a little something for everyone to enjoy. Wonderbolt Productions celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2022, and they dazzled and delighted audiences all summer long. The George Street Festival was a huge hit and so was the Churchill Park Music Festival with both attracting huge and enthusiastic crowds. 

But whether it’s the large concerts on George Street or the smaller gatherings on an outport wharf, it’s been quite a summer to celebrate, Premier Andrew Furey said. “To see this (Come Home 2022) come from a concept to reality, and then to see the return, well the actual numbers speak for themselves,” he said as he launched into some cheerful chatter about the rise in tourism numbers throughout Come Home 2022. And the fun continues through the fall too with Come From Away: The Concert and Tell Tale Harbour yet to be celebrated and enjoyed. 

What was your favourite Come Home 2022 experience? Was it the Stanley Cup or a concert? Was it seeing family or friends or was it a wedding celebration that was delayed due to the pandemic. 

Share your super summer story with us at letters@nfldherald.com 

Charles & Camilla’s 2022 Royal Tour

Prince Charles and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, arrived St. John’s on May 17th to begin a three-day Canadian tour largely focused on reconciliation with Indigenous people. 

The couple attended a welcome ceremony at the provincial legislature with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Gov. Gen. Mary Simon then it was off to Gov. House and Quidi Vidi.

Photos provided by the Office of the Lieutenant Governor, taken by Alick Tsui Photography.

Kellie Loder Proves They’re Fearless

Not only is Kellie Loder selling out shows, but they are selling totally out of merch at these performances as well, they added when The Herald swung by for a chat. “The opportunity to be on a national television show, what that has done for me is amazing. People stop you on the side of the road and people shout at you from their cars. And it’s so positive,” they said of appearing on Canada’s Got Talent. 

 Had reality set in yet? Since being a  national sensation on CGT, so much had changed. “You work so, so hard for so long to get that sort of recognition that when you finally get it it’s a bit wild. Like, I still feel like I’m a small town kid from Badger and now people are wanting to carry my things and bring me water and food and steam my clothes. And I’m like, ‘What’s happening right now?’” 

Loder also felt “different” seeing their face on a NL Herald cover. “I would go to the store and The Herald would always be on the front counter, and I would see different faces every week on the cover and I always wondered if I was ever going to make the cover, do you know what I mean? I always wondered that, even when nobody knew who I was.” Well, now they certainly do! 

Show Your Pride in NL

Irma Gerd made NL proud as one of the contestants of the third season of Canada’s Drag Race. 

Gerd told The Herald that “The amount of support that I’ve gotten from all of Atlantic Canada, not just Newfoundland, has been overwhelming. Just positively overwhelming in the best way.” 

Pride events throughout NL recognized and celebrated the diversity of the 2SLGBTQQIA+ community within the province and the Provincial Government sponsored St. John’s Pride Week as a part of Come Home 2022. Sponsored events included Drag on Water held on Saturday, July 23 as well as the St. John’s Pride Parade

Staycation with the OZFM Summer CREW

Kali Kenny and Noah Perchard hit the road in the OZFM Staycation Summer Cruiser and brought the cheer and the joy to many as they travelled the province throughout the summer of 2022.

Kenny told The Herald that being a member of the Staycation Summer Cruiser Team was a “dream come true.” 

The Regatta Returns

For the very first time in Royal St. John’s Regatta history, there was a Women’s Long course race. 

North America’s oldest annual sporting event concluded with repeat champions in both the men’s and women’s races. NTV were winners of the Men’s Championship Race and Hyflodraulic won Stirling Communications Women’s Championship Race with a time of 5:11.

This year’s Regatta saw crowds return to the banks of Quidi Vidi Lake for the first time since 2019.

Jaida Lee Makes History

At 16 years old, Jaida Lee became the first female to compete in Men’s Baseball at the Canada Summer Games in 2022. The teenage baseball sensation and her father, Dave Lee, shared with media how “unreal” the experience was,  included the fact that she got to throw an opening pitch at a Blue Jays game.

Alex Newhook Brings Home Lord Stanley

Colorado Avalanche forward and St. John’s native Alex Newhook couldn’t stop smiling the day he brought the Stanley Cup home to St. John’s! 

The timing couldn’t have been better and fans young and old couldn’t get enough of the party that came with Lord Stanley held during Come Home 2022 celebrations.

About being only the third player from Newfoundland and Labrador to win the Stanley Cup, Newhook shared how he received congratulations from the other two who had done so before he did – Daniel Cleary and Michael Ryder. Newhook cheered along with fans so loudly as he yelled, ’Our fans are the best in the world’ that Newhook seemed to  have lost his voice during part of the Stanley Cup parade.

Was it emotion or cheering along with fans that cause the brief quiet spell? Probably a bit of both, but whatever the reason, it was a grand day in the province and an unforgettable day for Alex Newhook and his family and friends. Congratulations! 

The Provincial Government delighted islanders when they announced they would be bringing Come From Away The Concert and the new musical comedy Tell Tale Harbour to Newfoundland and Labrador as part of the Arts and Culture Centres’ program line up for Come Home 2022.

The Tony and Olivier Award-winning international hit musical Come From Away  returns to the Steele Community Centre in Gander and premiers at the Mary Brown’s Centre in St. John’s reuniting  members of the Toronto cast and band along with original Broadway cast member, the province’s own Petrina Bromley. 

Come From Away The Concert will be presented in Gander, from Sept.13-15 and in St. John’s from September 19-20, as marquee events for Come Home 2022.

Later in October, the province’s Arts and Culture Centres’ present Tell Tale Harbour, based on the screenplay, The Grand Seduction. This new musical comedy from the Confederation Centre of the Arts in Prince Edward Island will see its Newfoundland and Labrador debut as another marquee event for Come Home 2022. 

Co-written by and starring the province’s own musical icon Alan Doyle, Tell Tale Harbour also features the talents of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians Jillian Keiley and Edward Riche.

“Exciting things are happening in Newfoundland and Labrador for Come Home 2022. The stage is set for some incredible performances. Along with the impressive performances that will grace the stages of our Arts and Culture Centres province-wide, we are thrilled to be bringing Come From Away The Concert and the Tell Tale Harbour musical home to our province,” said Premier Andrew Furey at the announcement. 

“We are beyond thrilled to bring Come From Away back to its home in Newfoundland this year. When we first performed our show there, it was a life-changing experience for us – and the Come From Away Company – and we are grateful to be invited back with a Canadian cast including several Newfoundlanders and Labradorians, like Petrina Bromley, coming home from Broadway. It means the world to us to share these stories with the community that was so generous with us and has now inspired millions around the globe,” said Irene Sankoff and David Hein, Come From Away’s creators. 

The Herald spoke to Bromley who said she was “excited” to be returning to ‘The Rock.’ “The idea of bringing the show home to Newfoundland for people to see is an incredible experience. Sharing that story and seeing that it gets told so that everyone can get a sense of how important it is and how big a moment it was is just magical,” she said.

Bromley’s favourite memories of the show’s run are the performances on home soil, she added. “It was just the most unbelievable experience to be welcomed and embraced into the community and to have that feeling of pure nervous joy. I always say for me it was like bringing your new boyfriend home to meet the family.”

The longest-running professional theatre company in Newfoundland and Labrador, the Stephenville Theatre Festival (STF for short), returns for the 44th year in 2022, with a jam-packed slate of fit-for-the-whole-family entertainment.

“Stephenville Theatre Festival provides professional theatrical entertainment to both the residents and visitors of Stephenville & Bay St. George and we are back in full force this summer for Come Home Year 2022,” shared General Manager Benedict Pittman. 

“Stephenville Theatre Festival has a tradition of producing high-quality shows and is unique in its program of big-Broadway musicals combined with children’s productions, dinner theatre and culturally relevant shows utilizing the local talents and stories of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians such as our ‘Newfoundland Kitchen Party.’”

Delivering on the promise of high quality entertainment in one of the most picturesque areas of the island, the festival slate boasts an eclectic and entertainment lineup including the beloved Dolly Parton masterpiece 9 to 5 the Musical, the hilarious and rebellious Disenchanted, the endearing family production Neverland, and the dinner theatre game show One-hit Wonders & All-time Greats.

Edge-of-your-seat

“This year, STF is celebrating 44 years of providing amazing live musical entertainment to the beautiful Southwest coast of Newfoundland. We have assembled a fantastic company to deliver a summer of outstanding music, engaging children’s theatre and edge-of-your-seat drama,” event organizers shared in a statement to The Herald.

“We couldn’t be more excited for everyone to see the fantastic performances we’ve lined up and are thrilled to be an official part of Come Home Year 2022. There’s never been a better time to Come Home to NL and enjoy the beautiful scenery, historic culture, and passionate live theatre!

“Our performers and crew, from both Newfoundland and the rest of Canada, are working tirelessly to bring these amazing shows to life in beautiful Stephenville! Our company and community have persevered through a difficult few years but a bright future is on the horizon for both STF and Stephenville. Come home to Bay St. George this summer and see shows like you’ve never seen before! Incredible voices, fabulous dancing, heartfelt storytelling and a professional company here to elevate you from your seat and into the wonderful world of the Stephenville Theatre Festival!”

The Stephenville Theatre Festival is a not-for-profit charitable organization, registered through the Canada Revenue Agency. The STF continues to provide meaningful and delightful theatrical experiences for all in attendance.

For a complete lineup of events and tickets for performances running from July 22nd to August 20th, visit stephenvilletheatrefestival.com, call the festival box office at 709-643-4553 or the dinner theatre box office at 709-643-6666.

Eileen (just call her ‘mom,’ everyone does) and Calvin Sansome love what they do. They started their holding tank for live lobsters, called a lobster pool, back in 1999. They admit they had no idea if the venture would even work.  It did. In 2005 they added “a little take out” to the lobster pool serving (what else) lobster, and things took off from there, she said. 

 “By 2011 we took the old shed down that was there and the old stage my father-in-law used we built into a restaurant.”

Inside the sea-side restaurant there’s underwater cameras to watch as the fish swim around the wharf while dining.   

Eileen laughs. “That was my idea. I would like to have one out in the lobster pool as well to watch the lobsters, but my husband says, ‘that’s too much. You’re going too far.’” 

Food is to die for!

The two laugh as Calvin fishes around inside one of the holding tanks for a lobster. “Word of mouth in this business is important but in this industry, hospitality is number one. When you  hire excellent people and you have great food made from scratch, then people spread the word that this is a place to visit.” 

And the food is to die for! Seafood chowder, fish and chips, fish cakes, crab legs and of course lobster! All amazing! And the blueberry cheesecake? Also amazing! “We go over menus and we try things and we see what works, and then the chef takes over and it all works,” she said glowing. One secret she doesn’t mind sharing; their lobster and crab are cooked in sea water. “Anyone who knows can tell the difference,” she said.

Hospitality & grub

Their combination of hospitality and grand grub is working. Sansome’s isn’t on any main drag, and is located in an out of the way area making theirs a “destination” and not a “drop in” spot.   

“You’re not on any main drag. People have to come to us. They hear about it and they come from all over the world. Word of mouth is unbelievable.”

If planing on visiting, come early, as the parking lot fills fast and there’s usually a line up at the door. 

With a staff of nine, it’s a busy spot in season, but they both love the work, she said. “We love meeting people and this is my husband’s home. My father-in-law was in the lobster fishery for years and years and years so this made sense to us. I used to work at other things, but I didn’t get to see enough people. Now, there’s no shortage of that!”

For more, like Doyle W. Sansome & Sons Super Lobster Pool on Facebook

The Dynamic Duo: The Quay & Baccalieu Trail Brewing Co.

Dave Collins, owner/operator of The Quay restaurant in Brigus and Mark Burry, entrepreneur/managing Director of Baccalieu Trail Brewing Company Ltd., a microbrewery located in Bay Roberts, have no problem sharing their best creations. 

On the day we visit The Quay, we dig in to the dishes presented before us by the enthusiastic Collins. One of the many wins? The Quay’s  crab cakes which comes with a delightful and incredibly touching story. Collins had never really had a dream to own a restaurant, he shared. 

“I’ve always been a foodie … always did a lot of cooking for family, friends, or for charitable groups, and a good friend of mine, his name was Gary Corcoran – and I say was because he passed away – and Gary was a phenomenal chef and an unbelievable individual.”

Corcoran raised “millions for charity over his lifetime,” Collins said and the two friends did a lot of cooking together. Corcoran even penned a cookbook titled In The Kitchen with Gary Corcoran: Recipes from Home and Away. Corcoran developed ALS shortly after Collins purchased The Quay. “Gary was not of good health and I used to see him every week, and we used to talk about what items to potentially use on the new menu.”

One of his friend’s suggestions? Crab cakes. “I made some and  had my family and friends in and it was loud and clear that crab cakes were as a keeper so I put them on the menu as Gary’s Crab Cakes as it’s our way of celebrating him on the menu.” 

‘Ten out of ten’

The Cuban sandwich is also something that reminds Collins of his late friend, as it was one of the meals he requested towards his final days. Collins shared that Corcoran gave The Quay’s Cuban sandwich “a ten out of ten.”

Such stories make the menu meaningful and personal, said Collins. 

Mark Burry  of Baccalieu Trail Brewing Company Ltd. said that he got into the micro brewery business as a passion. 

“My grandfather was an entrepreneur all his life,” he said. 

Burry, who had been brewing beer at home, just felt that it was time to make the move. One of the best parts about being in business is the relationships you get to have, like the one he has with Collins and The Quay. The Quay serves the brewery’s beer and Baccalieu Trail brewing Company serves The Quay’s food. 

“We have a good business relationship with many other businesses in the Baccalieu Trail region and we all want to see one another be successful,” he said.  

NTV’s Rock Solid Builds 

Both agree that shows like NTV’s Rock Solid Builds helps the region by showcasing the beauty of the area. Burry’s products, including their creatively designed and brewed Grab 4 and Explore pack, are available in many locations, but if you wants great food – as well as entertainment – why not visit them in Bay Roberts. 

Whether it’s a lager to enjoy on a hot day or sipping an  Irish  red; there’s a beer to please any taste bud. Collins smiles. “There’s so much to take advantage of in this amazing province. See the sights and enjoy the  food and the beverages.”

For more destinations pick up next week’s NL Herald! Plus, more on The Doctor’s House Inn & Spa, the Dildo Brewery, Dunrovin in Lethbridge and Iceberg Alley B&B!

Twillingate-New World Island Dinner Theatre

The food is second to none and the entertainment? Well that almost has to be seen and heard to be believed. With performances by talented locals like Chelsea Cox, Denise Dove, Sandra Gillett (who has been performing since 2002), Gary Rogers, Jody Hale and Wayne Gillett, there’s no shortage of side-splitting comedy and spine tingling musical performances. 

On the day we visit, to say there are people from all over the world there would be an understatement. Canadian. Americans. Australians. Almost too many to mention – though the performers make sure to give a round of applause to all who visit from near and far. Owners/operators of this merry crew are Cathy Brown and  Ernie Watkins who were born and raised in the Twillingate area.

When The Herald spoke to Watkins he was in his shed which also serves as a kitchen. He had not long ago tied his boat off and was boiling the water to prepare 90 lobsters and 75 pounds of muscles for that evening’s feed.  But that’s not the only thing on the menu. Salmon and cod is brought in fresh daily as well.  When asked if he’s also the fisherman for the feed provided, Watkins stands tall. “This is the boat, that brought in everything. I’m a fisherman, absolutely,” he said proudly.

The dinner theatre came about seven years ago, he said. How did it start?

“A lot of people want to experience old fashioned shed parties when they come here to visit and that’s what this dinner theater is about. There’s a lot of traditional Newfoundland music, but often Newfoundlanders make fun of Newfoundlanders and our ways and that’s what we started to do, so it’s music and comedy,” he said. 

What is it about his home that he loves so much, we ask. “It’s just the rustic look. The cliff lines and the shorelines and what we’ve got to offer the world. Icebergs when they’re here, but it’s the way of life and it’s the people that make this place a destination.”

Giving back is important too, he shared. The dinner theatre seats between 14-15,000 people each year and they sell fifty-fifty tickets to anyone interested. This year they are hoping to sell 60,000 tickets and the funds raised help those less fortunate in the area over the holidays via their Twillingate/NWI Christmas Hamper Fund. “This is our home. Whatever we can do to make it a great place for everyone, we will do.”

For more visit Twillingate-New World Island Dinner Theatre on Facebook.

The hilarity slung by the fine folks at sketch comedy troupe Halfhandsome is to be applauded.

Adapting the nose-to-the-grindstone work ethic and wink and a nod to all the quirks of our island that made the likes of CODCO and This Hour Has 22 Minutes crew forever beloved, Halfhandsome continues to provide gut-bustingly funny entertainment fit for the masses.

But when the world collectively sheltered from an unseen global pandemic, the b’ys had to get creative.

“To kick it off it was like COVID hit, the theatres were closed. We didn’t know what to do and we knew we wanted to do something, but we knew we probably wouldn’t get the money back. And it was kind of like this logistical thing. COVID was such a logistical nightmare in the theatre world and the rules were kind of unknown at a certain point. We really didn’t know if we could do anything. So we were like ‘what else do we do?’” explains Halfhandsome’s Andrew Tremblett.

Innovation struck in the form of a podcast, but not just your mom and pops tête-à-tête on sports or politics kind, but hearkening back to the bygone days of storytellers and radio plays that crowded families around a sturdy signal for hours of can’t miss entertainment.

The Halfhandsome team

“We kind of hearkened back to these old British comedies on the BBC and even CBC. Podcasts are really a bunch of b’ys talking and laughing over each other and it’s like, who the f**k cares?” adds Tremblett with a laugh. 

“We were like, well, let’s do Almost Baymous, but in podcast form. So it was really kind of like to do something during COVID and we really didn’t know how to do it.”

With aid from producer and sound editor Spencer Bellows, and an addictive score by Adam Foran, the Halfhandsome team of Tremblett, Zac Cross, Elizabeth Hicks, Evan Mercer, Stuart Simpson, supported by the voice acting talents of Allison Kelly, Stef Curran, Spencer Bellows, and Devon Bryan and the iconic Greg Malone, all hands hunkered down in creative town to develop The Codcast, 10 episodes of riotous sketch comedy that poke at everything from “the dark side of Newfoundland tourism,” to a Black Mirror styled sequence where the listener becomes the subject of the entire episode. 

There’s tons of ideas, and they all stick.

“For this project, we had such a back catalogue of stuff from previous shows that we hadn’t done on stage, we hadn’t said in front of anybody. We had sketches that we just didn’t do. So there was a certain amount of that we were lifting from and going well, how do we turn this into an audio sketch?” shared Simpson, delving into the real challenge of taking a largely visual medium and adapting it for an audio-only experience. 

“I think it’s like a nod to how important those shows were and how important those teleplays and radio plays were and the new wave,” explains Tremblett. “It’s our little nod to old comedy and the new, and new form and old form and what’s that bridge. You can really reach. I don’t know, like it’s old radio man, it’s classic. And I love it myself personally.”

‘Come on We Goes’

With the debut episode, naturally titled “Come on We Goes”, hitting the airwaves this past May, The Codcast has already grown a local following, while also proudly gaining listenership across the globe, something the crew admittedly take great pride in.

“It’s not just for the hall anymore, it’s not for just people in town. We want, of course, Newfoundland, and that’s where our numbers are right now. Across Newfoundland there’s a lot. We did the sketch fest and stuff and we found that our humour really resonated in different places,” shared Tremblett, with Simpson explaining that, as a comedy troupe, the gang tend to hold their tried and true “salt beef lens” up to the world. 

“I always say that we are post-ironic Newfoundlanders,” he shared with a grin. “We lay into watta ya at b’y? and how she goin’? And all that stuff. And we always kind of say it as a bit of a joke, but then we do it so much as the joke that it just kind of becomes the way we get on. And so it kind of loses its joke, but it’s still kind of a joke, but like the whole thing is a joke (laughs). And with that, because it’s such a global kind of world we’re living in and all of the information is available to us all the time, we’re no longer this isolated province.

“The information we’re getting is global. It’s international. But we as this generation of post-ironic Newfoundlanders, when we create content, we’re always putting this filter over it. We call it the salt beef veneer. It’s this little lens that we look through that just has that little tinge of how ya gettin’ on? It has that bit of Newfoundland to it even if we’re talking about something that’s much larger than, it’s always got that little taste of Newfoundland in it.”

Parting thoughts? Tune in, have a laugh, and spread the good word of Halfhandsome. “Go and listen. Give us a download. Give us a share. If we can reach out to the readers of The Herald, it all helps,” explains Simpson in closing. “It spreads the word, the good word of Halfhandsome.”

Find The Codcast on your go-to podcast provider and follow Halfhandsome on their official social medias

The world’s most popular children’s entertainment group, The Wiggles will be travelling across Canada from St. John’s to Vancouver to perform their biggest show yet! Anthony, Tsehay, Lachy and Simon are delighted to sing, dance and play music for their fans, and will be bring along all of their Wiggly friends too! Captain Feathersword, Dorothy the Dinosaur, Wags the Dog, Henry the Octopus, Shirley Shawn the Unicorn are all coming along for the fun, PLUS The Wiggles are excited to introduce Caterina Wiggle and John Wiggle from the Fruit Salad TV series to their Canadian fans!

The Wiggles Big Show Tour! will feature all your favourite Wiggles songs such as ‘Do the Propeller!’, ‘Hot Potato’ and ‘Rock-a- Bye Your Bear’, along with new and catchy tunes such as Dippy Do Dinosaur Dance! The Wiggles Big Show Tour! will get your hands clapping and toes tapping! Come along and sing and dance with Anthony, Lachy, Simon, Tsehay, Caterina and John and all their Wiggly friends!

?? Tickets are $45 (HST included) plus fees & surcharge. Tickets go on sale Friday, July 22, 2022, and are available at Mary Brown’s Centre Box Office Monday – Saturday noon – 4 pm, by phone at 709-576-7657, or online at mbcentre.ca.

On June 2nd, 3rd and 4th at the All Saints Parish Hall in Foxtrap, Theatre CBS will ‘kill it’  – at least theatrically on the stage.  

Vicki Greenslade, President of Theatre CBS, shared that while her crew are a newly formed (Fall 2021) theatre company, they’ve already successfully produced their inaugural show, It’s A Wonderful Life, at the Legion in Kelligrews.   

“Well, we are at it again with our next show, Agatha Christie’s The Hollow scheduled early June,” she began. 

Greenslade, along with Director, Susan Bonnell, have had their hands full, but it’s been “a labour of love,” so to speak, Greenslade continued. 

‘House on fire’

“We’re a group of volunteers who really wanted to showcase the talent – musically and dramatically – that we had in CBS. Theatre was something that we didn’t have and we think there’s room for it,” she added. 

A team got together and formed a not-for-profit volunteer group called Theatre CBS. They produced their first show in 12 weeks. 

“We had, I think, ten cast members and it went off like a house on fire. People loved it. They were absolutely thrilled with it. We sold out. We also gave back to the community and we did a free show for seniors,” she said.

NTV’s Amanda Mews helped promote the show, Greenslade added, and of course that helped spread the word.  And now the “stars have lined up” and they are ready for their second show, The Hollow, a murder-mystery.  

“Our first show was  successful. That’s very fulfilling. We felt good about it. So now we’re on our next show. It’s about growth and spreading the word and getting people who are interested in theatre involved.”

The group have held theatre workshops at no cost to try and attract thespian newcomers. It’s worked, it seems, as The Hollow promises to be a grand night of theatre for all who attend. “What happens when a doctor finds himself with his wife, his mistress and a former lover on a weekend retreat? An unhappy game of romantic follow-the-leader explodes into murder at The Hollow, home of Sir Henry and Lady Lucy Angkatell,” the website teases. 

Comedy & Mystery

“It’s a night of comedy and mystery and fun, and theatre goers can guess ‘Who done it?’ before Inspector Colquhoun solves the crime. It’s going to be a fun night out,” she said.

Greenslade added that she’s excited for this show for a number of reasons, but mostly because she knows the audience will “have a great time and will be entertained and delighted.”

What’s not to love about a ‘who dunnit?’ she added. “Agatha Christie is the grand dame of comedy, and audiences will love her quirky take on comedy and on murder and The Hollow is going to be a great evening out in CBS.”   

For more, including tickets to the show, visit theatrecbs.com or eventbrite.ca

Marina Sexton loves to show off her hometown of Norris Point and Trails, Tales and Tunes, a ten day festival showcasing and highlighting the best the region has to offer on so many levels, is just as good a reason to extend an offer to visit as any, she opened.  

The festival has been warmly received for over a decade, she continued. Even through the challenges of COVID-19, Trails, Tales and Tunes – now in its 16th year – received a MusicNL Award for Event of the Year in 2020.

“It was a different year for all of us and thanks to our board, amazing event producers, sponsors and partners we delivered a virtual festival and it really was a great celebration of culture and community,” Sexton said proudly.  

‘Our Sweet 16’

The Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Arts Society has also  recognized the festival’s founder, Shirley Montague, for her many contributions to the province’s folk arts, naming her the 2019 Lifetime Achievement Award recipient.  

“This is our 16th year, our sweet 16. While we had to go online, or do a combination of online and socially distanced events because of COVID over the past two years, this year, we’re back,” Sexton said. And are they ever! 

With performances by Craig Young, Angus Stewart, The Mixed Tapes, Rum Ragged, Peter Jacobs, the French Shore Fiddlers, Chris LeDrew, Sherman Downey and more, it’s one event not to be missed for the music alone. 

The calender for Trails, Tales and Tunes is jam-packed with events to delight one and all. From supper at the Lions Club to wine pairings and bike rides to Bonne Bay Loop or the lighthouse, it’s one ‘must see’ festival. And bring a friend! 

“There’s going to be our trails part of the festival that so many enjoy and we organize a number of different hikes and there’s storytellers to share tales about the region and of course there’s music and food too,” she said. The festival requires “many actively engaged volunteers,” and those involved “are so excited and are having so much fun,”  she added.

“Back when Shirley (Montague) had an idea and she gave birth to this festival, it’s been said that everyone else just helped with the labour,” Sexton said with a chuckle.  

‘A Beautiful Area’

The festival, happening from May 20-29, boasts some “fabulous hikes throughout the area,” Sexton shared. 

“Of course, we’re located in Gros Morne National Park, so it’s a beautiful area and it’s amazing in May and it’s a great time to get out and explore. People have been tied down for so long and behaving themselves doing what they were supposed to do to keep everyone safe and now we’re breaking out and this is a perfect opportunity to do just that in the most perfect setting.” 

One person who sings the praises of Trails, Tales and Tunes is Kevin Blackmore from Buddy Wasisname and the Other Fellers.

“Whether one goes as a performer, or just a person who likes to attend sessions, or to experience the place and partake in the events, the festival never gets old. My wife and I have gone for so many (years) that we have a whole other set of friends we get to see but once a year. For us the festival is part of our May and really it wouldn’t seem right to skip it. Life just wouldn’t be the same,” he shared.

For Sexton, Trails, Tales and Tunes is a celebration for the entire province and beyond. “There really is something for everyone and it’s something that shouldn’t be missed. It’s a beautiful area rich in culture and history and we hope to see people visit from all over as we celebrate this beautiful province of ours and what it has to offer from our unique culture to our community.”

www.trailstalestunes.ca

It’s one of the few flat-iron style buildings in the world and yet, there it sits, unused, on the corner of Duckworth and New Gower streets in downtown St. John’s

The place known as the Majestic Theatre was built in 1919 and found prominence as a political rallying point for some of its first half century of existence. According to Canada’s Historic Places, The Majestic was a staging area for the riot of 1932 where frustrated citizens marched to the Colonial Building protesting poor economic conditions and an exploitative political class. Then Prime Minister, Sir Richard Squires, was said to have barely escaped with his life. 

During the late 1940s, the building was the site of more political theatre, staging several debates about confederation with Canada. It’s life over the last 50 years has been far more sedate with the most riotous things to be heard under its domed roof being music, laughter and applause. More recently, the Pentecostal Assemblies of NL were the owners, however, a fire in 2017 set back their plans for the building.

In January of this year, a new lease on life for the historic property was granted when St. John’s City Council approved the sale of The Majestic. That’s where Terra Bruce Productions entered the picture. Terra Bruce first made a name for itself locally and across Canada producing the musical No Change in the Weather, telling the story of a family embroiled in their role over the negotiations for the original Churchill Falls hydroelectric deal between Labrador and Quebec. Since then, executive director Ann Connors has come on full time to help guide the professional theatre company. “We bought the Judy Knee studio on Mayor Avenue with the intent of making that a creation space, and a recording studio,” she says. “But we knew very soon after we turned the key in the door, that we had completely outgrown the space. We’re a pretty big staff now, 10 full time employees, plus a resident artist, and a company of musicians, over 20 staff now.”

Connors knew The Majestic might make a good venue for Terra Bruce to consider as a performance space, as well as a good place for the company to own as a public eatery and downtown hotspot.

“We’re ambitious,” she admits. “So to create large scale musicals, that needs space. We did the first iteration of No Change in the Weather at the LSPU Hall with a successful run of three weeks. However, the Hall is rarely available, let alone for three weeks at a stretch. We’re pretty limited for space here, so as this place has been closed ever since the fire [in 2017], we approached the owners.”

The story of how Terra Bruce was in a position to buy the disused venue goes back to the spring of 2018, according to their chief operating officer, Bob Hallett. He was introduced to businessman and philanthropist, Walter Schroeder. The Manitoba-born son of Ukrainian immigrants took a passionate interest in the culture of Newfoundland and has been using his family foundation to direct capital into arts and culture projects.

Persuasive Case

Hallett remembers his first encounter with Schroeder as, “he was referred to me as someone who had a strong background in Newfoundland music, but also a strong business background in live entertainment and who knew how to get music on stage. So when he reached out to me, I wanted to see a commitment to the organization.”

Hallett’s 30 year association playing with Great Big Sea and their place as the province’s best-selling musical act of all time certainly had him well positioned to know how to marry art, enterprise and financial success. “I know the standard we need to work to. I’ve worked at the Stratford Festival, Come From Away, and so I knew the risk and investment level, and more than anything else, the commitment of time. That was the start of a very long, very steep and slippery mountain that’s led us to The Majestic.”

It’s hardly a secret that the spending habits and people’s investment in cultural events outside the home over the last two years have been drastically derailed. When renovations are complete and Terra Bruce has a new entertainment venue for a major capital city, the unavoidable question lingers. For this “theatre of dreams,” if Terra Bruce builds it, will they come?

“That’s the biggest challenge, I think,” admits Hallett. “For any arts organization, to make a persuasive case that the collective experience of going out will be more interesting, exciting, and fulfilling than sitting at home watching Netflix or Crave or whatever.

Television & Film

“How do you make the audience experience better? I mean, one of the reasons the Iceberg Alley Festival worked is the audience experience was better. So, we’ve taken all that into our thought process and how do we make this a cultural theatre? The entrance and exits, the lounge and the bar, what you do with your coat, all that has to be taken into account.”

Like the rest of the world, NL audiences have been steered clear of local arts and culture in favour of a collective experience created through online streaming apps. Thus far it hasn’t been a space where NL, indeed Canada, has much of a foothold. However, Hallett feels opportunity lies in the flickers of interest people show in local productions. 

“One of the reasons that people are watching Son of a Critch so aggressively is they see themselves reflected on that show. They don’t see themselves reflected in 99.9 per cent of the television that’s on the air right now. We want to tell Newfoundland stories with Newfoundland artists, but on a scale that’s rarely been done here. People want to see their own experience, their own lives, their sense of humour, their music.

“We have an energy in St John’s that you don’t find in most cities,” Hallett notes. “However, Newfoundland has been dominated by television and film of late, and we’re trying to bring back pure theatre, to spotlight and demonstrate the level of talent, ideas and creativity we have.”

As for executive director, Ann Connors, the passion for the feeling of being downtown permeates her love of creating a space for so many others to enjoy.

“We’re hoping to open in the fall,” she hesitantly offers. “I think we’ll have had three or four months of folks getting used to being out and about and perhaps eager for that experience. You know, one of the grandest ideas that the city has had is the pedestrian mall. And anything we can do to revitalize the downtown core, another choice for people, it is a benefit.    

“It’s been shown that for every dollar invested into an artistic product, $5-7 goes back to the community. And being able to contribute to that is really exciting.”

She ends gleefully, “You know I love St. John’s, right?”

Henry Rollins returns to Atlantic Canada on his Good To See You 2022 tour, performing three shows in the region. Dates include:

June 6  Halifax             Rebecca Cohn Auditorium
June 7  Fredericton     The Playhouse
June 9  St. John’s        Arts and Culture Centre

On the Good To See You 2022 tour, Rollins will faithfully recount the events of his life in the brief pre-COVID period since the last tour and when things got even stranger over the last several months. It’s been an interesting time to say the least and he’s got some great stories to tell.

In describing Rollins, the tendency is to try to squeeze as many labels as possible into a single sentence. “Rollins is many things,” says The Washington Post, “diatribist, confessor, provocateur, humorist, even motivational speaker…his is an enthusiastic and engaging chatter.” Entertainment Weekly’s list includes “Punk Rock icon. Spoken word poet. Actor. Author. DJ. Is there anything this guy can’t do?” TV Guide has more concisely called him a “Renaissance Man” but, if Henry Rollins could be reduced to a single word, that word would undoubtedly be “workaholic.”

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When he’s not traveling, Rollins prefers a to keep a relentless schedule full of work, with gigs as an actor, author, DJ, voice-over artist and TV show host to name a few of the roles that keep his schedule full. He has toured the world as a spoken word artist, as frontman for both Rollins Band and Black Flag, and as a solitary traveler with insatiable curiosity, favouring road-less-traveled locales in places such as Nepal, Sri Lanka, Siberia, North Korea, South Sudan and Iran.

TICKETS AND VIP PACKAGES GO ON SALE THIS FRIDAY, DEC. 3

Halifax tickets are $31.50 in advance and $36.50 day of show (including tax and CIF) and will be available at 12 noon at the Dalhousie Arts Centre box office, by phone at (902) 494-3820 (1-800-874-1669), and sonicconcerts.com. Additional fees may apply. Doors open at 7 p.m. Show time is 8 p.m.

Fredericton tickets are $34.03 in advance and $39.03 day of show (including tax and service fee) and will be available at 10 a.m. at The Playhouse box office, by phone at (506) 458-8344, and sonicconcerts.com. Additional fees may apply. Doors open at 7 p.m. Show time is 7:30 p.m.

St. John’s tickets are $33 in advance and $38 day of show (including tax and service fee) and will be available at 12 noon at the Arts and Culture Centre box office, by phone at (709) 729-3900, and sonicconcerts.com. Additional fees may apply. Doors open at 7 p.m. Show time is 8 p.m.