For many P.E.I. performers, 2011 was filled with opportunity and success.
Now, as the old year fades, some of these artists continue to shine.
The Guardian recently spoke with four performers it featured in stories during 2011 who are looking forward to exciting new projects in the new year.
In concert
P.E.I. singer-songwriter Lennie Gallant is excited about performing in Just Biding My Time: A Tribute to Gene MacLellan, the CBC televised concert taking place Jan. 14 at Zion Presbyterian Church in Charlottetown at 8 p.m.
“Gene was a great songwriter. He contributed a great deal to Canadian culture. Gene also helped to launch Anne Murray’s career,” said Gallant during a recent telephone interview.
In his lifetime, he added, many people were moved by his work.
“I think it’s important that something like this is happening to remember somebody who meant so much to the musical community,” says Gallant, adding that the star-studded concert will feature Gene’s daughter, Catherine MacLellan, as well as Ron Hynes, Haunted Hearts, Meaghan Blanchard and more.
“Gene was a personal friend, and I miss him. We all miss him,” says Gallant, who is also one of the headliners for Stolen From a Hockey Card, a concert taking place on Feb. 9 at the Confederation Centre of the Arts at 8 p.m. as part of Scotiabank Hockey Day in Canada 2012 celebrations.
“Hockey played an important part in my life as I was growing up — both as a player and a crazy fan — so I’m very much looking forward to it,” says Gallant, who is also making several yet-to-be announced appearances during Metro Credit Union Music P.E.I. Week 2012 in Charlottetown.
“As you can see, I’m going to be pretty busy for the months of January and February on P.E.I.,” he says.
On stage
As Shawna VanOmme looks forward to the new year, she can’t forget the thrill of being in the hit musical, Billy Elliott, in 2011.
“(Opening night) was an unbelievable experience. It was so incredible to meet Elton John (who wrote the music for the show). There was a ton of stars that came to the opening,” says VanOmme, the only female cast member in the Mirvish production that enjoyed a seven-month run before it closed this past September.
As an ensemble member, she appeared in many scenes.
“I played Leslie, Billy’s brother’s girlfriend. I also performed in a dancing dress and did some backup singing,” says VanOmme.
Besides high-energy singing, the physicality of the show was like a fast-paced workout.
“I did two tap numbers in the show, plus the (police) riot number, where I played a police officer,” says VanOmme, adding she was thrilled that so many Islanders made the trip to Toronto to see the show.
“There was a ton of people — friends and family here, which was absolutely amazing. It was wonderful to get that kind of support from the Island,” says VanOmme, who is in Toronto continuing her professional career.
And while she misses the show, the experience also makes her hopeful about the future.
“I’m busy going to auditions right now .... Hopefully one of those will turn into a show,” says VanOmme.
Meanwhile, she’s teaching piano and voice lessons and rehearsing for her demo CD which will be filled with covers and may be for sale.
“I’m hoping to have it recorded at the end of January or the beginning of February. After that we’ll see how the timeline goes,” says VanOmme.
New book
Patrick Ledwell is also hoping to receive plenty of backing from Islanders when he launches his new book, I Am an Islander, in June.
In fact, he’s asking for their support in advance.
“I have a campaign going where people can pre-buy the book to support the book, which is being published by Acorn Press,” says the Island comedian.
I Am an Islander is a culmination of four years of creative writing.
“Some of the pieces are topical, about living on P.E.I. or growing up here. Others are about being married or technology. Still others are ones that I might have developed for the stage. Those come with cool graphics,” he says.
Ledwell describes the pieces in the book as coming from a “selective yard sale.”
“It’s only the best stuff from the basement, coming up to the front yard, to be enjoyed by Islanders, like any good yard sale,” says Ledwell, who is also looking forward to returning as the host of this summer’s production of Come-All-Ye at the Confederation Centre of the Arts, July 5 to Sept. 1.
But before the summer arrives he plans to hit the boards at least twice. On Jan. 5 he’s teaming up with singer-songwriter Tim Chaisson at The Pourhouse in Charlottetown for Rocking and Rolling in Laughter: A Night to Tackle Poverty at 7 p.m. Organized by the office of Charlottetown MP Sean Casey, the show will raise awareness and support for poverty issues. A freewill offering will be taken to support poverty-fighting causes.
Then on Feb. 7 he’s taking part in CBC Radio’s The Debaters at Ottawa’s Centrepoint Theatre.
“I’ll be debating the Canadian comedy icon and Winnipeg native Al Rae, and trying to defend the importance of the Order of Canada. I’m sure we’ll figure out some ludicrous way to make that topic a verbal slugfest,” says Ledwell, with a laugh, adding he will also be doing comedy at conventions and events.
New opportunities
Good things continue to happen for Kelley Mooney whose spiritual lyrical adaptation of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah went viral after it was posted on YouTube.
She will be opening for P.E.I. singer-songwriter Catherine MacLellan at the Moncton Press Club on Jan. 6, 8-10 p.m.
“I’m very excited ... over the moon about it. Catherine is a well-known and well-respected musician. So it will be great to share the stage with her,” she says.
Mooney’s set will run between 20 and 30 minutes.
“It’s like a showcase. I hope to perform four to six pieces, ending with Hallelujah,” the singer-songwriter says.
Closer to home, sales from her debut album continue to do well.
“I only have 100 CDs left from 1,000,” she says.
There’s other good news, too. Shortly after sending a copy of the CD containing Hallelujah to Cohen she received a thank you letter from Cohen’s agent.
“I know that Leonard will be very appreciative of the path that you have taken to create a lyrical adaptation of a song that continues to touch the very fibre of our human spirit,” wrote Matthew Nocita of Hollywood, Calif.
Other fallout from the song continues to inspire her. In November she received a letter from Sister Jocelyn Monette, who runs pilgrimages to the Holy Land, asking for copies of her CD.
“When she got back, she called to tell me that the CDs sold out almost immediately and to tell me about when and where Hallelujah was played during the trip, including on the bus for the travellers.
“The song was also played (on a CD player) during the walk along the Via Dolorosa to the Holy Sepulchre, the holiest Christian site where Jesus died and was raised to life. The Via Dolorosa is a street, in two parts, within the Old City of Jerusalem held to be the path that Jesus walked, carrying his cross, on the way to his crucifixion. It was also played during their morning prayer.”
But, what is even more thrilling, says Mooney, is that Monette is contacting a larger retailer in Bethlehem in the hope of selling the CD in their store.
