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Wednesday, June 16, 1999 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER B7 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT ■ m m■ % m i ■5 Ijrci $ I h > .. i I i A n f 'y|i 1*: if I f • i; I ' M , m Salute to swing and Sinatra Photo by Barrie Erskine Oakville trombonist Russ Lit­ tle will be playing lead trom­ bone with the Galaxy Orches­ tra in Toronto's newest musi­ cal production, Bandstand. This 'musictacular' will enjoy a limited engagement at Toronto's historic Winter Gar­ den Theatre, Fridays and Sat­ urdays only, from July 9th to Aug. 28th. For tickets call TicketMaster at (416) 872- 5555. Oakville's own Russ Little will be playing lead trombone with the Galaxy Orchestra when it joins Toron­ to's newest musical production, Band­ stand. Bandstand will pay tribute through music, song and dance, to the swing era and to this century's most popular entertainer - Francis Albert Sinatra. "I'm looking forward to it immensely - good music, great arrangements, and a terrific band - really good players, all the top guys," says Little. "It should be a helluva show." Not only is Little doing original trombone solos on such classic big band tunes as Stardust and Song of India, he is also doing the male vocal on Marie - "just for fun, strictly for fun." This swingin' '90s showcase is billed as the re-creation of the exciting '40s era as it traces the career of 01' Blue Eyes from his early croonin' days to the later years when, on the wings of monumental popularity, he sky­ rocketed to stardom. Bandstand promises to be a hot, jumpin-jivin', hand-clappin', swoonin' salute to swing and to Sina­ tra, with songs performed in the dynamic style of the man himself. This 'musictacular' will also fea­ ture the voice of the big bands, plus the kings of swing - Benny Goodman, Photo by Barrie Erskine Rick Sonata plays the legendary Frank Sinatra in Bandstand. Harry James, Artie Shaw, Glenn Miller and Tommy Dorsey, authenti­ cally reproduced to recreate the magic of that time. The magic of Sinatra and the uniqueness of big band music have been rediscovered by today's young swingers; and the result is a revival for this genre of entertainment. Bandstand is headlined by enter- tainer/singer Rick Sonata with an all- star cast of vocalists and soloist musi­ cians performing with the 16-member Galaxy Orchestra, under the direction of Eddie Graf and Ross Wooldridge. Songstress Robin Lea and The Star­ dust Dancers are also integral parts of this show. Sinatra's musical talents are reflect­ ed in Sonata's song list, which includes The Lady is a Tramp, Luck Be a Lady Tonight, All or Nothing At All, Where or When, Witchcraft, New York New York, and many more, including the song that symbolizes the "chair­ man's" unique style, My Way. The first half of the show will spot­ light "The King of Swing" Benny Goodman plus the music of Harry James, the trumpet-playing band leader credited with discovering Sina­ tra in 1939. The second half of the show will shift to focus on the music of Glenn Miller and Tommy Dorsey, the leg­ endary "Sentimental Gentleman of Swing" who played a major role in developing Sinatra's singing style. Bandstand begins its limited engagement, running Fridays and Sat­ urdays only, at 8 p.m., July 9th in Toronto's historic Winter Garden The­ atre, 189 Yonge St. This tribute to swing and Sinatra runs until Aug. 28th, with matinees on July 24th and Aug. 7th. Tickets are $53, $43 and $30 for evening performances and $43, $33 and $23 for matinees. Call TicketMas­ ter at (416) 872-5555. For group reservations, call (416) 345-1839. Opera Ontario presents another crowd pleaser By Mary Romeo SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER Opera Ontario recently brought an enthusiastic crowd to its feet, cheer­ ing on the international O n C k f O cast members W p C I d R eviewthey per­ formed arias ----------------------------- and duets in the Oakville Centre for the Perform­ ing Arts. The singers were an impressive group from all over the world. From China, Yalun Zhang electri­ fied the crowd with his deep, flexible baritone and his moving interpreta­ tions of Di Provenza, from La travia- ta and the prologue from / pagliacci. Russian bass Gleb Nikolsky, huge in stature and in voice, delivered out­ standing performances of La calun- nia from II barbiere di Siviglia and the folk song Otchia Chornia in the biggest, darkest bass this hall has ever heard, or probably ever will. Rumanian Constantin Nica applied his radiant tenor voice to E lucevan le stelle from Tosca and then to a Pavarotti imitation of the Neapolitan favourite O sole mio, which he managed to persuade a nor­ mally reserved Oakville audience to . sing along with. The versatile Nica then picked up a guitar and accompanied Nikolsky in a rousing Russian folk tune. founding out the male component was Canadian bass Alexander Savtchenko who put on his devil hat to deliver spirited renditions of Le veau d 'or and the Serenade from Faust. Canadian soprano Louise Mar- cotte opened the concert with the vocal pyrotechnics of Sempre libera from La Triviata and followed with the more laid back Summertime from Porgy and Bess. The huge voice of mezzo-soprano Emilia Boteva from Bulgaria amazed the audience with her zealous version of Stride la vampa from II trovatore. Another Canadian, Anna Shafajin- skaia impressed with her dramatic soprano voice in Voi lo sapete from Cavalleria rusticana. The Oakville audience gave the Opera Ontario singers three standing ovations for this concert. During the encore, Oakvillians joined the soloists for the drinking song, Libi- amo, the chorus from La triviata. This performance completed the inaugural season of a unique concert series. Next season's programs will revolve around the diverse casts from La triviata, Susannah, and Faust. If you are a music lover you will not want to miss these musical "treats." 30" WHIRLPOOL EASY-CLEAN ELECTRIC RANGE Flush fit and removable glass console. *22352. Sears reg. 679.99. $649 Black-on-White stand and White-on- White; self-clean also available Now $898 KENMORE 18.1-CU. FT. TOP-MOUNT REFRIGERATOR Sound insulation, 3 half-w idth slide-out 's p illp ro o f glass shelves. * 68862. Sears reg. 1499.99. Black-on-Black and A lm ond-on-A lm ond also available SALE PRICES END SUNDAY, JUNE 20, 1999 All Kenmore, Kitchen A id, & Whirlpool major appliances on sale SSAfSS m -- --J Plus, use your Sears Card and Don't pay for 1 full year or pay no interest 'til August 2000 'Don t pay' offer: Don't pay until June 2000. No interest' offer: Pay in 14 equal monthly payments interest free, until August 2000. 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