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WHAT’S UP MUSKOKA ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
FEBRUARY
Hospice play captures the moments of life
By Sandy Lockhart
Mark your calendars for Hospice
Muskoka’s presentation of the enlightening
and humorous play, Grace and
Glorie, on the stage of the Rene M.
Caisse Memorial Theatre. The final
night will also be the official launch of
the organization’s new fundraising
campaign.
“It is an uplifting affirmation of life,
not about death,” says Annette Procunier,
the internationally known adjudicator
who is directing the production.
Grace and Glorie, by Tom Ziegier,
is a two-person comedy that tells the
story of a feisty old woman dying of
cancer and the Hospice worker sent to
help her. Together, this odd couple
gain new perspectives on values and
life. Local actors Pru Donaldson and
Lisa Friesen are playing Grace and
Glorie, respectively.
“It is a very funny play. There is a
tremendous amount of humour but
then, there is a tremendous amount of
humour in life,” says Procunier. “It is
like a lot of experiences when people
interact with each other, the tables
turn.”
Procunier, who calls Bala home, is
pleased to be able to spend some time
By Bronwyn Boyer
Fans of folk artist Mendelson Joe will
get a rare Valentine’s Day gift from the
musician, artist and political activist.
This past September, Joe took the time
to record Live At Sixty-Five which will be
officially released on Valentine’s Day.
As the title suggests, the album was
recorded in a very intimate manner.
Though it is not a live recording, it is
fashioned after one. And as much as any
artist can bare their soul, Joe does so on
this record. To that end, there is very little
instrumentation to add clutter. It’s just
Joe’s voice, his old painted guitar, and his
foot stomping out the beat.
“My purpose in life is to produce,”
explains Joe. “I’m not driven to impress,
the way other people are. I am just pathologically
productive, in a creative sense.
And I’m not concerned with what others
think, because you should never give
people the freedom to control what you
Grace, played by Pru Donaldson, has a heartfelt talk with Glorie, played by
Lisa Friesen. The play is a fundraiser for Hospice Muskoka.
supporting the cause and working
close to home.
“When you get two of Muskoka’s
finest actors to participate and the
Muskoka Arts Council to produce it,
do. You can’t be a successful artist if you
start catering to other people. I’m not
saying it’s wrong to try to please others,
but when it comes to art, a true artist
must first set out to please themselves.”
Joe long ago devoted himself to the
how good is that?” she says.
All funds raised will help Hospice
Muskoka provide end-of-life care and
support to Muskokans who are coping
with end of life issues. The final
uninhibited honesty of self-expression. In
keeping with this, he kept the album raw
and natural. In fact, it’s safe to say that
Live At Sixty-Five is as real as he gets.
There are even snippets of narration
between tracks. He also included some of
the incidental moments of imperfection
that occurs in the recording process.
“I’m a flawed artist,” Joe is fond of saying.
“I’m not a perfectionist at all – I just
aim really high. Perfection, for me, is
accidental. When I make a masterpiece
in anything, it’s always luck. All I do is
just keep going, because I like doing it.”
Live At Sixty-Five is an intimate view
into Mendelson Joe’s philosophies, emotions,
fears, hopes and his quirky sense of
humour. Some moments of the record
are casual and fun, some are serious and
thoughtful, and some are both at the
same time. Put simply, it is a clear,
unadulterated view into Mendelson Joe’s
artistry. And although it is quite revealing
evening of Grace and Glorie is a dinner
theatre at which the sweater knit during
the play will be auctioned off.
“It launches Stitches for Hospice,”
says Joanne Korten, director of philanthropy
and community outreach
for Hospice Muskoka.
Stitches for Hospice is a project in
which hospices from across Ontario
will be invited to submit pieces of
stitched or knit artwork for a fundraising
auction event to be held in
Muskoka.
“These are top quality, juried products
that are ready for auction,” she
notes.
All of the pieces will be auctioned
off with the raised funds shared
between Hospice Muskoka and the
submitting artist’s hospice.
“It enables other countries to raise
money for their hospice without having
to hold their own event,” explains
Korten.
Grace and Glorie is at the Rene
Caisse Theatre at on Thursday, Feb.
11 and Friday, Feb. 12 at 7 p.m. On
Saturday, Feb. 13 there is a dinner,
theatre and auction starting with
cocktails at 5 p.m. Tickets are available
through the Rene Caisse Memorial
Theatre box office.
Folk artist Mendelson Joe releases new album
Mendelson Joe is releasing a new
album on Valentine’s Day.
Photograph: courtesy of Mendelson Joe
P057020CN 11/05
There are good reasons to
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of Joe’s thoughts on the flaws of humanity
and the perils of the world, it also has
many light-hearted moments. And, of
course, he pokes fun at himself as much
he does others.
It’s an expression of his identity as a
65-year-old self-proclaimed folkie who is
reflecting on how far he’s come in his life,
what he’s learned, and what he continues
to learn. And, of course, it wouldn’t be a
Mendelson Joe record if it weren’t also an
expression of what humanity has to learn.
In the song Some Dumb Machine, for
instance, Joe sings, “Why can’t we stop
and learn from our folly/and listen to
hearts instead of our wallets?/The conscience
of people got lost in the wash/like
socks that got eaten by some dumb
machine…and we built the machine.”
In short, Live At Sixty-Five makes the
listener laugh, cry, and think. Look for it
in stores Feb. 14 and get re-acquainted
with this legendary local artist.
www.whatsupmuskoka.com February 2010 25