Hold on to your hats.
The 2014-15 season at the Chilliwack Cultural Centre is going to be “exciting, enthralling and utterly exceptional,” said artistic director Michael Cade.
His presentation Monday night on behalf of the Chilliwack Arts and Cultural Centre Society rolled out an array of brand-new shows, alongside some returning favourites. There are freaky Fringe shows, intimate concerts, funky films, and mammoth productions coming.
September will see performances by Lisa Brokop (Sept. 3) and Louisiana Hayride (Sept. 18).
To celebrate the Cultural Centre’s 4th Anniversary, they’re bringing in a Vancouver blues duo, known as The Harpoonist and the Axe Murderer, on Oct. 4.
It’s blues music “played like it was meant to be played,” said Cade, with wailing vocals, guitar, and harmonica, but also with unique foot-powered percussion.
There are dazzling kid-friendly shows like Raven Stories (Oct. 19), tons of talented tribute artists and quirky comedians booked, too.
OK, you want Fringe? They’ve got some wicked Fringe style shows on the way.
Try something called 2 For Tea, with James and Jamsey on the main stage Oct. 3 and 5. The physical performers with a background in clowning, come together over a cup of tea, for semi-improvised fun and hilarity.
“Take a risk! Come see it,” he coaxed.
Another of the standouts in October will be the hit musical production of Avenue Q, by the Arts Club Theatre Company, on Oct. 10 and 11.
“It’s rude, crude, obnoxious and wildly funny,” said Cade. The show capped off the season for the Arts Club and it drew their largest audience by far in years.
It will be the “largest show” ever brought to Chilliwack, added Cade, and the most expensive, too with a ticket price of $49. It’s an award-winning Broadway show created for adults.
Despite the puppets, Avenue Q is in no way connected to the Jim Henson Company or Sesame Workshop, he underlined, and the show is not for everyone, due to its racy adult content, profanity and full puppet nudity.
It actually fits in with the Society’s broad-based mandate to bring the “widest possible range of cultural events and opportunities” to Chilliwack.
“Part of our goal is to attract people that wouldn’t normally come out to a show,” Cade explained to the small crowd gathered in the Rotary Studio Hall.
To keep warm, listen for the Winter Harp (Dec. 16) with extraordinary musicians clad in medieval attire, with songs and stories of winter.
For something different there’s Sing A Long with the Sound of Music (Dec. 19) which is a smash hit show that became a worldwide phenomenon.
For those seeking the tried and true, and still terrific, there’s Valentine’s Day with Dal Richards (Feb. 14), and the Amazing Kreskin (March 22), as well as The Irish Rovers (March 12).
Entering their fifth season, they have many great shows lined up from September to May, as well as the three Cultural Centre Society fundraising events: Antiques in the Attic, Fraser Valley Culture and Craft Beer Festival and the Chilliwack Art of Wine Festival.
Once again they’re offering the “Create Your Own Series” deal. Get a $5 per ticket discount on shows marked with the ‘Ticket Plus’ logo when you purchase tickets for three or more eligible shows. Tickets for all Society season shows will be available through the Centre Box Office after July 21, 2014. Call 604-391-SHOW (7469), drop by, or go online to book today. For a copy of the Fall 2014 Chilliwack Cultural Centre Season Brochure, please drop by the Box Office. The Winter/Spring Brochure will be available later in 2014 but full details on the upcoming season are at www.chilliwackculturalcentre.ca
