Frances Woolison(Alto) invites you to a mini preview of a new work:
Our younger daughter Katie, married Jordan Steele in June. At the wedding we met many of Jordan’s relatives from B.C. Among them was his aunt, Suzanne Steele. Suzanne is a poet. She was designated Canada’s War Poet, and wrote Requiem to a Generation, a tribute to soldiers who served in Afghanistan. Her research included spending time in Afghanistan with troops from the PPCLI. That work was put to music and performed with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and others, to high acclaim.
She has now received funding from the Canadian Council for the Arts, and is writing a dramatic musical about Louis Riel and his love of the north. (Suzanne is a descendant of Louis Riel’s wife). She is writing the script, and Neil Weisensel is putting it to music. It is a complex process and when complete will involve readings, soloists, a community chorus, the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, and include 3 Metis languages as well as French and English. The final work is now scheduled to premiere in Winnipeg in 2020.
Currently, Suzanne is working in Winnipeg for 10 days, with Neil and some of the soloists, as they attempt to put together her words and his music. They will be performing a “mini preview” of the work on August 18th at Knox Church at 3:00 p.m. It will be about an hour and a half long, and is free and open to anyone interested in attending. The performance will be followed by a small reception.
I am extending an invitation to this event to MC on behalf of Suzanne. It sounds very interesting and I gather will be a ‘working’ performance, as the artists put words and music together for the first time. They don’t require an audience, but Suzanne thought there might be Winnipegers interested in attending.
More information about the whole musical project can be found at http://www.rielheartofthenorth.com/about/
Suzanne even mentioned that when the time comes to include a community chorus, members of Margaret’s Choir might be interested in becoming involved!
Jim and I will be attending the event at Knox and welcome others to join us 🙂
Frances Woolison