After a slow February, the Moose Jaw Cultural Centre is back with a packed event schedule for March and April, featuring shows of enough differing genres to appeal to everyone.
Derik Cronan, general manager at the Cultural Centre, says the lull in February was due to a busy January and a need for theatre maintenance, but March is slated to pick up the pace once again.
“Coming up here [in March], we have a number of really exciting shows; a lot of it really kind of for everyone, from bluegrass to country, to pretty much everything you can imagine,” said Cronan.
The lineup in March includes a variety of different shows, from an eclectic collection of different genres of music, to comedy and theatre. The broad range of events is something that Cronan admits he’s been working very hard on for this year, focusing on booking acts that are new, different and entertaining enough to keep Moose Jaw paying attention.
“There was a lot of shows that came here before that were on a kind of repeating cycle where every year or two they would come back, and there wasn’t a whole lot of diversity in the lineup,” said Cronan. “The main focus that we have right now is. . . to kind of have a little bit of something for everyone when we can.”
This tactic seems to be working for Cronan; bluegrass band The Slocan Ramblers have been selling tickets well and Menopause the Musical, running from Apr. 2-4, has nearly sold out two of it's three shows.
“I think word is definitely spreading,” said Cronan. “It seems like the city is starting to pay attention and come out and support the lesser known Canadian artists that are coming here as well.”
The response that the community is showing to the Centre’s lineup is promising to Cronan, as often lesser known artists can be overlooked at smaller venues such as the Mae Wilson, and he is optimistic for the future as there has been a lot of interested shows approached them to book the Mae Wilson Theatre.
“From what I’ve kind of heard. . . lot of people felt it was very closed off here before, where only certain dates or events would be booked, primarily focusing on weekends and that sort of thing. And we’ve kind of opened everything up,” said Cronan. “We’ve had a lot of people approach us about presenting shows, which I think is great. Especially after the Burton Cummings shows last year, we have a lot more interest from artists you wouldn't necessarily expect to see coming to Moose Jaw.”
The absence of RuBarb Productions in the theatre has prompted the Cultural Centre to consider outside theatre companies for time slots previously occupied by RuBarb shows. Cronan says that although they have yet to book a lot of theatre, there are already companies interested in coming to Moose Jaw to preform.
In terms of local artists, Cronan has heard all of the questions about when there will be some more Moose Jaw artists performing at the Mae Wilson, and he advises people to keep an eye on the event calendar and on social media.
“There’s some announcements that’ll be coming up soon, so I hope people stay tuned for that because it is something we’ve been working towards, and we have some shows that are scheduled for this year,” said Cronan.”
The Bromantics have announced they will appear at the Mae Wilson Theatre on May 18, Red Green will be stopping his comedy tour in Moose Jaw on Oct. 5, and Cronan hinted at another announcement that is yet to come.
“The other one I can’t mention," he said, "but by the end of the month, it will be announced.”
More information about upcoming shows is available on the Cultural Centre’s website and Facebook page.
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