Now & Then Episode 20 – July 2024

Welcome to the July 2024 episode!

Auditions recently took place for The Wizard of Oz, and I got to attend the first night. For the first part of this episode, you get to hear some footage from then. Some includes my granddaughter who’s been accepted as a Munchkin! And this was her first audition! I’m so proud of her!

We also have our historian Ian McKechnie, back after a little while, discussing how he’s now a published author, and talking about his book, “Reflections on Old Victoria County: In Tribute to R. B. Fleming”. Dr. Ray Fleming was a well-known historian and author, who also did some documentation about the Academy Theatre. Not long before he died, he compiled articles about our local history to put into a book. He passed before he could finish it, but Ian and another historian got a green light from Ray’s family to keep going where he left off. And this is the result!!

We also hear stories from the amazing Andy McNeilly, what it was like living in Bali, Indonesia, right after the pandemic. Some examples include how some people came permanently and all over the world to live in Bali during some rough times, such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. There was a surplus of tourism and some people weren’t treating Hinduism right, and Andy felt responsibility and was a bit of a speaker. Who had millions and millions of views!!!

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Now & Then Podcast Episode 19 – June 2024

For June, we have some exciting events!

One is the 11th Annual Inspired 2 Dance Recital on June 15th, and a week later, on the 22nd, we have a collaboration between the amazing Kawartha Lakes Concert Band and the Weston Silver Band, which is a British-style brass band. The concert will involve a lot of music from the other side of the ocean. Scottish, Welsh, English, etc.

Also, between then, on the 17th, auditions will start for the upcoming Wizard of Oz! And we have our good friend Beth Wilson for this episode to discuss how she caught the theatre bug, the selection process for this play, how it will be a bit of a darker version of the play with more characters and similarities to the book, and more!

00:00 – Intro

01:10 – Craig Metcalfe

05:11 – David Morrison & Larry Sheilds

07:48 – Beth Wilson

34:14 – Outro

Now & Then Episode 18 – May 2024

Episode 18 is out!

In this one we have some very talented guests – Rob Barg, a talented musician, a board member of the theatre, and the chairman of the Program Committee, of which I am a member too. We talk about what the primary function of the committee is – to advise the management and the board of the shows we arrange ourselves and the ones we rent to, and how the theatre industry is leaning more and more towards tribute shows of old bands that might not be around anymore and dipping into the nostalgia. And more!

We also have Freddy Kwon. He’s the guitarist of my dear friend Warren Frank’s band The Kents. Their band is still working songs and doing tours. Freddy and Warren started working together in high school. Freddy currently works at an artist agency as a coordinator, and we talk about what it’s like there; having a day to day roster of artists they represent, finalizing tours, working with the writers and promoters, etc.

Also, continuing our amazing story with Andy McNeilly, he talks about not just going viral for being a Caucasian immigrant in Bali, Indonesia, but ending up as a result on talk shows and television programs as a cultural observer.

Finally, we get some exciting show announcements from Craig Metcalf for the remainder of the month!

00:00 – Intro

1:34 – Rob Barg

9:49 – Fred Kwon

18:05 – Andy McNeely

39:18 – Craig Metcalfe

43:06 – Outro