A Beautiful and Intimate Concert Series, ‘Listen Live’ 2021 Takes You There
FEATURING THE BEST OF THE CARIBOO AND REMARKABLE UP AND COMERS
BY VENTA RUTKAUSKAS
Behind the scenes at ‘Listen Live’
MC Mary Forbes and Cameraman Rick Magnell prepare to set Shannon O’Donovan up for her session.
The Region’s Best Talent Coming to You at Home
Performances in the Park (PiP), presented by the Central Cariboo Arts and Culture Society with the financial support of the City of Williams Lake and the Cariboo Regional District, brings you an amazing line-up of talent every Thursday night at 7 pm for 8-weeks, starting July 8th. Kicking the ‘Listen Live’ series off this year are feature act and recent Juno Award winners, Pharis and Jason Romero! The series has filmed eight acts that will be released once per week, a little something for everyone’s tastes and style.
Pharis and Jason Romero kick off the series on Thursday, July 8th at 7 pm. (Photo credit Laureen Carruthers Photography)
As wonderful as it would be to get together in Boitanio Park once again, series manager Venta Rutkauskas, with the Community Arts Council of Williams Lake (CACWL) says a great deal of advance planning is necessary to make these concerts happen. The choice to go virtual again was made in December, allowing for the creation of an online arts and culture event that supports artists and local professionals who are unable to perform or work in live venues.
“Faced with the uncertainty of the summer of 2021, we wanted to ensure we could still support the work of our arts industry in the Cariboo Chilcotin,” Venta explains. “What we’ve been creating has had an amazing reach thus far – well over 7,000 views of our 2020 YouTube content! We encourage everyone to subscribe to keep up to date with our releases.”
https://www.youtube.com/c/PerformancesinthePark
With regional government support, and generous sponsors who also want to see this work happen, virtual or live, CACWL has created a line-up they think will excite music fans.
New this year, the team has added a ‘Patrons Play Your Part’ sponsorship opportunity. If you love the concert series, live or online, visit our website and donate the price of a concert ticket! These donations are directly impacting the artists performing this year and in the following years, artists who’ve seen their gig economy nearly evaporate since last year.
https://www.centralcaribooarts.com/performances-in-the-park/
Quesnel’s No Big D grace our virtual stage in 2021 - on Thursday August 5th. (Photo credit Northern Persona Photography)
The Line-Up:
On Thursday July 8, tune in for Pharis and Jason Romero’s beautiful set filmed at their newest home venue.
On Thursday July 15, we’ll present Ashcroft’s Melawmen Collective, and Indigenous fusion band with a powerful message.
July 22, tune in for the young Thompson Brothers, who grew up in Tatlayko Lake, and who’ve matured into wildly talented performers.
July 29, we’ll introduce you to Hoop Dancing with Francis Johnson Sr. of Esk’et and his students.
Moving into August, Thursday August 5th Quesnel power femme indie rockers, No Big D take the spotlight.
August 12th, we get cozy by a campfire with Shannon O’Donovan, Ben Lamb-Yorski and Clayton Charleyboy.
On August 19th, showcases another session of young and local up and comers in Ebony, a modern string band.
On August 26th, we’ll close with Bats and Dao, the fusion of two highly talented musicians Ciel Patenaude and Brent Morton.
“It’s an incredible array of talent you won’t want to miss!” assures Venta of the CACWL. “With Rick Magnell and Brandon Hoffman on our production team, these musical journeys will have a look and sound of such high quality, you’ll want to watch them again and again.”
Be sure to catch up with Performances in the Park on YouTube, Facebook and Instagram and have your finger on the pulse for our releases.
Harry Jennings, President, Central Cariboo Arts and Culture Society, adds the organizations thoughts: "We are SO proud, along with the ongoing great municipal support from the Cariboo Regional District and the City of Williams Lake, and so many supportive local sponsors, to be once again able to bring the amazing talent collected for the 2021 edition of Performances In The Park to the Central Cariboo, and virtually to the WHOLE WORLD. So much gratitude and thanks to Venta Rutkauskas, Series Manager with the Community Arts Council of Williams Lake, and technicians Brandon Hoffman and Rick Magnell!"
Our wonderful sponsors:
Platinum – Thompson Rivers University Williams Lake Campus, Williams Lake and District Credit Union
Gold - West Fraser Truckers Association and Williams
Silver – Sugar Cane Development Corporation Coyote Rock Estates, Heartland Toyota and Pinnacle Renewable Energy
Bronze –Cariboo Handwoven