The City of Peterborough is dismantling the Fred Anderson Stage at Del Crary Park and will install a new stage in time for Peterborough Musicfest’s 36th summer season, which opens on Canada Day with a concert by Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy.
Built in the 1980s, the Fred Anderson Stage — named after the late founder of the Peterborough Festival of Lights, which became Peterborough Musicfest — has hosted hundreds of musicians since the festival was Launched on July 1, 1987.
Last June, just days before Peterborough Musicfest was set to return to Del Crary Park after a two-year pandemic absence, the city inspected the Fred Anderson Stage and deemed it structurally unsafe, banning its use. A temporary stage was constructed at Del Crary Park so Musicfest could proceed with its 2022 season.
In the city’s 2023 capital budget, city council approved $200,000 for the purchase of a new stage.
According to a media release from the city, the new stage “will enhance the live entertainment experience at the park with features to meet modern production needs, including allowing for better lighting and sound systems.”
However, unlike the Fred Anderson Stage, the new stage will not be a fixed structure.
“The new stage will be mobile so that potentially it can also be set up at other locations for events,” the media release states.
