Every Thursday, we publish live music and performance events at pubs and clubs in Peterborough and The Kawarthas based on information that venues provide to us directly or post on their website or social media channels. Here are the listings for the week of Thursday, August 22 to Wednesday, August 28.

If you’re a pub or club owner and want to be included in our weekly listings, please email our Nightlife Editor at nightlife@kawarthanow.com.

Every month, kawarthaNOW is the only local media source to bring you a list of what’s coming to Netflix Canada.

Featured this month are two original Netflix series: The Politician (September 27), a comedy satire from producer Ryan Murphy (Glee, American Horror Story) starring Ben Platt as a wealthy high school student determined to get elected student body president as part of his career path to become President of the United States; and The I-Land (September 12), a science-fiction thriller about a group of 10 strangers who find themselves wiped clean of their memories and thrown together on a remote island.

Other new Netflix series this month include The Spy (September 6), Evelyn (September 10), Unbelievable (September 13), Criminal (September 20), Team Kaylie (September 23), and Skylines (September 27).

VIDEO: “The Politician” Trailer

Returning Netflix series include: part seven of The Ranch (September 13); season two of Elite, season three of Hip Hop Evolution, and season three of Jack Whitehall: Travels with My Father (September 6); season two of Fastest Car and part two of Disenchantment (September 20); season three of Glitch (September 25); and season four of Vis a vis (September 27).

Other series in September include: season 17 of Family Guy and season nine of The Walking Dead (September 1); season 12 of Murdoch Mysteries (September 4); season 13 or Dragons’ Den (September 7); the first season of The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco (September 8); season seven of Homeland (Septmeber 15); season three of Lethal Weapon and season three of This Is Us (September 25); season 15 of Grey’s Anatomy (September 26); and season three of The Good Place (September 27).

VIDEO: “The I-Land” Trailer

There are only three original Netflix films this month: Tall Girl (September 13), Between Two Ferns: The Movie (September 20), and In the Shadow of the Moon (September 27). New Netflix comedy specials are Bill Burr: Paper Tiger (September 10), Jeff Dunham: Beside Himself (September 24), and Mo Gilligan: Momentum (September 30). For documentaries, you might want to check out Inside Bill’s Brain: Decoding Bill Gates (September 20).

Theatrically released films coming in September include: Awakenings, Dirty Dancing, It, The Beguiled, The Natural (September 1); Edge of Darkness, Ravenous, and The Other Woman (September 15); and Bad Moms, Rush Hour 3, Sin City: A Dame to Kill For, and What Men Want (September 30).

VIDEO: New to Netflix Canada in September

Here’s the complete list of everything coming to Netflix Canada in September, along with what’s leaving.

Coming in September (no release date specified)

• Vagabond (Netflix original) – Vagabond is a story about a stuntman Cha Dal-geon, played by Lee Seung-gi, who gets involved in a tragic airplane crash and ends up discovering a national corruption scandal in the process. Bae Suzy plays Go Hae-ri, the oldest daughter of a deceased marine, who decides to work for the National Intelligence Service as a secret ops agent in order to support her mom and younger siblings, although all she wanted to do is to become a civil servant.

Sunday, September 1st

• Awakenings
• Black ’47
• Blow
• Dirty Dancing
• Elena
• Family Guy: Season 17
• For the Birds
• Geostorm
• It
• Kingsman: The Golden Circle
• Letters to Juliet
• Mune: Guardian of the Moon
• Olmo & the Seagull
• PAW Patrol: Mighty Pups
• Premonition
• Second Act
• Spookley the Square Pumpkin
• The Beguiled
• The Blind Side
• The Book of Henry
• The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!: S1
• The Dark Tower
• The Mothman Prophecies
• The Natural
• The Walking Dead: Season 9
• Uncle Naji in UAE

Monday, September 2nd

• Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir: Season 2: Parts 1 and 2

Tuesday, September 3rd

• Mapplethorpe

Wednesday, September 4th

• Casino
• Murdoch Mysteries: Season 12
• Pitch Perfect
• Pitch Perfect 2
• The Purge
• The Purge: Anarchy
• Scarface
• The Tale of Despereaux
• The World We Make

Friday, September 6th

• Archibald’s Next Big Thing (Netflix family) – Archibald is an extraordinary young chicken who lives in the moment and “yes-ands” his way through life. Inspired by the acclaimed children’s book.
• Elite: Season 2 (Netflix original) – In the wake of a classmate’s death, a student vanishes, allegiances shift, new friends join the drama, and dark secrets become too difficult to contain.
• Hip-Hop Evolution: Season 3 (Netflix original) – Tupac, Biggie, Lil’ Kim and Jay-Z blaze a trail into the ’90s as insiders sling the straight-up truth on the culture’s most iconic rappers and rhymes.
• Jack Whitehall: Travels with My Father: Season 3 (Netflix original) – Now living and working in LA, Jack hopes to convince a reluctant Michael to move to the U.S. by showing him what the American West has to offer.
• The Spy (Netflix original) – In the 1960s, Israeli clerk-turned-secret agent Eli Cohen goes deep undercover inside Syria on a perilous, years-long mission to spy for Mossad.

Saturday, September 7th

• Dragons’ Den: Season 13

Sunday, September 8th

• The Bletchley Circle: San Francisco: Season 1
• Cupcake & Dino – General Services: Seasons 1-2

Tuesday, September 10th

• Bill Burr: Paper Tiger (Netflix original) – Stand-up comedian, actor, and podcaster, Bill Burr, delivers a scathing review on the state of the world in his new Netflix stand-up comedy special, Bill Burr: Paper Tiger. Filmed in front of a packed house at the Royal Albert Hall in London, England, Burr dives into Michelle Obama’s book tour, the problem with male feminists, his hang-ups on taking a bath, and why his personality is affecting his marriage.
• Evelyn (Netflix original) – A man and his two siblings take an epic walk from Scotland to London to find peace and acceptance 12 years after their brother’s death by suicide.
• Terrace House: Tokyo 2019-2020 (Netflix original) – Six strangers share a fabulous house in Tokyo, looking for love while living under the same roof. With no script, what happens next is all up to them.

Thursday, September 12th

• The I-Land (Netflix original) – Wiped clean of memories and thrown together, a group of strangers fight to survive harsh realities — and the island that traps them.
• The Mind, Explained (Netflix documentary) – From dreaming to anxiety disorders, discover what’s happening inside your brain with this illuminating documentary series.

Friday, September 13th

• Bumblebee
• The Chef Show: Volume 2 (Netflix documentary) – Cooking is a journey. And making a meal is about more than just food. It’s about appreciating friends, family and tradition. An opportunity to come together. To learn, to share and to celebrate different flavors, cultures and people. In The Chef Show actor/director Jon Favreau and award-winning Chef Roy Choi reunite after their critically acclaimed film Chef to embark on a new adventure. The two friends experiment with their favourite recipes and techniques, baking, cooking, exploring and collaborating with some of the biggest names in the entertainment and culinary world.
• Head Count
• Hello, Privilege. It’s Me, Chelsea (Netflix documentary) – In this documentary, Chelsea Handler explores how white privilege impacts American culture — and the ways it’s benefited her own life and career.
• Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress: The Battle of Unato (Netflix original) – Ikoma and the Iron Fortress take their fight to the battlegrounds of Unato, joining the alliance to reclaim the region from the Kabane horde.
• The Ranch: Part 7 (Netflix original) – While Colt tries to reconcile with Abby, Beau navigates the challenges of aging and Luke seeks his family’s forgiveness.
• Tall Girl (Netflix film) – Jodi (Ava Michelle) has always been the tallest girl in school — and she’s always been uncomfortable with it. After slouching her way through life for 16 years and being made fun of by classmates, Jodi meets Stig (Luke Eisner), a seemingly perfect Swedish foreign exchange student who’s even taller than she is. Jodi’s new crush turns her world upside down and throws her into a surprising love triangle, but with the help of her two best friends (Griffin Gluck, Anjelika Washington) as well as her beauty queen sister Harper (Sabrina Carpenter), Jodi comes to realize that she’s far more than her insecurities about her appearance have led her to believe. TALL GIRL, director Nzingha Stewart’s first feature film, is a heartfelt and hilarious coming-of-age story about finding the confidence to stop slouching and stand tall.
• Unbelievable (Netflix original) – Based on real events, a teen reports and eventually recants her reported rape, while two female detectives, states away, investigate evidence that could reveal the truth.

Sunday, September 15th

• Los Tigres del Norte at Folsom Prison (Netflix documentary) – On the 50th anniversary of Johnny Cash’s famous prison concert, Los Tigres del Norte return to Folsom prison to tell stories through music.
• Edge of Darkness
• Flipped
• Homeland: Season 7
• Ravenous
• Steal a Pencil for Me
• The Other Woman

Tueday, September 17th

• Clive Davis: The Soundtrack of Our Lives
• The Last Kids on Earth (Netflix family) – When zombies and monsters invade his hometown, a scrappy boy teams up with his friends to survive the apocalypse. Based on the popular book series.

Friday, September 20th

• Between Two Ferns: The Movie (Netflix film) – Zach Galifianakis dreamed of becoming a star. But when Will Ferrell discovered his public access TV show “Between Two Ferns” and uploaded it to Funny or Die, Zach became a viral laughing stock. Now Zach and his crew are taking a road trip to complete a series of high-profile celebrity interviews and restore his reputation. Directed by Scott Aukerman, “Between Two Ferns: The Movie” is a laugh-out-loud comedy that gives new insight into the curmudgeonly, beloved outsider Zach has created over the years.
• Criminal (Netflix original) – This revolutionary procedural comprises 12 unique stories set in 4 different countries: France, Spain, Germany and the UK. It takes place exclusively within the confines of a police interview suite. This stripped down, cat-and-mouse drama focuses on the intense mental conflict between detectives and suspects.
• Disenchantment: Part 2 (Netflix original) – High-spirited Princess Bean walks through hell to save a friend, learns about a mystical destiny set for her, and helps restore her father’s kingdom.
• Fastest Car: Season 2 (Netflix original) – Extremely expensive super cars take on massively modified undercover speed demons, including Hondas, Fords, Oldsmobiles and even a Mini Cooper.
• Inside Bill’s Brain: Decoding Bill Gates (Netflix documentary) – From Academy Award-winning director Davis Guggenheim (An Inconvenient Truth, He Named Me Malala) comes Inside Bill’s Brain: Decoding Bill Gates, a new three-part documentary that explores the mind and motivations of celebrated tech visionary, business leader, and philanthropist Bill Gates. After stepping down as CEO of Microsoft, Gates began what is undeniably one of the greatest professional second acts in modern history when he shifted his time and considerable intellect toward solving some of the world’s most persistent problems. The series, in-depth and unfiltered in its depiction of a man’s life journey, both his triumphs and setbacks, offers unprecedented access to Gates as he pursues unique solutions to some of the world’s most complex problems with the same level of optimism, curiosity, and fervour that inspired his original vision for Microsoft. Interweaving these endeavours with personal moments, Inside Bill’s Brain draws on interviews with Bill and Melinda Gates in addition to their friends, family, and partners in philanthropy and business, creating an innovative and revealing portrait of a man who, after changing the world, might just change the way others see it.
• Las del hockey (Netflix original) – The passionate members of a women’s roller-hockey team strive to keep their team afloat.

Monday, September 23rd

• Team Kaylie (Netflix family) – After a brush with the law, teenage celebrity billionaire Kaylie Konrad is court-ordered to lead an inner-city wilderness club.

Tuesday, September 24th

• Atomic Blonde
• Jeff Dunham: Beside Himself (Netflix original) – Ventriloquist and renowned comedy star Jeff Dunham talks parenting and pink eye, all the while skewering political correctness as only he can, in his second Netflix Original stand-up comedy special, Jeff Dunham: Beside Himself. Filmed at the American Airlines Center in his hometown, Dallas, Texas, Dunham is literally beside himself with his posse of unusual suspects: Walter, Bubba J, Peanut, José Jalapeño on a Stick, Achmed the Dead Terrorist, and newest addition Larry – the high strung, chain-smoking, on-again, off-again personal advisor to the President.

Wednesday, September 25th

• Abstract: The Art of Design: Season 2 (Netflix documentary) – Abstract: The Art of Design returns to take you beyond blueprints into the art, science, and philosophy of design. The series goes inside the minds of the world’s greatest designers, showcasing the most inspiring visionaries from a variety of disciplines whose work shapes our culture and future.
• Birders (Netflix documentary) – Border walls are no barriers to birds — or the people on both sides fighting to protect them.
• Glitch: Season 3 (Netflix original) – More people rise from the grave and old friends become new threats as the mystery — and danger — intensifies in Yoorana.
• Lethal Weapon: Season 3
• This Is Us: Season 3

Thursday, September 26th

• Explained: Season 2 (Netflix documentary) – The billionaire boom. Ath-leisure wear. The lure of cults. Explore current events and social trends with this compelling, celebrity-narrated series.
• Grey’s Anatomy: Season 15

Friday, September 27th

• Bard of Blood (Netflix original) – Kabir Anand is settling into his new life as a Shakespeare professor in the remote mountains of Panchgani when a call from the PMO thrusts him back into the world he is trying to forget. A brilliant agent who served under the recently murdered Sadiq Sheikh, Kabir was expelled from RAW because of a disastrous mission in Balochistan ten years prior. Kabir must now revisit those ghosts, avenge his mentor and face his deadliest enemies back in Balochistan while racing against time to save both his country and his long lost love. Based on the book by Bilal Siddiqui, the series is scheduled to launch in 2019 on Netflix.
• Dragons: Rescue Riders (Netflix family) – In the new Netflix original series, Hiccup and Toothless lead the Dragon Riders as they soar beyond the borders of Berk and discover the mysterious Dragon eye — an ancient artifact filled with secrets that will lead them to new lands filled with undiscovered dragons. But the heroes find themselves pursued by marauding dragon hunters, who will stop at nothing to seize the power of the Dragon Eye.
• The Good Place: Season 3
• In the Shadow of the Moon (Netflix film) – In 1988, Philadelphia police officer Thomas Lockhart (Boyd Holbrook), hungry to become a detective, begins tracking a serial killer who mysteriously resurfaces every nine years. But when the killer’s crimes begin to defy all scientific explanation, Locke’s obsession with finding the truth threatens to destroy his career, his family, and possibly his sanity. Directed by Jim Mickle and also starring Michael C. Hall and Cleopatra Coleman, “In The Shadow of the Moon” is a genre-blending psychological thriller that examines the power of time, and how its passing can either bring us together or tear us apart.
• The Politician (Netflix original) – Payton Hobart (Ben Platt), a wealthy student from Santa Barbara, California, has known since age seven that he’s going to be President of the United States. But first he’ll have to navigate the most treacherous political landscape of all: Saint Sebastian High School. To get elected Student Body President, secure a spot at Harvard, and stay on his singular path to success, Payton will have to outsmart his ruthless classmates without sacrificing his own morality and carefully crafted image. Full of comedy and sly satire, Ryan Murphy’s The Politician offers a rare glimpse into just what it takes to make a politician.
• Skylines (Netflix original) – In Frankfurt, a young and gifted hip-hop producer gets the chance of a lifetime when he signs with Skyline Records. But the worlds of music, organized crime and high finance collide when the label owner’s gangster brother returns from exile to claim his share.
• Sturgill Simpson Presents Sound & Fury (Netflix anime) – In a desolate post-apocalyptic wasteland, a noble few wage war against their oppressors. The odds are stacked. But hope for a brighter future means that all is not yet lost.
• Vis a vis: Season 4 (Netflix original) – A new director and a jailer-turned-inmate arrive at Cruz del Norte. Zulema is reunited with a long-lost relative, while Sole gets life-changing news.

Sunday, September 29th

• Nerve
• Tiny House Nation: Volume 2 (Netflix original) – Host John Weisbarth and expert Zack Giffin hit the road to meet aspiring tiny homeowners yearning to build small with maximum ingenuity and style.

Monday, September 30th

• Mo Gilligan: Momentum (Netflix original) – Comedian Mo Gilligan blends smooth moves and sharp humour as he riffs on humble beginnings, family dynamics and the complex art of dancing in the club.
• Bad Moms
• Chip and Potato: Season 1
• Rush Hour 3
• Sin City: A Dame to Kill For
• Storm Boy
• What Men Want
• Wonder Park

Leaving Netflix Canada in September

Sunday, September 1st

• The Notebook

Friday, September 6th

• Forgetting Sarah Marshall
• Happy Gilmore
• Kindergarten Cop

Saturday, September 14th

• 17 Again
• Drug Wars: Season 1

Sunday, September 29th

• Dear John

Monday, September 30th

• Midsomer Murders: Series 1-19k

All titles and dates are subject to change.

Put on your bell bottoms and platform shoes and pull out your mood rings and pet rocks!

This September, Showplace Performance Centre is going back to the flashiest decade of the 20th century when the team of Len Lifchus, Pat Hooper, and Bill Crane present a chorus of 11 familiar voices from Peterborough’s theatre community with Music of the 70’s.

Running from September 20th to 22nd, the three-performance show is a fundraiser for Showplace, which is a non-profit charitable organization.

Music of the 70’s is an opportunity to relive the music and the memories of the 1970s, as director Len Lifchus explains.

“I remember sitting in the music room in the student union building, listening to to Simon and Garfunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled Water over and over again,” Len recalls. “The 1970s just had good music.”

Anyone who loves music knows that something unique was happening during the 1970s. The Beatles had broken up, Woodstock was over, and there was a brand new beat of creativity flowing through the air.

Although disco seems to be the musical genre most closely associated with the decade, the truth was that there was exciting things happening through all genres. The ’70s saw the rise of anthem rock and heavy metal, the birth of punk, new wave, and hip hop and rap, the celebration of the singer-songwriter, and the maturation of country music out of the honky tonk and into the mainstream.

“It seems that today, songs all sound the same,” producer Pat Hooper observes. “There were a lot of different sounds in the ’70s.”

During Music of the 70’s, 11 performers from the Peterborough community will sing 36 musical favourites from a range of different musicians including Elton John, Queen, The Carpenters, The Bee Gees, Donna Summer, John Lennon, Cher, Neil Diamond, Boney M., and Barbra Streisand, as well as tributes to the hit musical Hair and opening songs from James Bond films of the era.

“Our musical director Bill Crane put a show together that blends artists we all like, which is a challenge because we don’t all necessarily like the same things,” Len says. “The problem was cutting it off. We could have gone for days with the music.”

Their fourth annual fundraiser for Showplace, Music of the 70’s is in part a follow up to their Music of Abba show last year. Having gone to the opening night of the Abba show, I remember being impressed by how Len and Pat managed to create a fun and entertaining show that kept people singing and dancing, and proved to be an audience favourite of 2018.

However, Len points out that there are differences between last year’s Abba show and this year’s show, including more of a focus on the music than on dance numbers.

“Unlike other shows, we don’t have a lot of time to rehearse technically,” says Len, who has been creating the show throughout the summer. “We’re almost flying by the seat of our pants. This year, the show is a little earlier so not to compete with other productions being held at Showplace, and we’ve had to deal with summer vacations.”

“There are more solos and duets because I felt there was too much chorus work and because of summer vacation it’s difficult to work with everybody’s schedule,” Len says. “So I staged it like I would stage a night club act — I used to stage them when I lived in Vancouver. There’s not a lot of fancy dancing like last year, because I didn’t want the cast to worry about choreography.”

The cast is a eclectic group of performers from different theatre groups in Peterborough: Heather Knechtel, Tim Jeffires, Roy Braun, Lena Ross, Rosemarie Barnes, Theresa Mullen, Danny Bronson, Esther Smith, Darcy Mundle, Larry Snoot, and Lisa Bistrow. Pat points out the wide age range of the performers.

“What is interesting about this cast is that they range from 16 years old to 72,” Pat notes. “It’s a cross section of very remarkable performers, and they work together as a team. It’s a lovely cast.”

Opening the show will be a tribute to perennial ’70s favourite Queen, which is having another resurgence of popularity due to the success of the 2018 biopic Bohemian Rhapsody.

“I really wanted the Queen sequence,” Len says. “The calibre of their music is incredible. Bohemian Rhapsody is a difficult piece of music and Theresa Mullen does a phenomenal job on it. Darcy Mundle does Somebody to Love and it’ll give you goosebumps. Their voices are incredible. I thought it was time to pay tribute to Freddie Mercury.’

What should be noted about Len and Pat’s musical shows is that the performers are not impersonating the original musicians — nobody is dressing up like the stars. You won’t be seeing anyone taking the role of Freddie Mercury, Neil Diamond, or The Bee Gees.

Instead, the singers perform the music in their own individual styles, dressed in retro costumes designed by Melissa Jones from MJ Design. It’s a revue of the biggest hits of the decade, while reflecting on the important social aspects of the era.

“Helen Reddy’s I am Woman was really the start of women taking control of their lives in the sense of being very public about it,” Len says. “I think that song is an anthem. Meanwhile, Bill really wanted to do the Hair sequence because he had first done it at his church.”

“We also do a tribute to the Village People,” Pat adds. “Darcy Mundle pointed out that it’s a family show. I must admit I had never actually listened to the lyrics to YMCA, and I didn’t realize the double meaning to some of the words.”

The 1970s produced many songs that people of all generations continue to cherish. So come to Music of the 70’s and get ready to celebrate and sing along, while knowing you are supporting one of Peterborough’s most-loved performance venues.

Music of the 70’s runs for three performances from Friday, September 20th to Sunday, September 22nd. The Friday and Saturday shows start at 8 p.m., with a Sunday matinee at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $34 and are available in person at the Showplace box office (290 George St. N., Peterborough), by phone at 705-742-7469, or online at www.showplace.org. All proceeds from ticket sales will go to the Showplace Capital Improvement Fund.