More than 40 years since Detroit native Bob Seger declared rock ‘n’ roll never forgets, 4th Line Theatre will do its level best this summer to convince us we should never forget rock ‘n’ roll and, in particular, the influence it had on those who performed and those who joyfully gave it an ear.

Bloom: A Rock ‘n’ Roll Fable, written by singer, songwriter, actor, and playwright Beau Dixon, will be staged July 2nd to 27th at 4th Line’s picturesque Winslow Farm home near Millbrook.

Directed by Kim Blackwell — she’s marking her 25th year with Robert Winslow’s theatre company — the storyline follows two best friends from the town of Assumption, Ontario, who share a passion for rock ‘n’ roll music from their childhood years in the 1950s through to the mid 1970s — a journey punctuated by their connecting with singer-songwriter Tess Wilson to form The Spruce Street Ramblers.

While the play has live music at its foundation, it’s not a musical, notes Blackwell.

“Yes, there’s a ton of music in it but all of the music is in the context of the band and its rise to fame, and the music of the time in which they come up,” explains Blackwell, sitting in the 4th Line director’s chair for a remarkable 17th time.

VIDEO: Behind the scenes at 4th Line Theatre

“I was, and remain, thrilled by the story at the heart of the piece. The two young boys who are best friends and have a love of music, and the trajectory of them becoming almost the biggest band in Canada, and the things that happen and befall them along the way.”

“I love all the music industry insider business, and being inside those cars and vans on those long drives (while touring). He (Beau) captured the truth and authenticity of that.”

Admitting “It’s unusual that we (4th Line) hadn’t looked at a piece around Peterborough and its rich history of music before now,” Blackwell says the chronology of Bloom‘s development dates back to 2011 when Winslow watched the documentary The Last Waltz, director Martin Scorsese’s famed take on The Band’s final performance in 1976 at San Francisco’s Winterland Ballroom.

At the same time, indigenous performer Herbie Barnes was at 4th Line, contributing to Drew Hayden Taylor’s play The Berlin Blues.

“They (Winslow and Barnes) got talking about it (a play detailing Peterborough’s music history),” notes Blackwell.

“Then, about a year later, Beau was here. With his incredible music career and the fact that he was really emerging quite quickly on the Canadian theatre scene, he was the perfect guy to write it. All aligned in the 2011 to 2013 range. It was just a matter of everyone finding the time to write it and workshop it and get it on to the stage. Fast forward a few years and that’s where we’re at.”

“Could another theatre artist slash musician have written it? Maybe. But Beau, because of his long association with this theatre, because he has roots in Peterborough going back a couple of decades, because he has toured across Canada with his solo career and with so many other musicians, he understands that side of it.”

“We would be hard pressed to find another writer who could tick all the boxes for a play like Bloom.”

For his part, Dixon is hopeful his script “honours” past musicians who called, and still call, Peterborough and the Kawarthas home.

“The Spruce Street Ramblers, though fictitious, is a composite of all these bands from the past like The Sonics, The Continentals, and The Hangmen, and branches out to ask ‘What if they went beyond the Kawartha region? What would that look like?'” explains Dixon.

“What I bring to this is my experience of being on the road. Being on the road. you’re like a pirate. You’re a scavenger, a gypsy, a pilgrim, a pioneer. There are the intricacies and details of being a touring musician. Any good playwright can write a rock ‘n’ roll play, but what I think is special about this play is the unknown and its focus on the less-talked-about issues and the relationships.”

Performing the role of Tess is Peterborough born and raised singer-songwriter and actor Kate Suhr who, on this sunny June morning, looks every bit the role in a flowing white dress, her golden locks draped over her shoulders.

“Tess is a singer-songwriter that is fighting her way through, trying to find her voice and where she belongs,” assesses Suhr.

“There’s a lot of Kate Suhr in Tess … lots of co-relations between my life and Tess’ journey. I started out as a singer. There was nothing I wanted to do more than sing. It has always been my happy place. I always wanted to go to Toronto. How many women can connect with this story? A million, and tons of them are my friends.”

“When I went to Toronto that’s when I started writing my own songs. That’s when I started to network and figured out ‘Oh, I also have something to say…I have a voice.’ That’s Tess’ journey.”

“I am so in love with these types of stories, the marriage of the two (music and theatre), because they tell an important story instrumentally as well as lyrically. It is really beautiful to marry the two. I’ve always wanted to be in a show where I get to play as well as sing.”

Also in the mix is Geoff Hewitson, who started performing with The Continentals in 1962 and has been singing, writing and acting ever since, this marking his fifth summer appearance with 4th Line. In Bloom, Hewitson is multitasking, playing the role of a CHUM Radio DJ as well as portraying legendary Peterborough band leader and music promoter extraordinaire Del Crary.

“This (Bloom) is long overdue,” says Hewitson.

“It’s very realistic and believable because their (The Spruce Street Ramblers) story relates the types of things that happened to bands in the 1960s; the conflicts and all that that we went through. Plus the music is fantastic.”

“There are people in this play that I knew. There are places mentioned in this play that I went to. There are events in this play that I attended. I think a lot of people, especially of my generation, are going to have flashbacks just like I’ve been having.”

Dixon agrees the nostalgic value of Bloom can’t be understated.

“What I hope stays with audiences is it reignites their love of music. Music is a language know to everyone. It’s a common language. It’s a common pulse. It’s the soundtrack of our lives.”

“I can’t stress enough how important this project has been for me; how passionate I feel about it; how good I feel about it. We’re in a good place. Kim and I are on the same page. All the beats and all the thoughts and all the themes that I wanted inserted are prevalent. Whether people like it or not, I can walk away knowing I followed my dream.”

Technically, Blackwell terms Bloom “the biggest show I’ve directed here,” adding, “What we have in the middle of it is a concert — a rock ‘n’ roll concert in the middle of a play. There are amps and monitors and guitars and sound equipment and sound boards and mixers … all while trying to do a play. The learning curve around what is required to give that rock ‘n’ roll sound has been a real education.”

“I hope people take away an understanding of the extraordinary artistry and enriched musical history of this area,” adds Blackwell.

“It is a testament to whatever is in the water in Peterborough that so many artists, over half a century now, have chosen to make their homes and their lives in Peterborough. I hope this play will celebrate them.”

Last but not least, Bloom also stars Griffin Clark and Owen Stahn who portray the two best friends with a musical dream. Both perform in real life as members of the Toronto-based band The Silvers which they co-founded.

With original songs written by Dixon and Dave Tough, arrangements by Dixon, musical direction by Justin Hiscox, costume design by Meredith Hubbard, set design by Esther Vincent, fight direction by Edward Belanger, and choreography by Monica Dottor, Bloom: A Rock ‘n’ Roll Fable runs Tuesdays to Saturdays from July 2nd to July 27th, with curtain at 6 p.m.

Sold-out preview performances take place on July 2nd and 3rd, with opening night on Thursday, July 4th. There will be an additional performance on Monday, July 22, also at 6 p.m.

Advance tickets can be purchased by phone at 705-932-4445, online at www.4thlinetheatre.ca, at 4th Line Theatre’s box office in Millbrook at 4 Tupper Street and in Peterborough at the Peterborough Museum and Archives at 300 Hunter Street East (atop Armour Hill). Tickets can also be purchased from 4 to 6 p.m. on performance nights at the Winslow Farm (779 Zion Line, Millbrook) but are subject to availability.

Bloom: A Rock ‘n’ Roll Fable is the first of two productions to be staged by 4th Line Theatre this summer. Carmel, written by Robert Winslow and Ian McLachlan, will be staged from August 6th to 31st. Watch kawarthaNOW.com for more details of that play as its premiere draws nearer.

From Wednesday, June 19th to Saturday, June 22nd, The Theatre on King (TTOK) presents Grace and Chemistry, two plays by local playwright and director Frank Flynn.

Chemistry is directed by Ryan Kerr with a cast made up of TTOK favourites, while Grace is directed by Frank and features the talented Sheila Charleton in a moving one-woman performance.

Two very different shows, Chemistry and Grace are both smartly produced and heartwarming pieces that will take audiences on a full emotional journey.

This is the first time that Chemistry, a forgotten play that Frank sent to Ryan nearly three years ago, has been produced for the stage. It’s a charming short play that warms up the audience for the emotional powerhouse Grace.

Chemistry features six actors paired as couples who perform the same scene three times, each time in a distinctive way with a different set of emotions and attitudes but ending with the same outcome. It’s difficult to explain until you see it, but it’s brilliantly executed as you watch three pairs of actors dissecting the same scene in their own unique styles.

The scene, about two people letting each other know they are in love, features characters of different sexes and ages: Lindsay Unterlander and Ange Sorenson play the scene as a same-sex couple, Mark McGilvray and Shannon McKenzie play it as a heterosexual couple, and Samuelle Weatherdon and George Knechtel play it as awkward teenagers discovering love for the first time.

The people and the circumstances change, but the words and the meaning stay the same. Each time the actors do the scene, the audience is left with that same warm feeling of fresh romance and new love, and the scene still seems fresh.

Yet while each of the three vignettes have their own unique draw and charm, everyone attending the preview show agreed that the scene performed by Samuelle Weatherdon and George Knetchel steals the show. While George stumbles through trying to look cool despite his own awkwardness, Sam delivers the piece with her back turned to him as if she can’t look him in the face. It’s sweet, real, and adorable, with two lovely performances by a fantastic pair of young actors.

But as charming as Chemistry is, the true highlight of the night is Grace.

Written by Frank in 2005, Grace has been performed at theatre and fringe festivals all over Canada, the United States, and Europe. However, this is the first time that Grace has been performed in Peterborough. A powerful and moving one-woman show, Frank teams up with Sheila Charleton to bring his reliant heroine Grace to life on the TTOK stage.

While preparing for sale the home in which she raised her family, Grace shares with the audience her thoughts, stories, and wisdom of being the matriarch for a large family of eight children.

Grace talks about the practical parenting of the past versus the helicopter parenting practices of today, funeral mishaps, and the difficulty of finding plastic furniture covers.

She shares stories of her children, most importantly her children Tom and Janie — one who conquered the barriers facing him at birth, and the other who Grace lost in a twisted leap of faith.

Grace’s stories form a portrait of a strong and proud woman, one filled with wisdom, humour, warmth, love, regret, and perseverance. However, Grace’s story is also one that tells of the value of family and the fragility of time.

There is a type of storytelling that belongs to older women, who can tell a story for hours about people that we never knew, who have no relations to us, and left the world long ago. We are captivated by the stories they weave, despite their seeming irrelevance to our own lives.

Sheila Charleton captures that spirit in her performance, entrancing the audience which holds on to every word and every emotion, as if the meaning of life itself hangs on the next sentence. Sheila brings Grace to life in a way so real that the audience can easily forget she is an actress playing a role on stage, but instead is a real woman telling her real-life story in her own living room.

This illusion of reality is so intense that, in less than an hour, the audience truly cares about this woman and her entire family. It’s a magical performance that goes right for the heart and pierces it with both laughter and tears. Sheila gives one of the best dramatic performances I’ve seen this year, in one of the most wonderful shows I’ve seen so far this year.

Together, Frank and Sheila make a theatrical power couple in a truly magical and memorable show. Grace is one of those performances that you don’t want to miss.

This week you’ll want to put TTOK on your map to see Chemistry and Grace. Note that the show opens on Wednesday, June 19th, and runs for four nights — giving everyone an extra opportunity to experience this excellent night of theatre.

Each performance beings at 8 p.m., and tickets are $15 (or pay what you can) at the door.

Apparently, Netflix Canada wants us to spend July glued to our screens by offering a wide range of Netflix original shows and films, theatrical films, and returning series, including the much-anticipated third season of Stranger Things.

Netflix originals include: Designated Survivor: 60 days, a Korean remake of the Keifer Sutherland drama (July 1); The Last Czars, about the social upheaval that sweeps Russia in the early 20th century (July 3); the awkwardly titled Frankenstein’s Monster’s Monster, Frankenstein, a mockumentary starring Stranger Things actor David Harbour as he uncovers lost footage from his father’s televised stage play (July 16); Typewriter, about a haunted house and a haunted book that stirs the imagination of a group of young wannabe ghost hunters and a dog (July 19); and Another Life, about a team of astronauts searching for alien intelligence (July 25).

Netflix films include: Cities of Last Things, a dystopian revenge tale that unfolds in reverse chronology (July 11); Secret Obsession, about a traumatized woman returning to a life she doesn’t remember (July 18); and The Red Sea Diving Resort, inspired by true-life rescue missions to smuggle thousands of African refugees to Israel (July 31).

VIDEO: “Stranger Things 3”

Theatrical films coming to Netflix Canada in July include: The Fate of the Furious, War for the Planet of the Apes, Spiderman: Homecoming, Midnight Express, Ghostbusters, and Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (all on July 1); The Blues Brothers, Dazed and Confused, and The Mummy franchise (all on July 3); The Emoji Movie (July 8); Disney’s Mary Poppins Returns (July 9); and American History X (July 15).

Returning series include: Stranger Things 3 (Jul 4); season three of Bonus Family (July 12); season eight of Suits (July 18); season three of The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants, Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee: New 2019: Freshly Brewed, season four of Queer Eye (all on July 19); season two of My First First Love, the seventh and final season of Orange Is The New Black, season two of Sugar Rush, and season three of The Worst Witch (all on July 26); and season two of The Letdown (July 31).

VIDEO: New to Netflix Canada in July

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

Monday, July 1st

• Designated Survivor: 60 days (Netflix original) – Designated Survivor: 60 Days follows the main story line of the original format, but has been adapted to feature more of the Korean reality. It is a story of a politician, who suddenly ascends from the position of Minister of Environment to President, as an explosion at the National Assembly kills everyone in the Cabinet who is ahead of him in terms of the presidential succession. Park Mu-jin is a scientist-turned-politician who struggles to fit in politics. Park is the acting president for 60 days, and during this period, albeit inexperienced and unwilling, he tries to uncover the truth behind the attack.
• Katherine Ryan: Glitter Room (Netflix original) – Everyone’s favourite single mom is back with her second Netflix original stand-up special Katherine Ryan: Glitter Room, launching globally on July 1. A follow-up to her 2017 special In Trouble, Katherine toured Glitter Room across the UK with an unprecedented four-week run at London’s Garrick Theatre in the West End. After dividing The Belasco Theater audience on their love or dislike of the Kardashians, Katherine showcases her skilful and hilarious storytelling style with tales about following a man to Japan and meeting her daughter’s first celebrity crush, Anna Kendrick.
• Cafarnaúm
• From Dusk Till Dawn
• Ghostbusters
• Girlfight
• Jackie Brown
• Jumanji
• Kill Bill: Vol. 2
• Life as We Know It
• Midnight Express
• Mike Tyson Mysteries: Season 4
• Spider-Man: Homecoming
• Swiped
• The Fate of the Furious
• The World’s Most Extraordinary Homes: S2
• War Against Women
• War for the Planet of the Apes

Tuesday, July 2nd

• Bangkok Love Stories: Objects of Affection (Netflix original) – A kind computer repairman falls for a street-smart graffiti artist who’s multiple personality disorder worsens after she witnesses a double murder.
• Bangkok Love Stories: Plead (Netflix original) – In Bangkok’s Chinatown, a spirited digital marketing expert falls for a blind fortune-teller, but their love is predestined to end in disaster.

Wednesday, July 3rd

• The Blues Brothers
• Dazed and Confused
• The Kingdom
• The Last Czars (Netflix original) – When social upheaval sweeps Russia in the early 20th century, Czar Nicholas II resists change, sparking a revolution and ending a dynasty.
• The Mummy
• The Mummy Returns
• The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
• The Scorpion King
• Sea of Love
• Vox Lux
• Yummy Mummies: Season 2 (Netflix original) – The Yum Mums welcome a new member as they settle into motherhood, spice up their sex lives and ponder whether they want to get pregnant again.

Thursdsay, July 4th

• Kakegurui: Season 2
• Stranger Things 3 (Netflix original) – It’s 1985 in Hawkins, Indiana, and summer’s heating up. School’s out, there’s a brand new mall in town, and the Hawkins crew are on the cusp of adulthood. Romance blossoms and complicates the group’s dynamic, and they’ll have to figure out how to grow up without growing apart. Meanwhile, danger looms. When the town’s threatened by enemies old and new, Eleven and her friends are reminded that evil never ends; it evolves. Now they’ll have to band together to survive, and remember that friendship is always stronger than fear.

Saturday, July 6th

• Free Rein: Season 3 (Netflix family) – Competition heats up at Bright Fields over the summer as tryouts for the “UK Under 18s” team pit friend against friend for just one available spot.
• Sicilian Ghost Story

Monday, July 8th

• The Emoji Movie

Tuesday, July 9th

• Disney’s Mary Poppins Returns

Wednesday, July 10th

• Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie
• Family Reunion (Netflix family) – When the McKellan family moves from Seattle to Georgia, life down South — and traditional grandparents — challenge their new-age ways.
• Parchís: El documental (Netflix original) – Get an in-depth look at Parchís, the 1980s kids’ band from Spain, through interviews with ex-members and other insiders, concert footage and more.

Thursday, July 11th

• Cities of Last Things (Netflix film) – In a dystopian tale unfolding in reverse chronology, a man with a complicated past takes revenge on the individuals who wronged him decades ago.

Friday, July 12th

• 3Below: Tales of Arcadia: Part 2 (Netflix family) – Still stranded in Arcadia, royal alien siblings Aja and Krel continue their quest to return home as General Morando plots a course to invade Earth.
• 4 latas (Netflix film) – In hopes of visiting a dying friend, longtime pals reunite for a desert road trip from Spain to Mali, while bringing along his estranged daughter.
• Blown Away
• Bonus Family: Season 3 (Netflix original) – As Martin adjusts to life with a new partner and a baby, Lisa and Patrik grapple with difficult news, and Katja reconnects with an old flame.
• Extreme Engagement (Netflix original) – An engaged twosome take their love on the road and test their commitment as they explore eight cultures’ marriage traditions in the span of one year.
• Kidnapping Stella (Netflix film) – Snatched off the street and held for ransom, a bound and gagged woman uses her limited powers to derail her two masked abductors’ carefully laid plans.
• Luis Miguel – The Series: Season 1
• Point Blank (Netflix film) – An ER nurse and a career criminal are forced into an unlikely partnership in taking down a ring of corrupt cops threatening the lives of both of their families.
• Taco Chronicles (Netflix original) – A tribute to the mighty taco: its history, significance in Mexico, global appeal and varieties: pastor, carnitas, canasta, asada, barbacoa and guisados.

Monday, July 15th

• American History X
• Hall Pass
• RuPaul’s Drag Race: Season 1

Tuesday, July 16th

• Frankenstein’s Monster’s Monster, Frankenstein (Netflix original) – In this new mockumentary, join “Stranger Things” actor David Harbour as he uncovers lost footage from his father’s televised stage play, Frankenstein’s Monster’s Monster, Frankenstein. Expect the unexpected in this over-the-top and often dramatic(ish) re-imagined tale of mystery and suspense . With appearances by Alfred Molina, Kate Berlant, and more special guests, Harbour explores the depths of his family’s acting lineage to gain insight into his father’s legacy – all in 28-minutes. Directed by Daniel Gray Longino (“Kroll Show” and “PEN15”) and written by John Levenstein (“Arrested Development” and “Kroll Show”), Frankenstein’s Monster’s Monster, Frankenstein launches globally on Netflix on July 16, 2019.

Wednesday, July 17th

• Pinky Malinky: Part 3 (Netflix family) – Pinky Malinky isn’t the type of hot dog boy who sits around on his buns, and with his BFFs Babs and JJ, he’s learning how to relish the little things.

Thursday, July 18th

• Secret Obsession (Netflix film) – Recuperating from trauma, Jennifer (Brenda Song) remains in danger as she returns to a life she doesn’t remember.
• Suits: Season 8

Friday, July 19th

• Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee: New 2019: Freshly Brewed (Netflix original) – Jerry Seinfeld’s roving talk show combines coffee, laughs and vintage cars into quirky, caffeine-fueled adventures with the sharpest minds in comedy.
• The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants: Season 3 (Netflix family) – Fourth-grade friends George and Harold have a shared love of pranks and comic books — and turning their principal into an undies-wearing superhero.
• La casa de papel: Part 3 (Netflix original) – Eight thieves take hostages and lock themselves in the Royal Mint of Spain as a criminal mastermind manipulates the police to carry out his plan.
• Last Chance U: INDY: Part 2 (Netflix original) – Netflix’s critically acclaimed, Emmy-nominated series Last Chance U returns to give viewers an intense, unfiltered look at the junior college football program at Independence Community College (ICC). Entering his third season with ICC and second season on Last Chance U, Coach Brown has assembled a team that looks sure to compete for a national championship, but a disastrous season on the field puts a spotlight on all of the ugliness of college football that winning tends to polish over. With some new and returning faces, this season captures the Pirates fall from grace that leaves the coaches and the town looking for change.
• Queer Eye: Season 4 (Netflix original) – The Fab Five are back in Kansas City, Missouri! Join Antoni, Bobby, Jonathan, Karamo and Tan for a new group of inspirational heroes, jaw-dropping makeovers and tons of happy tears!
• SAINT SEIYA: Knights of the Zodiac (Netflix anime) – Sworn to protect the reincarnation of the goddess Athena, Seiya and the Knights of the Zodiac aid her in battle against those who seek to end mankind.
• Typewriter (Netflix original) – Typewriter is about a haunted house and a haunted book that stir the imagination of a group of young, wannabe ghost hunters, and a dog, determined to capture the ghost that plagues the notorious home in their neighbourhood in Goa. When a new family and their captivating daughter move into the haunted home, the crew finds it difficult to balance the demands of school and chores with the renewed urgency to capture the neighbourhood ghost before it is too late. (MC)

Wednesday, July 24th

• The Great Hack (Netflix original) – Explore how a data company named Cambridge Analytica came to symbolize the dark side of social media in the wake of the 2016 presidential election.

Thursday, July 25th

• Another Life (Netflix original) – Another Life centres on astronaut Niko Breckinridge (Katee Sackhoff) who is focused on searching for alien intelligence. She leads a crew on a mission to explore the genesis of an alien artifact. As Niko and her young crew investigate, they face unimaginable danger on what might very well be a one-way mission.

Friday, July 26th

• Anna and the Apocalypse
• Boi (Netflix film) – As a young Catalan chauffeur drives two Chinese businessmen around Barcelona, he finds himself falling deeper into an illusory adventure.
• Girls With Balls (Netflix film) – Stranded in the woods and eyeballed by twisted hunters, members of a women’s volleyball team bump it up in the most dangerous game of their lives.
• My First First Love: Season 2 (Netflix original) – Tae-o and his friends navigate the twists and turns of friendship and love, as they face new challenges in their relationships with one another.
• Nobody’s Fool
• Orange Is the New Black: Season 7 (Netflix original) – A privileged New Yorker ends up in a women’s prison when a past crime catches up with her in this Emmy-winning series from the creator of “Weeds”.
• The Son (Netflix film) – Lorenzo, a 50-year-old bohemian painter, is looking forward to the son he’ll have with his new wife. But during pregnancy she becomes obsessed with taking care of the baby, isolating it from the world and its father.
• Sugar Rush: Season 2 (Netflix original) – Time’s the most important ingredient as teams race against the clock — and each other — to bake up the best-tasting sweets.
• The Worst Witch: Season 3 (Netflix family) – Armed with newfound confidence, Mildred returns to Cackle’s Academy, where her mother is joining the staff as the school’s first non-witch teacher.

Tuesday, July 30th

• Hot Summer Nights
• Whitney Cummings: Can I Touch It? (Netflix original) – Multi-hyphenate comedian, Whitney Cummings, makes her Netflix debut with her 4th stand-up special, Whitney Cummings: Can I Touch It? Filmed at the Sidney Harmon Hall in her hometown, Washington, DC. Cummings’ signature incisive commentary on gender dynamics is more relevant than ever. Do women need to wear service vests instead of “Rosé All Day” t-shirts? Are their nicknames for each other hurting the cause? Now that people are actually listening what should women change? How are men holding up with all the “new” rules they have to follow now? Tune in for Whitney’s take on everything including why we should give sex robots a chance.

Wednesday, July 31st

• Kengan Ashura: Part l (Netflix anime) – Underground gladiator Tokita Ohma fights on behalf of business mogul Nogi Hideki who wagers mega-business deals on the outcome of these brutal matches.
• The Letdown: Season 2 (Netflix original) – Audrey, mother of a 2-month-old, joins a new-parents support group, where she makes some quirky friends facing various challenges and life changes.
• The Red Sea Diving Resort (Netflix film) – Inspired by remarkable true life rescue missions, the incredible story of a group of international agents and brave Ethiopians who in the early 80s used a deserted holiday retreat in Sudan as a front to smuggle thousands of refugees to Israel. The undercover team carrying out this mission is led by the charismatic Ari Kidron (Chris Evans) and courageous local Kabede Bimro (Michael Kenneth Williams). The prestigious cast also includes Haley Bennett, Alessandro Nivola, Michiel Huisman, Chris Chalk, Greg Kinnear, and Ben Kingsley.

Leaving Netflix Canada in July

Tuesday, July 2nd

• Bring It On
• Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales
• The Bourne Identity
• The Bourne Legacy
• The Bourne Supremacy
• The Bourne Ultimatum

Sunday, July 14th

• The Holiday

Monday, July 15th

• Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown: Seasons 1-8

Wednesday, July 24th

• Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy

All titles and dates are subject to change.

Good Lovelies’ singer and guitarist Caroline Brooks recalls the first time she sang with Kerri Ough and Sue Passmore as “incredibly special,” the rehearsals leading up to the 2006 pre-Christmas performance at Toronto’s historic Gladstone Hotel “leaving the hairs on my arms standing on end.”

Thirteen years, countless performances and five studio albums later, the Whitby native remains in awe of the shared experience that has brought Good Lovelies to this point in time.

“I’m married and have an amazing husband but I also have this other marriage with my two best friends and we have this incredible partnership,” she says about her bandmates in the Juno Award-winning trio (Ough is from Port Hope and Passmore is from Cobourg).

“There are ups and downs but we feel really blessed together.”

On Tuesday, October 1st, Good Lovelies will bring their trademark harmonies to the Market Hall Performing Arts Centre (140 Charlotte Street, Peterborough, 705-749-1146). Tickets, at $33 each, are on sale now at the box office and online at markethall.org.

“Our goal is to have people feel they were just in somebody’s living room,” says Brooks. “Whether we’re playing to 50 people or 1,000 people, we have a goal to make everyone comfortable.”

“That’s a big part of what we do and that resonates with people. It’s not a showy show. It’s a show of great music. We tell a lot of stories and there’s a lot of humour. The pay-off is at the merchandise table later with the smiles and people saying ‘Thank you, I needed this.'”

VIDEO: “Lie Down” – Good Lovelies

Clearly a whole lot of people, across Canada and abroad, have needed and loved what Good Lovelies have to offer. Since that first performance, the band’s trajectory has been on a decidedly upward curve, a journey boosted big time in 2010 when the trio accepted a Juno Award for Roots and Traditional Album of the Year for their self-titled inaugural full-length recording. Four more albums have followed, the latest being 2018’s Shapeshifters.

“I sometimes think about what would have happened if we hadn’t won that Juno Award,” admits Brooks. “It’s an accolade we still 100 per cent live with and love. At the time, we were coming pretty much out of nowhere. Not a lot of people knew our music, so it did give some sort of validation to what we were doing musically.”

“But if it hadn’t happened, I believe we still would have continued along the same trajectory. It was an incredible experience but accolades, at the end of the day, are accolades. They don’t tell the whole story. I know some incredible bands and musicians who probably will never win a Juno, but that doesn’t take way from what they’re doing in my mind.”

VIDEO: “Best I Know” – Good Lovelies

Shapeshifters, which was recorded on the East Coast, marked “a big departure” for the band, says Brooks.

“When we started writing for this latest record, Kerri lost her mom, and Sue and I both had children. There was a lot of upheaval … some very challenging times for us. We weren’t writing old-time swing songs, so the songs themselves were a bit of a departure.”

“One of the most incredible experiences was we were able to really spend time in the studio and focus on the tunes and take the time we needed. We weren’t in a big Toronto studio where we were watching our money burn with every hour that went by. We were given a lot of opportunity to try things out.”

“We played most of the stuff on the record rather than hiring all these amazing musicians. We were able to take the time and really delve into that record in a different way than we had before. We really followed our hearts on that record. We took the time to make the record we really wanted to make.”

Their music and subsequent critical acclaim aside, Brooks says what has made Good Lovelies work so well with no sign of that ending is “an incredible partnership…everything we do is 33.3 per cent (each).” And although each writes independently of the others, “It’s not really a Good Lovelies song until we have all put our stamp on it.”

“A band may have a sort of musical charisma that is unstoppable, but if you don’t get along as people that band won’t go anywhere. We’re lucky because our voices mix so beautifully; we have this blend. It’s almost like singing with sisters. Our voices independently are so different but when we sing together it fits so well. That is magical in itself.”

VIDEO: “Waiting For You” – Good Lovelies

Another key to Good Lovelies’ enduring success, says Brooks, is each member gives the others space in terms of pursuing their own interests and projects outside the band. For her, that includes being a longtime member of the board for the Mariposa Folk Festival as well as a member of Safe Quiet Lakes, a Muskoka-based advocacy group that promotes responsible boating behaviour.

In addition, she and her partner oversee Secondhand Sunday, a Toronto-based community reuse and waste reduction program they co-founded in 2016.

“I have children and I’ve had to bring the kids on the road, but Kerri and Sue have never given me a hard time about that. Kerri lived in Newfoundland for five years while our band was in Toronto. Most bands would be like ‘Okay, that’s not going to work, so let’s take a break.’ For us it was ‘How can we make this work?’ This is our full-time job and has been for 13 years. We’re constantly try to find ways to make it work rather than simply say “This isn’t working.'”

“I don’t compartmentalize the way some other people do. If I can have my kids at a show, for me it’s all related. A lot of my love songs are for my kids, much to my husband’s chagrin. Kerri and Sue have made it possible for us to do that. Family is all wrapped up in what we do.”

VIDEO: “I See Gold” – Good Lovelies

Citing Sarah Harmer and Paul Simon as major musical influences — “Sue has really been influenced by some of the jazz greats and Kerri would be the first to tell you she rocked out to The Mini Pops when she was a kid” — Brooks sees the folk music genre “as “really evolving.”

“We’re seeing the blending of (music) genres happening. There are still lots of protest songs being written, but I don’t know if we can use the term ‘folk music’ in the same way anymore. I don’t think that’s a bad thing. We (Good Lovelies) are not considered roots but we’re not considered pop. The lines are blurring. I’m excited about what’s happening and feel very positive about the types of songs I’m hearing now.”

Stating a preference for live performance over studio work — “I like the play with the people I’m on stage with” — Brooks says the performance Good Lovelies will give at the Market Hall is all about the audience experience.

“We tell stories. We sing in harmony and we get people to sing along. People walk away feeling really good. Our songs are both introspective and upbeat. There are some moments of darkness, but in a good way.”

VIDEO: “Dancing In The Dark” (Bruce Springsteen) by Royal Wood and Good Lovelies

In the process now of recording a new Christmas album set for release in October, Brooks says Good Lovelies’ future is as secure as could be hoped for.

“”Our primary goal is to stay healthy as individuals, ” she says. “If anybody was feeling burned out we would probably take a break, but I don’t think Good Lovelies is a band that will ever break up. If anything we would take a little pause and maybe focus on our once-a-year Christmas tour for a few years, but we’re in it for the long haul.”

“We have something incredibly special. It’s a partnership I feel strongly will survive for a very long time. We’re not sisters by blood, but we’re sisters by experience and time.”

VIDEO: “Take Me, Take Me” – Good Lovelies

The Good Lovelies concert in October is presented by the Market Hall. The organization is also presenting Jill Barber on September 17th, Séan McCann on September 29th, Breabach on October 6th, Steve Poltz on October 18th, Dan Mangan on November 21st, and Samantha Martin & Delta Sugar on February 1, 2020.

For more information about upcoming performances, visit markethall.org.