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, January 19 to Wednesday, January 25.

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.

In one week, downtown Peterborough will light up with the excitement of the ReFrame Film Festival. From January 27 to 29, film buffs will shuffle through the snow between venues in the heart of our Electric City to view a curated collection of the best international, social justice documentary films of the year.

ReFrame is well known for engaging a broad audience through film and art, from the local to the global. The festival also encourages dialogue and activism by facilitating thoughtful debate by hosting panels, discussions, evening socials, and question & answer periods with filmmakers, producers, and subjects, along with community members and local organizations.

Themes that appear throughout almost 60 films being screened over three days include stories that explore international politics, Indigenous traditions, wellness and mental health, human rights, science and technology, gender, arts and culture, and issues confronted by aging, LGBTQ2, and First Nations communities.

Another common thread woven throughout 17+ of the films is the environment. Environmental documentaries being screened this year explore issues from oil extraction, depletion of fish stocks, fossil fuel dependency, disposable consumerism, climate change, nature, wildlife, and sustainable transportation.

As environmental issues are, these stories are complex and many include narratives that cross the boundaries between economics, science, policy, society, and culture.

“Environmental themes have been at the core of ReFrame’s programming for thirteen years,” explains ReFrame Festival Director Ziysah von Bieberstein, “Filmmakers are opening up new perspectives by connecting diverse stories from around the world, exploring the environmental aspects in everything from cycling and seed saving to the fishing and shipping industries.”

Some perspectives are complex and potentially surprising, such as Angry Inuk’s insights into the adverse impacts of animal rights activism.

VIDEO: The Eagle Huntress Trailer

Join GreenUP, the sponsor for the festival’s kick-off feature film, on Thursday, January 26 for the screening of The Eagle Huntress by Otto Bell. This film, described as “cinematically breathtaking”, follows the story of Aisholpan, a 13 year old who defies gender norms and chases her dreams of being an Eagle Hunter.

Her story takes us into “One of the world’s last true wildernesses as she rides into the frigid mountains and traverses perilous landscapes while training a Golden Eagle and rising to the pinnacle of this ancient tradition.” The film screens at 7:30 p.m. at Galaxy Cinemas in Peterborough Square.

On Saturday evening (January 28) at 10 p.m. at the Market Hall, join the “Water is Life: Benefit for Standing Rock”. Words on Fire youth poets will be performing along with local musicians, Dawn Martin, Angela Semple, Tara Williamson, and Sean Conway to raise funds in support the resistance of resource extraction to protect water.

REELKids at ReFrame will screen a segment of family-friendly features on Sunday, January 29th at 10 a.m. at the Market Hall. REELKids at ReFrame is appropriate for children of all ages. This year’s selection offers live action and animated shorts from the North. The screenings will be followed by a circus performance by the stars of Circus Without Borders, who work in the Canadian Arctic, and Guinea, Africa.

Here are other films screening during ReFrame that have environmental themes:

Feature Films

Friday, January 27

• Freightened: The Real Price of Shipping / Microworld in a Balcony (Showplace, 7:30 p.m.)

VIDEO: Freightened: The Real Price of Shipping Trailer

Saturday, January 28

• Angry Inuk (Showplace, 7:30 p.m.)

VIDEO: Angry Inuk Trailer

Daytime Screenings

Friday, January 27

• Debris (Showplace, 1 p.m.)
• Atlantic (Showplace, 1 p.m.)
• Dreams of Electric City (Showplace, 4:45 p.m.)

Saturday, January 28

• Tomorrow’s Power: Hope in Times of Crisis (Market Hall, 10 a.m.)
• A Plastic Ocean (Market Hall, 11:30 a.m.)
• Hand. Line. Cod. (Showplace, 4:45 p.m.)
• Uyway (Showplace, 4:45 p.m.)
• Rodando en La Habana: Bicycle Stories (The Venue, 4:45 p.m.)

Sunday, January 29

• REELKids at ReFrame (Market Hall, 10 a.m.)
• Nowhere Land (Market Hall, 12 p.m.)
• How to Let Go of the World and Love All the Things Climate Can’t Change (Showplace, 12 p.m.)
• When Two Worlds Collide (The Venue, 2:30 p.m.)

Festival passes are available for purchase at the GreenUP Store at 378 Aylmer Street North and online at www.reframefilmfestival.ca. Passes are $30 for adults, $20 for students or un/underemployed.

Tickets for feature films must be purchased separately: $10 with a day pass or $15 without a day pass. Rush tickets for $10 will be available at the door for daytime screenings only (subject to availability). Passes and tickets will be available at Showplace and Market Hall during the festival.

For a complete schedule of films and events, visit kawarthaNOW’s ReFrame 2017 lstings.

On Saturday, February 4th at Showplace Performance Centre (290 George St. N., Peterborough), the Peterborough Symphony Orchestra (PSO) performs Northern Voyage, a 50th anniversary gala concert celebrated through a partnership with The Canadian Canoe Museum, who will celebrate their own milestone 20th anniversary this year.

Presented by Terry Windrem and boasting a team of talented guests, Northern Voyage promises to be an exciting concert fit to honour the anniversaries of these two incredible Peterborough cultural institutions.

James Raffan, Director of External Relations at The Canadian Canoe Museum, will host the concert, taking guests on a journey around the Arctic Circle via music by Grieg, Svendsen, Sibelius, and Borodin. James is a prolific author, speaker and adventurer, and will narrate the concert with inspiration from his own travels and bestselling book Circling the Midnight Sun.

The Canadian stop on this musical voyage will be represented by the world premiere of Ottawa-based composer Christine Donkin‘s “Canoe Legends”. This new music was commissioned by the PSO and The Canadian Canoe Museum in honour of their partnership and respective anniversaries. The work will feature local Indigenous a cappella ensemble Unity.

Internationally renowned American classical violinist Elizabeth Pitcairn will also join the PSO for the gala concert. Elizabeth, who has performed at some of the world’s great concert halls with her legendary violin, will bring the beloved instrument to Peterborough for Northern Voyage.

Elizabeth will play the Sibelius Violin Concerto on what is now known as the 1720 Red Mendelssohn Stradivarius. Almost three centuries ago, this violin began its life in Italy at the hands of acclaimed string instrument artisan Antonio Stradivari.

In 1720, at the height of his “Golden Age” of crafting when his finest concert instruments were made, Antonio Stradivari of Cremona in Italy created what was later nicknamed the “Red Strad”. The violin was revered for its beautiful burnished red finish and fantastic sound quality. But not long after it was constructed, it seemed to vanish. For over 200 years, its location and ownership remained unknown.

The violin did not resurface until the 1930s in Berlin, Germany. An heir of composer Felix Mendelssohn had possession of the elusive violin. It is now known that Hungarian violinist Joseph Joachim, once a protégé of Felix Mendelssohn, had previously owned the instrument. After purchase by the Mendelssohn descendant, the violin remained with the family until 1956 when it was sold again. An American industrialist bought it and maintained it in performance condition for decades.

In 1990, the famous violin began another chapter in its interesting history when the industrialist anonymously brought it to auction at Christie’s in London, England. It had been so well-kept that much of its original red varnish remained intact.

At auction the violin was demonstrated by a professional musician to show off its appearance and sound. It was described then by The Daily Telegraph as having a “mellow”, “deep-throated and sonorous voice” despite spending most of its documented existence in the hands of amateur players. It has been lauded as one of the most beautiful looking and sounding of Antonio Stradivari’s remaining violins.

Elizabeth Pitcairn was only 16 years old when her grandfather purchased the 1720 Red Mendelssohn Stradivarius at the Christie’s auction in London for $1.7 million US. He gifted it to her, a violinist since age three, but she remained silent about the instrument until her solo career began to flourish after nearly three decades of training with some of the world’s greatest violin teachers.

Having such an enigmatic history, the violin has stirred many historians and writers to speculate widely about its interesting past. One such person is Canadian film director Francois Girard. After the Christie’s auction brought the violin back into the public eye, Francois was inspired to turn his imaginings into the storyline of his 1998 film, The Red Violin. It introduced the instrument to a new audience and won the Academy Award for Best Original Score, as well as multiple Genie and Jutra Awards.

VIDEO: Interview with Elizabeth Pitcairn, owner of the Red Stradivarius

Elizabeth appears in the 10th anniversary edition DVD of The Red Violin in a special feature documentary interview where she expresses how she feels like the current “best friend” and “caretaker” of an instrument she expects will go on to bring many others joy after her lifetime. Writer Suzanne Marcus Fletcher describes Elizabeth’s relationship to the 1720 Red Mendelssohn Stradivarius as “one of classical music’s most compelling partnerships”.

Elizabeth is pleased to be able to share its beauty and sound with audiences around the world, including Peterborough.

Concert tickets for Northern Voyage are available at a cost of $50 each from the Showplace box office (290 George St. N., Peterborough). Tickets may be purchased in person, by phone at 705-742-7469, or online at www.showplace.org.

Concert ticket buyers are also invited to attend “Meet the Maestro”, a free pre-concert chat with PSO Music Director and Conductor Michael Newnham. It begins at 6:40 p.m. on February 4th in the Showplace theatre.

There’s a lot happening at Peterborough’s Market Hall Performing Arts Centre over the next few weeks.

In addition to next week’s concert kawarthaNOW is co-presenting with the Market Hall — Lee Harvey Osmond featuring Tom Wilson, Thompson Wilson, Ray Farrugia, and Aaron Goldstein on Thursday, January 19th — you can see a night of cabaret from New Stages Theatre Company with an all-star cast of singers, and harmonica virtuoso Carlos del Junco performing with his Blues Mongrels.

Then there’s three days of documentary film from ReFrame Film Festival followed by the Peterborough Pop Ensemble’s presentation of classic songs from George and Ira Gershwin, Cole Porter, and Irving Berlin. And, to feed your spirit, Sunday morning services continue at Peterborough City Church.

New Stages’ Cabaret Night Broadway Gender Benders on January 20 at 8 p.m.

Here’s a fun way to beat the winter blues while enjoying some of Canada’s best performers: New Stages Theatre Company’s popular annual cabaret night. This year the theme is “Broadway Gender Benders” and features songs made famous by women, which will be sung by the male performers, and songs originally sung by men, which will be performed by women.

The all-star cast includes performers from the Stratford Festival along with Peterborough performers who have gone on to have successful professional careers. This show is directed by Stratford’s Steve Ross, who’ll be co-hosting along with Peterborough’s (dare we say famous?) Linda Kash.

The evening’s line up also boasts: Glynis Ranney, originally from Peterborough and now a Stratford Festival stalwart, and her husband Mike Nadajewski, also a Stratford Festival veteran; Peterborough’s Jonathan Cullen, who recently toured and played the lead in the hilarious award-winning musical The Book of Mormon, and his equally successful and talented brother Stephen Cullen; Peterborough’s Shannon McCracken who sings, acts, and dances on stages across Canada; and Peterborough’s incomparable Kate Suhr, who will be returning fresh from her successful runs in Mary Poppins, The Little Mermaid, and The Secret Garden in Toronto.

VIDEO: “Jealous” performed by Stephen Cullen and Kate Suhr

New Stages’ cabaret night always sells out, so get your tickets now! They’re $30 and are available from the box office at the Market Hall (140 Charlotte St., Peterborough), by phone at 705-749-1146, or online at www.markethall.org. Tickets are also available (cash only) at Moondance (425 George St., Peterborough, 705-742-9425).

Carlos del Junco and the Blues Mongrels Quartet on January 21 at 8 p.m.

It’s almost as if Carlos del Junco were destined to play the harmonica: the musician’s Spanish surname means “of the reeds” (in a harmonica, the reeds are the metal plates producing musical tones).

The 58-year-old del Junco was born in Havana, Cuba, and emigrated to Canada with his family when he was one year old. He first picked up a harmonica at 14, playing in front of a live audience at a student talent night when he jammed on a couple of Leadbelly tunes with his high school math teacher. Although he eventually graduated with a degree in visual arts (majoring in sculpture) from the Ontario College of Art, his first love has always been playing the harmonica.

But saying Carlos plays the harmonica is like saying Jimi Hendrix plays the guitar. The virtuoso plays a 10-hole diatonic harmonica, the same instrument used in blues and folk music, but he overcomes its seven-note limitation by using a special “overblow” technique taught to him by jazz virtuoso Howard Levy. This difficult technique allows Carlos to play the harmonica chromatically — covering every note in the musical scale — and greatly expands the genres and styles of music he can play. It also allows him to be more expressive than he could with the chromatic harmonica, the full-scale instrument favoured by jazz harmonica players like the late Toots Thielemans.

VIDEO: “Just Your Fool” – Carlos del Junco and The Blues Mongrels

Carlos is one of the most respected and awarded harmonica musicians in Canada. He’s received multiple Juno Award nominations, won the Canadian Maple Blues Awards “Harmonica Player of the Year” eight times, was voted Blues Musician of the Year by Jazz Report Magazine, and won two gold medals at the Hohner World Harmonica Championship in Germany.

Most recently, his new record Blues Etc. — a collaboration with Bailieboro’s talented Jimmy Bowskill — has been nominated for Maple Leaf Blues Awards Acoustic Act of The Year and Carlos has again been nominated as Harmonica Player of The Year.

VIDEO: “Mamblues” – Carlos del Junco and The Blues Mongrels

With his band The Blues Mongrels — guitarist Eric St. Laurent, bassist Henry Heillig, and drummer Charlie Coolie — the emphasis is on blues, but Carlos and the boys don’t hesitate to head off in other directions including New Orleans second line grooves, swing, Latin, hip-hop or ska melodies, and even swampy roots rock.

Forget everything you thought you knew about the harmonica, and head to the Market Hall on January 21 to witness a no-holds-barred display of fun and melodic virtuosity. Tickets are $35 and are available from the box office at the Market Hall (140 Charlotte St., Peterborough), by phone at 705-749-1146, or online at www.markethall.org. Tickets are also available (cash only) at Moondance (425 George St., Peterborough, 705-742-9425).

2017 ReFrame Film Festival from January 27 to 29

ReFrame, Peterborough’s annual film festival, returns this year from Friday, January 27th to Sunday, January 29th with screenings and special events at the Market Hall, Showplace, The Venue, Galaxy Cinemas, and Catalina’s.

The ReFrame Film Festival celebrates the latest works created by filmmakers from around the world, with a focus on documentaries on human rights and social justice.

The festival’s screenings at Market Hall include two feature presentations, 13 short and full-length documentaries, and family friendly films, as well as a panel discussion and a benefit evening of music and spoken word.

VIDEO: Freightened: The Real Price of Shipping Trailer

On Friday, January 27th at 7:30 p.m., ReFrame presents the short film Microworld in a Balcony — the beauty of bugs, up close, in colour, and in constant motion — followed by the full-length documentary Freightened: The Real Price of Shipping, which examines the perils of cargo shipping and its hidden costs … including a devastating contribution to climate change.

Then on Saturday, January 29th at 7:30 p.m., ReFrame presents Obit, the story of obituary writers at the New York Times who have to condense a person’s lifetime into 500 words, often within a few short hours, by digging through a catacomb-like archive of meticulously ordered files and photographs for the raw material.

VIDEO: Obit Trailer

There are another 13 short and feature-length documentaries screening during the day at the Market Hall from Friday to Sunday, along with REELKids at Reframe from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Sunday, January 29th. REELKids is a family-friendly event featuring a live performance by circus artists along with animated and live-action shorts from the North.

On Saturday, January 28th, there’s also the panel discussion “Family Filmmaking – Autobiographical and Biographical Portraits” at 3:15 p.m. and the late-night event “Water is Life”, a benefit for Standing Rock featuring indigeous artists Words on Fire, Dawn Martin, Angela Semple, Tara Williamson, and Sean Conway, at 10 p.m.

Daytime passes for ReFrame are $30 adults ($20 students/underwaged) and advance tickets for evening feature films cost $15 ($10 if you have a daytime pass). For daytime films, rush seats are $10 at the door (if available).

For all the details about tickets and the schedule of films, visit reframefilmfestival.ca/.

Peterborough Pop Ensemble presents “A Delightful Afternoon with Gershwin, Porter and Berlin” on February 4 at 2 p.m.

George and Ira Gershwin, Cole Porter, and Irving Berlin from the golden age of Hollywood and Broadway are considered to be the greatest songwriters of all time. The haunting melodies and enchanting lyrics of music composed by these great American composers is not at all like the music of today.

Led by artistic director Barbara Monahan, the Peterborough Pop Ensemble will bring the songs of these greats back to life with a matinee concert on Sunday, February 4th. For the first time, the ensemble will be accompanied by a string quartet.

Songs will include: the Gershwins’ “Long Ago (and Far Away)”, “I’ve Got a Crush On You”, and “Summertime”; Cole Porter’s “Night and Day”, “You’re the Top”, “Another Op’nin’, Another Show”, and “I’ve Got You Under My Skin”; and Irving Berlin’s “There’s No Business Like Show Business”, “Let’s Face the Music and Dance”, and “Always”.

VIDEO: “It’s Delovely” performed by Peterborough Pop Ensemble in 2014

“It’s music which has stood the test of time — sending messages of love and hope to every generation, ” says Barbara. “The Peterborough Pop Ensemble is looking forward to sharing this wonderful music with each of you.”

Tickets are $23 for adults and $13 for studnets, available from the box office at the Market Hall (140 Charlotte St., Peterborough), by phone at 705-749-1146, or online at www.markethall.org. Tickets are also available (cash only) at Moondance (425 George St., Peterborough, 705-742-9425).

Sunday morning services with Peterborough City Church

When you think of the Market Hall, you probably imagine performing arts rather than religious services. But the latter is one of the more innovative uses of the venue this year, after the formation of Peterborough City Church a year ago this month.

Pastors Chad Trivett and Sasha Trivett hold services every Sunday morning at 10 a.m. at Market Hall as part of their non-denominational church.

Both Trivetts are ordained with the Fellowship of Christian Assemblies, a pentecostal Christian association. They met at Toronto’s Tyndale University College and Seminary and eventually married. Just after getting married, they moved to Tokyo in Japan, where they started an international, interdenominational church.

In 2007, after spending six years in Tokyo (where their son Ari was born), they moved back to Sasha’s hometown in Peterborough to be closer to family, and decided to form another interdenominational church. Peterborough City Church was born.

But the Trivetts needed a location to hold their weekly services, and realized the Market Hall would be an ideal space. There’s also a connection between the church and the performing arts: Chad is in a band that performs contemporary music at the church.

Peterborough City Church offers “inspirational messages and music in an educational and engaging atmosphere where each can worship, pray and learn at their own pace.” For a calendar of Sunday services at the Market Hall, including topics and special speakers, visit www.ptbocitychurch.com.