A Tribute to Frank Sinatra

Featuring Vocalist Dave Statham and Swing Shift Big Band 

Saturday January 23rd, 2010

Swing Shift is firmly established as one of Ontario’s finest big bands and they have been wowing audiences with their “Tribute to Frank Sinatra” show, playing Frank’s greatest hits from his early days as a musical heart throb to his Vegas “Rat Pack” years, and they play Mr. Sinatra’s songs the way he intended them to be played.

Swing Shift Big Band was created in August, 1996 with the intent of preserving the timeless sounds of the big band era, and they have been entertaining all over Ontario from smaller intimate venues to crowds of over 6,000.  Once you hear this powerful band you will agree that the combination of 5 saxophones, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, piano, bass, drums and guitar along with their exceptionally talented vocalist Dave Statham belting out timeless classics like Come Fly With Me, My Kind of Town, Theme from New York New York and Luck Be A Lady to name a few, will make for a show you will not want to miss.

Come enjoy live music at it’s best, the way in was intended to be - timeless music in an intimate venue - it just dosen’t  get any better than this!  

http://www.swingshiftbigband.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3DvVGy2Qc4

Elvis.. As You Love Him

starring award winning Elvis Tribute Artists John Cigan and Anthony Carbone
with the band of Collingwood's music director Paco Danesi and
emcee - music histrian Nevin Grant of Oldies 1150 CKOC

Friday January 8th and Saturday January 9th, 2010

A special night bringing together two of the best Elvis Tribute Artists for two special performances that you will never forget.

John Cigan has been doing his tribute to Elvis for over two years. With an awesome Elvis like voice and a slight shyness so reminiscent of Elvis....he wows his audience. With all his heart, soul and love of Elvis in each of his performances; his audiences walk away amazed at what they have seen. John is very tall with strikingly good looks. When his audience looks into his dark eyes...he has them captivated.

John's purpose of doing Elvis is like so many of the Tribute Artists..... to keep the Elvis memory alive, plus just loving to sing Elvis's music is an incentive in itself.

Anthony Carbone has won numerous awards for his energetic and heartfelt tribute to Elvis.

Under the Direction of Paul “Paco” Danesi the Casino Brothers have just finished their 6th year straight at the World’s Largest Elvis Festival…..
The Collingwood Elvis® Festival.
They have performed in most major Theatres and Casinos across North America and Ireland with the top ETA’s of the world and also the majority of Headlining Impersonators which accumulates to over 60 different Tribute Characters to date.  
The most Talented and Professional Musicians and Backup singers in the Business make up The Casino Brothers.

The Amazing Kreskin

Wednesday, November 4th, 2009

With a showman’s flair, a comedian’s wit, and the capacities of a bona fide Mentalist or thought reader, The Amazing Kreskin has, for some six decades, dramatized the unique facets of the human mind…his own.  His very name has become an integral part of pop culture throughout the world, invoked in comedy clubs, comic strips, print stories, and TV shows from sitcoms on through national magazines.            

Born in Montclair, New Jersey, it was during the childhood game “hot and cold” that Kreskin’s remarkable ability to find hidden objects emerged.  His ability to read thoughts expanded, and by his teens he also became nationally recognized in the United States as “The World’s Youngest Hypnotist”, resulting in his collaborating in psychological clinical studies extending into the realm of Parapsychology and the Power of Suggestion.

By his late teens, this icon of thought transference developed a mental test that has become the highlight of his performances all over the world.  This signature piece has Kreskin requesting that his check be hidden somewhere within the venue he is appearing.  If he fails to find it, he will forfeit his fee.

The Fab Four

Friday October 16th & Saturday October 17th, 2009

The FabFour are an entertaining musical and historical re-enactment of the life of one of pop-rock music's most revered and influential bands. Based in southern Ontario, Canada, The FabFour take pride in accurately re-creating live performances of The Beatles vast repertoire. Never relying on any recorded backing tracks what-so-ever, a FabFour show is always a totally live and unique experience.

THE SHOW
"We hope you will enjoy the show..."

ACT I : THE LIVE RADIO AND TELEVISION PERFORMANCES Showcasing music from 1962 to 1964, this set recaptures the breathtaking birth of Beatlemania. From the live BBC radio broadcasts and various appearances on European television programs through to the history making Ed Sullivan performances, The FabFour rekindle the excitement of the early Beatles in stunning detail. Don't miss seeing replicas of the famous black, tailored "Ed Sullivan" suits, the legendary left-handed Hofner bass, Rickenbacker and Gretsch Country Gentleman guitars, as well as Horner Harmonicas!

ACT II : THE LIVE TOURING YEARS This set highlights the touring years from 1964 to 1965 and captures the feverish excitement of a live Beatles show. Donning the recognizable "military jackets", The FabFour re-enact the Beatles' record breaking Shea Stadium Performance. The FabFour feature classic songs on authentic instruments including including Gretsch Tennessean and Gibson Casino guitars as well as a Rickenbacker 12 String.

ACT III : SGT. PEPPER The Beatles colourful psychedelic era comes to life. The FabFour now regularly include this colourful set of songs (and uniforms!) in their already excellent and polished shows. This set includes music from 1965-1967, a time when the Beatles stopped touring and began experimenting in the studio. Hear, live (without the aid of backing tapes or sequencers), such memorable and groundbreaking tunes from this productive period of the Beatles as Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, With A Little Help From My Friends and Lucy In the Sky with Diamonds. "A splendid time is guaranteed for all.”

ACT IV : AND IN THE END... In this final act of the show, the FabFour cover material from the "Apple" studio years of 1968 to 1970. Songs performed are taken from the last three albums released by the Beatles before their break-up. The band adopts the "hippie-era" look the Beatles stylized including Lennon "Granny" glasses and long-haired wigs.

Instrumentation for this set includes instantly recognizable Epiphone, Fender and Gibson guitars and an electric keyboards to help round out the now familiar sound the Beatles made famous.

Mickey Rooney’s 89th Birthday Tour!

Mickey is excited to share the stage with his wife of 31 years, the singer/actress Jan Rooney. Drawing on a rich 80 plus year career, the musical numbers are broad ranged and are taken from Mickey’s films, some original tunes and Jan's vast repertoire, including her tribute to Patsy Cline. Additionally the show features a moving tribute to Mickey’s famous co-star from his days at MGM, Judy Garland.

The show also features an on stage trio. The tour kicked off August 2007 with a successful 39 day 25 show tour of the United Kingdom and Ireland. Since their return to the states in October they have played at major Civic Centers throughout the United States and have had successful runs at both Resorts and the Hilton Hotels and Casinos in Atlantic City.

From December 1, 2007 through January 6, 2008 they made their UK Pantomime Premiere in “Cinderella” with Jan playing “the Fairy Godmother” and Mickey portraying “Baron Hardup”. They capped the year 2008 reprising their roles in “Cinderella” at the Bristol Hippodrome in Bristol, UK. The show enjoyed a sold-out 15 city tour of the UK in June of 2006. In addition to the UK and Off-Broadway the show has been playing successfully across the country including a long stint in Branson and at many casinos.

Ron James - "Mental as Anything"

Friday August 28th

Coming off the filming of an unprecedented fifth CBC-TV comedy special, Canada’s busiest and best-selling comedian RON JAMES takes to the road with a new "gut-bustingly, knee-slappingly funny" 90-minute rant MENTAL AS ANYTHING.

Whether wrestling with society’s accelerated rate of change, stumbling on nostril drooling bull moose during forest hikes, or experiencing the virtues of backyard composting and its promise of immortality, James brings a ‘foot soldier’s perspective from the trenches’ in our collective march through Life’s bright fury.

From camping in leaky canvas-walled tent trailers in that idyllic summer of 1969 … to a man at the crossroads of mid-life, James traces a trajectory across the landscape of contemporary culture, satirizing everything from button-down-rule-righteous life insurance agents to sanctimonious eco-freaks ... just ‘connecting the dots’ while trying his best to clarify the chaos of this new century we’re all walking through before he goes "Mental As Anything" himself!

Back for the 28th time! Always a favourite, always a sellout!

Mike Mandel

Award winner and widely regarded as the World's Greatest Hypnotist!

Wednesday, September 16th, 2009

Mike Mandel's Hypnosis show is best described as "Comedy Meets High-Velocity Trance". Using nothing more than the power of suggestion and his rapier wit, Mike guides his volunteers through increasingly ludicrous mental excursions, each displaying a brilliant sense of imagination and creativity.

They may fish for sharks, shovel snow from the stage, or discover that their clothing is inside-out, incredibly all while they are wide awake!

Typically working with up to thirty volunteers from the audience, Mike Mandel is able to cause otherwise rational people to see, do, and believe, totally ridiculous things! Mike consistently provides an energetic, fascinating and hilarious demonstration of the incredible faculties of the human mind.

"Mike was fantastic - he has just gotten better, if that is possible. I have received many e-mails and phone calls from people who attended the show, and nothing but fantastic reviews!" - Barrie Construction Association

"Mandel is an intellectual and emotional arsonist, both igniting the spirit and enlightening the soul." - Algoma University

George Canyon

Friday, September 18th, 2009

You can go ahead and just dance to the music of George Canyon, if that's what you want. He's a country neo-traditionalist par excellence, producing music situated somewhere between the bright and studio-tooled Nashville ideal and something a little older, with a voice that can soar with emotion or linger in a heavy bottom-end that feels like a kick in the chest from a faith healer. It's instant.

When you see the man, with piercing eyes that hang above his square jaw, the star appeal becomes even more obvious, and you remember all those achievements – the string of hits, a shelf-full of Junos and Canadian Country Music Awards, not to mention his rocket-ride to American fame on Nashville Star 2 in 2004, and the subsequent blockbuster albums One Good Friend, and Somebody Wrote Love.

http://www.georgecanyon.com/