All is Calm this Christmas for the LSCO (Lethbridge Senior Citizens Organization.)
 Director Fran Rude and musical director and actor Ken Rogers have taken on a monumental task in bringing Peter Rothstein’s musical All is Calm: the Christmas Truce of 1914, which was first performed in 2008.  All is Calm runs  at  7:30 p.m., Nov. 22 and 23 and a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday, Nov. 24.

“It’s about the first Christmas during the first year of the First World War when German, British, Italian, Flemish and Scottish troops came out of the trenches to celebrate Christmas together. That‘s it in a nutshell, but there‘s a lot more to it than that,” said director Fran Rude, who directed a sold out run of the Titanic last year and Jesus Christ Superstar the year before that to raise money for LSCO programming, which is where all the proceeds from this production will be going to.
“It’s definitely the most challenging production I’ve ever done,” Rude continued.

“There are 12 actors playing 39 roles and singing 30 songs totally a capella,” she continued.
“ I came to the first rehearsal with every scene blocked out on paper, but because  there is no orchestra, they all have to be facing each other for their cues. There are very intricate harmonies. And they have to sing and then step out of the song to address the audience, then go back into the song without missing their pitch,” she enthused.

The cast includes familiar faces from the Lethbridge theatre and music scene including Joseph Adams; Stephen Graham;  Kade Hogg; Tyler Leavitt; Graeme McFarlane; Jon Northcott; Tanner Orr; Don Robb; Ken Rogers; Josh Sherwood; Jeffrey Steed; Brenton Taylor; Dylan Taylor.

 Don Robb plays the mailman, delivering  letters to the front line and ends the show by playing Last  Post on trumpet.
“All of the dialogue is authentic. It comes from letters and poems these men wrote. Not a preposition has been added,” Rude continued.
“It is a plea for peace. It is just as relevant today It really  showcases these actors voices, both singing and acting,” she continued, noting when she was looking for a new show  to put on, she discovered this show playing off Broadway in New York City and did a lot of some research and read a few effusive reviews before bringing it here.

There  is a lot of indie folk and roots music happening this weekend.
 The Lethbridge Folk Club welcomes Nova Scotia musician Old Man Luedecke aka Chris Luedecke back to Lethbridge for a show at the Lethbridge College Cave, Nov. 23.  Luedecke and his band are touring in support of his new Cd “Easy Money.” Reid and Writes open the show at 8 p.m. sharp. Tickets are $30 for non-members, $25 for members and $15 for students.

Luedecke is competing with a big Geomatic Attic show at  University Theatre featuring Hawksley Workman and his band, which also begins at 8 p.m. sharp. Workman is also touring in support of a new CD “Median Age Wasteland.” Tickets are $45. The Geomatic Attic have an eventful week as they also sponsor Montreal born, Vancouver based  jazz musician Andrea Superstein playing the Mortar and Brick Gallery, Monday, Nov 25.

 Things begin tonight with Lethbridge Symphony Orchestra’s Wunderkinds concert featuring violinist Jacques Forestier performing  at the Southminster United Church. They will be performing selections from Mozart, Beethoven and Schubert. Tickets range from $25-$75. The concert begins at 7:30 p.m.

the Owl Acoustic Lounge’s weekly open mic at 9 p.m. There are also a couple of events in Tuesday.  Good Times’ weekly comedy open mic. And Gabe Thaine’s  High Level Variety show is at the Slice with host Michael Bartz, beginning at 8:30 p.m. 

The roots begins early at the Slice as Grande Prairie  Matt Patershuk returns to Lethbridge in support of his new CD “ If Wishes Were Horses,” which has already topped the charts at CKUA. 

His music includes folk, country, roots, blues and even a little jazz. He plays the Owl Acoustic Lounge on Wednesday, Nov. 20. He was in Lethbridge almost exactly a year ago also at the Owl Acoustic Lounge.

Grande Prairie roots musician Matt Patershuk returns to the Owl Acoustic Lounge almost exactly a year to the day from when he was last here.
 He plays the Owl Acoustic Lounge, Nov. 20 with band mates, lead guitarist Ben Longman, bassist Jeremy Holmes and drummer Liam MacDonald.

“And I think I’ve talked Shaela Miller into singing a couple songs with us,” chuckled Patershuk, who
kicks off a quick tour of Alberta an d B.C. In  support of his brand new CD “ If Wishes Were Horses,“ which has already topped the charts on CKUA, a week after its release.

“A week or 10 days is about as much time as I can be away from work and my family,” said  Patershuk from his acreage near Grande prairie, where he has been living for the past 13 years.

“ My two girls are busy with minor hockey, so when I’m not in a hockey arena or on the farm, I’m making music,” he continued.
 He recorded the new CD with Steve Dawson in Vancouver.
“ We recorded it  over four days in Vancouver and did a few more  overdubs in his studio in Nashville,” he continued.