See you in Hudson
for Arts Alive! Québec
The charming town hosts its version of the annual arts and culture festival
By Barbara Ford
Hudson is the third of six Quebec regions, home to active English-speaking arts communities, that have banded together to create Arts Alive! Quebec, an exciting festival which will span summer 2017.
Aside from being an appealing tourist town, Hudson has a rich artistic history, from the flamboyant actress, Phoebe Nobbs Hyde, whose ancestral home is now the site of the Greenwood Centre for Living History, to the Hudson Village Theatre, the Hudson Film Society, the Hudson Players Club, and more.
Hudson is one of Canada’s first Fair Trade towns. Things to see and do abound year round in this charming enclave, but especially in the summer months for the English-language Arts Network’s Arts Alive! Québec (AAQ). This year the festival runs from Thursday, July 20 to Sunday, July 23 and there will be events and activities to please everyone, young and old.
Hudson is the third of six Quebec regions, home to active English-speaking arts communities, that have banded together to create Arts Alive! Quebec which runs from Thursday, July 20 to Sunday, July 23.
“The whole town gets behind this incredibly unifying festival”, said Kalina Skulska, Executive Director of the Hudson Village Theatre and lead coordinator of Hudson’s AAQ events. “This year we added more activities to our programming and our popular friends, Natalie Choquette and Ranee Lee, are joining in the festivities with two highlight concerts… those tickets are going fast! We’ve got Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet – so romantic by the lake under the stars – visual arts and handicrafts workshops and, new this year, improv and dance activities. The Mini-Bo! artisan market displaying and selling innovative, environment-friendly articles to wear, gift or decorate your home has huge appeal. Rain or shine, Hudson’s Arts Alive! Québec is always a bustling weekend for the town and surrounding regions. We invite everyone to experience Hudson’s creative community. Come out and play with us!”
Here’s the programme:
Thursday, July 20
Maudie
At the Hudson Village Theatre, 28 Wharf Rd.
2 pm and 7:30 pm – Hudson Film Society presents two screenings of the TIFF Official Selection film Maudie, the story of Maritime folk art painter, Maud Lewis, starring Sally Hawkins and Ethan Hawke.
Admission: $15
At Jack Layton Park (follow signs from Main Rd. and Wharf Rd. intersection)
7 pm – Hudson Players Club presents Shakespeare by the Lake: Romeo & Juliet
Free admission
Friday, July 21
At the Hudson Village Theatre, 28 Wharf Rd.
8 pm – The Funniest Broadway Show in the World!
Featuring Quebec opera diva Natalie Choquette. Hits from Les Miz, Fiddler on the Roof, Anything Goes, West Side Story, and The Sound of Music as well as opera favourites by Rossini, Puccini, Verdi, Bizet and more!
Admission: $33 + tax
Saturday, July 22
At the Village Green, Cameron and Main Rd. intersection
10 am to 4 pm – Bohème Hudson presents Mini Bo! an artisan market.
Beautifully handmade, environmentally responsible creations from local independent artisans for sale.
Free admission
Greenwood Centre for Living History
At the Artists Atelier, 407 Main Rd.
10 am to noon – Get Creative with Alcohol Inks
Painting workshop using alcohol inks on prepared canvas with local water colourist Sheryna Vininsky.
Free workshop
Noon to 2 pm or 2 pm to 4 pm – Slow Stitch Spa presented by Hudson Fine Craft.
Two separate workshops using fibre art techniques to create the summer’s hottest item, the bandana.
Small materials fee
At the Hudson Village Theatre, 28 Wharf Rd.
1 pm to 3 pm – Intro to Improv: Building Characters Through Status
Actors’ Studio Montreal instructor, John Sheridan, uses characters’ status for improv and scripted acting.
$5 fee
7 pm – Greenwood Centre for Living History presents July 1, 1867: A Day in the Life of Hudson
Author Karen Molson narrates an audio-visual screening of Hudson residents’ experience of Confederation 150 years ago.
Free admission
Ranee Lee
8 pm – Ranee Lee in An Evening of Jazz and Blues
Montreal’s reigning jazz queen sings Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, as well as such contemporaries as James Taylor, Randy Bachman, Joni Mitchell, plus original compositions accompanied by Taurey Butler, Dave Laing, Richard Ring, and Alec Walkington.
Admission: $25 + tax
Sunday, July 23
At the Hudson Village Theatre, 28 Wharf Rd.
1 pm to 3 pm – Dance & Play: Children’s Dance Workshop with Kerwin Barrington.
For kids of all ages incorporating simple choreography, improv and play to music.
$5 fee
About Arts Alive! Québec
Arts Alive! Québec is a moveable feast of music, theatre, dance, visual arts, film and so much more. Initiated by ELAN (English-language Arts Network) in 2015, six dynamic regions – Knowlton, Quebec City, Hudson, Huntingdon, Wakefield and the West Island –produce six individual festivals to showcase Quebec’s diverse cultural communities and innovative artists with activities and performances for the entire family.
About ELAN
ELAN (English-Language Arts Network) is a not-for-profit organization that connects, supports, and promotes Quebec’s English-speaking artists and arts communities. Its members include artists and organizations representing a multitude of artistic disciplines and regions of Quebec. ELAN’s philosophy is inclusive, encouraging an evolving Quebec identity that recognizes French as the public language and celebrates social, cultural, and artistic diversity.
Feature image: Natalie Choquette by Kevin Boucher
Read also: Not to be missed Montreal Summer festivals
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