Town of Richmond Hill - Press Release
June 4, 2008

Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts Announces Inaugural 2008/09 Professional Season

RICHMOND HILL – The Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts presented details of its highly anticipated inaugural 2008/09 professional season earlier today at a packed media event. The season announcement was made at the new Cosmo Music Centre, located on Leslie Street in Richmond Hill.

Community unity through artistic diversity is a primary theme for the highly anticipated inaugural season, as it captures the rich cultural diversity of the community with a mix of contemporary and classical music, dance, stage productions, comedic talent, family entertainment and visual art displays. Included in the season will be three theatrical productions that will run for multiple performances (one of which will be a world premiere) and offer pay-what-you-can admission to some of the shows. Mayor Dave Barrow is thrilled with the line up, “The season is more than what we expected!” He added, “It offers performances that celebrate the diversity of our multicultural community. The season is Richmond Hill. It is our community.“

The 2008/09 professional season will open on Friday October 31st with multi-platinum recording artists, international superstars and York Region residents RyanDan. RyanDan will perform as well on Saturday, November 1, 2008, when the Town officially opens this state-of-the-art facility. This eclectic and multi-cultural programming will also feature Sophie Milman, world class music by Orchestra Internazionale d’Italia, Women Fully Clothed, Ballet Jorgen’s The Nutcracker, the Celtic Tenors, seasonal concerts by David Rogers and Michael Burgess, Jesse Cook, the world premiere of Hallaj, the Jim Cuddy Band, musical theatre star Louise Pitre, Classic Albums Live! The White Album, Tom Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Gildenstein are Dead, Emmy Award winning Arthur Live!, the world renowned Peking Acrobats, Dancing Wheels, Canadian singer and songwriter Chantal Kreviazuk, The Big Comfy Couch, world class athletes from Cirque Sublime, Ryouko, Arlo Guthrie, Dora Award winner Cynthia Dale, and Chinese virtuoso Yadong Guan. The world premiere of Hallaj is being produced by Modern Times Stage Company. The show is written and will be directed by award wining director Soheil Parsa.

The Centre will also present a 16 performance run of Banana Boys, a dynamic and energetic play which looks at what it means to be an Asian Canadian in today’s society. This show is being produced by fu-GEN, an award winning Asian Canadian theatre company and will be directed by prominent director Nina Aquino. Ms. Aquino announced details of the production at today’s event.

In addition to the season being presented by the Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts, the coming months will also include performances by several community arts groups, including Steppin Out Theatrical Productions, Network Productions & Communication Inc., Opera York, the York Symphony Orchestra, the Cantabile Chorale of York Region and Shadow Path Theatre Productions.

Tickets for the inaugural season went on sale today. Patrons can order tickets by calling 905-787-8811 or by visiting www.richmondhill.ca and clicking on the theatre logo.

For more information about the facility, please check out the backgrounder below.

ABOUT THE FACILITY
The Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts is the largest and finest performing arts facility in York Region. This venue includes a 631-seat auditorium, a 34 line fly tower, a hydraulic lift orchestra pit, state-of-the-art lighting and sound equipment, a multi-purpose rehearsal hall, gallery space for visual art displays, and an outdoor plaza. The Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts is located at the corner of Yonge and Wright Streets in downtown Richmond Hill and will contribute to the economic revitalization of the downtown core.

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