“There may not be an official ‘happy one-year since you arrived in Canada’ song, but the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra has something special planned for the city’s newcomers nevertheless,” writes Braeden Jones in Monday’s (12/12) Winnipeg Metro News (Canada). “On Feb. 19, the WSO will host a special ‘Welcome Refugees’ celebration by offering a free concert to as many as 1,000 refugees…. The Sunday matinee performance of Once Upon a Dance [will feature] several dance troupes performing in front of the WSO’s musical ensemble…. [WSO Community Engagement Manager Brent] Johnson said everything about the event … was deliberate to make sure it was as accessible as possible for families…. ‘Syrian refugees come from such a war-torn place many don’t want to let their kids out of their sight…. We thought okay—we have to make this something parents can bring their whole family to.’ … Five of the province’s leading dance companies will showcase a few different styles including Irish, French and Ukrainian.… [Johnson] said the ‘timing was not intentional,’ as it aligns fairly close with the first anniversary of government-sponsored Syrian refugees arriving in Canada, but adds ‘it certainly does work as a kind of celebratory opportunity.’ ”
Posted December 14, 2016
