People are obviously starved for live entertainment since the pandemic shut down so many potential opportunities throughout the summer.
Case in point is the return of a Chemainus Classical Concerts performance that’s still a month away on Oct. 18, but already sold out.
Rykie Avenant, artistic co-director for Chemainus Classical Concerts, indicated a waiting list is being taken and there’s always a chance people interested in the concert might get a chance to see it if others bow out. Contact Eleanor Montour (250-748-8383) to reserve a place on the waiting list.
Avenant is just pleased to let everyone know the CCC is still alive and well.
“One of the things we have missed most during this pandemic is the freedom to attend live concerts and to feel the energy and excitement of music in the moment,” she related in a letter to friends of live classical music. “Finding new ways to facilitate this has been our focus these past weeks.”
The first concert of the 2020-2021 series features violinist Pablo Diemecke, a longtime friend of CCC and an audience favourite, along with colleagues Kate Rhodes (violin), Ceci Diemecke (flute), Guyonne Le Louarn (viola) and Larry Skaggs (cello).
Instead of St. Michael’s Church, the concert will be presented in the church hall, with all safety protocols in place. Only 40 tickets were made available to ensure proper physical distancing. The artists will be positioned on the stage at a considerable distance from the audience.
In addition, there will be no reception after the concert; no intermission, with the program adjusted to be of a suitable length; all common surfaces will be sanitized, with washrooms sanitized after every use; volunteers will wear masks; all attendees will be put on a registration list to make contact tracing possible; and a separate entrance and exit will be used to minimize contact.
“If the provincial directives change during the coming weeks and we are unable to proceed, ticket money will be refunded or applied to a future concert,” Avenant added.
