From Charlie Chaplin to Lady Gaga, the Sask Express Reel Music performance took people of all ages on a timeline music tour.
Young talents impersonated movie characters from different eras of Hollywood best films and put on a great show, making over 120 spectators, who joined them for the night at the Boundary Dam beach on Thursday, move and sing along.
“The performance by Sask Express was really awesome,” said Maureen Daoust, who is the manager of Woodlawn Regional Park. “I think they were a strong group of performers.”
This was the third year Sask Express brought young talents to Estevan. And every time Boundary Dam campers and the community of Estevan get to see a brand new show and meet a new cast.
This year the attendance was a bit lower than expected.
“It’s always tricky to find the time of the year when it’s suitable for everyone,” said Daoust.
But the performance itself definitely had something to offer for every person in attendance.
“There was a lot of fun for little people, and I think some of the older people really enjoyed themselves. There was one number when Kermit the Frog sang with one of the performers and you could hear the murmur through the crowd. Younger people might not have remembered Kermit the Frog, but the older people in the crowd did for sure. So it was a little touching moment,” said Daoust.
The performance was developed by Sask Express, and the hosting side only had a few minor things to worry about. Fortunately, the Boundary Dam stage is well equipped and ready for great shows.
“We provide the venue. We have bathrooms that they use for change-outs and to get ready. We provide a meal for them. Obviously, we pay for them to come. And the stage is all set up already and equipped with power. They were very impressed with the facility and are eager to come back next year if we have them,” said Daoust.
The performance started at 7 p.m., and quite soon it turned dark, so the organizers provided extra lighting to make sure performers and guests could safely make it to their vehicles after the show. And the sunset turned into another decoration for the performance.
“It was definitely beautiful… A lot of people were taking pictures of the sunset over the water. It’s a beautiful park, we are very lucky,” said Daoust.
The Estevan performance was the second last of the Sask Express 2019 summer tour. For over two months young Saskatchewan actors were travelling through the province inviting citizens to come on a journey through the history of movie music, showcased in the style of movie trailers.
The Woodlawn Regional Park board hopes to have Sask Express performances on an annual basis, but being a non-profit organization they never know for sure if they will be able to make it happen.
“We may be looking for sponsorship. We had a few donors in the past ... We are a non-profit organization, so to host larger events we have to plan and budget for that, and sometimes having sponsorship for some of those events is welcomed as well,” said Daoust.
