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Column: Cowichan Valley entertainment heating up the summer

Take your family out to a live performance somewhere this summer.
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Jacob Woike is now working with Sara-Jeanne Hosie in Victoria. (Citizen file)

If you’re one of the lucky folks who have been to see Rock Legends at the Chemainus Theatre Festival, you’ll know what we mean. If you have seats booked, you soon will. If you haven’t yet made the decision, you don’t know what you’re missing.

I escorted four female relations to the show last Thursday night and I’m sure many of the patrons sitting near us wondered if they’d wandered into an episode of Girls Gone Wild (with clothes on). We whistled, we cheered, we waved our arms, we sang along to “every song that driver knew” and more.

If you happened to be driving along the TCH about 11 p.m. Thursday and saw a small car rocking and rolling along while the sound of ‘Baby Love’ emerged from inside, that was my happy gang.

Most of my gals were not used to live theatre of any kind, and certainly not to a summer blockbuster at Chemainus. They were stunned to awe and, before we’d left the theatre, were asking if that show ever played near Vancouver, or where they could see shows like that on the Lower Mainland. They’re hooked.

Take your family out to a live performance somewhere this summer. In this Valley, there’s something in every price range. You’re really there. You’re part of the event. There’s nothing like it.

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Singer Eve Daniell has been living and continuing her studies in England although she returns to her Cowichan Valley home every summer to visit, and offer concerts here.

But over in Blighty, she’s been performing for the Queen. I’m hoping to hear all about it soon.

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The Ladysmith Camera Club is offering “What You Need to Know About Digital” with Brad Grigor, award-winning digital artist, photographer, designer and owner of Turning Point Arts in Saltair.

You can learn the ins and outs of resolution, RAW vs JPEG and colour management to ensure your creative vision makes it intact from camera to print, email or website.

It’s on Tuesday, Aug. 22 starting at 7 p.m., in Hardwick Hall, High Street at 3rd Avenue in Ladysmith. For non-members there’s a $5 drop-in fee. Now you can polish up those vacation pics.

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Music in the Park at Cobble Hill has been packing in 200-250 people to the their free Thursday evening shows.

They enjoyed Wil last week and will undoubtedly be out in force for tomorrow evening’s group, The Bad.

Music in the Park is every Thursday night till Aug. 31 from 6:30- 8 p.m.. Tickets on a raffle for a bike to raise Tour de Rock funds are also available. That draw will take place on Aug 31.

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I was leafing through my emails Friday morning and, in one from Victoria, I spotted a face I knew: Sara-Jeanne Hosie. Lots of Valley theatre fans will remember her from performances at the Chemainus Theatre over the years.

But, then another face caught my eye. Cowichan actor, Jacob Woike, is part of her show as well. It’ll be Cole Porter time down in Victoria as four performers sing such tunes as ‘Too Darn Hot’, ‘Be a Clown’, and ‘Let’s Misbehave’.

It’s always great to see how far our local talent can go.