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Musical Stage Company hits high notes this spring

The Musical Stage Company is giving theatre lovers something to sing about this spring and summer.

The company that presented last year’s new musical BLACKOUT at the High Park Amphitheatre is doing it again with Dixon Road, the much-anticipated new musical by Fatuma Adar about a Somali family’s move to Toronto in 1991.

Adar, who recently debuted her revelatory solo show She’s Not Special at the Next Stage Festival, has been workshopping the semi-autobiographical musical for several years. The show uses verse, R&B and traditional Somali melodies to tell a story about displacement and home. The show will be part of Canadian Stage’s Dream in High Park programming and will run June 1 to 19.

It’s been just over two years since Musical Stage Company’s production of Caroline, Or Change blew the roof off the historic Winter Garden Theatre and won a bunch of awards. Now they’re back in the elegant venue with Take The Moment starring Cynthia Dale. Dale, one of the country’s most versatile and beloved performers (Fun Home, A Little Night Music, and of course Street Legal), recounts stories about life-changing moments interspersed with Stephen Sondheim songs. Richard Ouzounian directs this concert from June 23 to 25.

The outdoor cabaret series Porchside Songs has brought first-rate musical entertainment to homes for the past two summers. (I wrote about one of the concerts last year here.) Often, whoever is hosting the cabaret will notify their neighbours, creating a wonderful street-party vibe.

This year’s series features two impressive musical duos: Beau Dixon and Kelly Holiff, and Kevin Wong and Cailin Stadnyk. Thom Allison provides creative support, and the shows will be exploring the theme of personal transformation. The cabarets run from June 13 to July 10, but if you’d like to host one you should act fast; they sell out quickly.

Last summer, Musical Stage Company debuted Musical Moments, a series of free pop-up concerts and events around the city. This year it’s back with seven acts, and participating artists include BitterJuice Collective, Dillan Chiblow, Sharron Matthews and Jennifer Villaverde. The shows run from May 28 to June 10, but if you want to see all seven together, there will be a Musical Moments High Park takeover on June 11 and 12.

Bundled tickets for Dixon Road and Cynthia Dale: Take The Moment are available now. Single tickets go on sale April 13. musicalstagecompany.com

@glennsumi

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