SONY CENTRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS (TORONTO) - 2011-2012 SEASON

Raising The Curtain To Reveal The World
2011.2012 Season Announced

As part of its commitment to present the finest performing artists to the broadest possible audiences, Dan Brambilla, CEO of the Sony Centre, proudly announced today the details of the 2011.2012 season.

“We are always on the lookout for the most exciting spectacles from our own backyard, and around the world, in order to represent the more than 200 cultures that co-exist in Toronto”, said Brambilla. “The power of live performance is its ability to transcend boundaries. The Sony Centre’s 51st season is a veritable round-the-world-trip with stops in Argentina, China, Cuba, India, Japan, Russia, Sarajevo, South Africa and Ukraine.”

Highlights of the season include:

The RUSSIAN Alexandrov Red Army Choir and Ensemble – RUSSIA

THE RUSSIAN ALEXANDROV RED ARMY CHOIR AND ENSEMBLE, the official army choir of the Russian armed forces, will perform with 125 musicians, singers and dancers, accompanied by a full orchestra performing with a mixed composition of Russian traditional and Western instruments, including the balalaika, the domra, the bayan, the double bass, woodwinds, brass and percussion. With breathtaking precision, their pure, harmonically rich sound brings to life a wide range of repertoire from Russian folk tunes to church hymns, operatic arias and popular music.

Thursday, September 8, 2011 @ 8PM

Tickets as low as $62

www.fimmq.com/site/choir.html

TOOPY AND BINOO AND THE MARSHMALLOW MOON - CANADA

In a new live production, Koba Entertainment presents the theatrical debut of Canada’s latest sensations, Toopy and Binoo, in TOOPY AND BINOO AND THE MARSHMALLOW MOON. Preparing for his stage debut, Toopy has to find the perfect song to sing, and the perfect place to sing it! As Toopy and Binoo embark on their most important musical adventure ever, they encounter a Blue Cat Blues Band, a Loud Mouth Crooner Fish, some Rock n’ Roll Sheep, a pair of Love Struck Dragons and many other zany characters along the way.

Saturday, September 24, 2011 @ 1pm

Tickets as low as $26.10

www.ToopyAndBinooOnTour.com/

THE BACKYARDIGANS: QUEST FOR THE EXTRA ORDINARY ALIENS – CANADA

Koba Entertainment’s smash hit THE BACKYARDIGANS: QUEST FOR THE EXTRA ORDINARY ALIENS is an out-of-this-world theatrical production with the whole Backyardigans gang – Pablo the penguin, Tyrone the moose, Uniqua the purple- spotted creature, Tasha the hippo, and Austin the kangaroo, five high-spirited friends on another epic adventure! Tag along with the gang and their extra ordinary host as they travel to shivering Frozen Toes Mountain, the blistering Hot Footsy Desert, and the volcanic Lost Pirate Island – singing and dancing the whole way!

Saturday, October 15, 2011 @ 1pm

Tickets as low as $26.10

www.TheBackyardigansOnTour.com/

GORAN BREGOVIC & HIS WEDDING AND FUNERAL ORCHESTRA – SARAJEVO

With his roots in the Balkans, and his head in the 21st century, the charismatic GORAN BREGOVIC has combined a Serbian gypsy band, a classical string ensemble, an orthodox male choir and two Bulgarian female vocalists to create HIS WEDDING & FUNERAL ORCHESTRA. Born in Sarajevo of a Serbian mother and a Croatian father, Bregovic, a composer, musician and rock star, has created a new music genre of exuberant, cathartic symphonic mayhem. Bregovic last appeared in Toronto in 2009, where he played to a packed-out Yonge-Dundas Square for Luminato, followed by another standing-room only concert at The Guvernment–the same week!
Friday, October 21, 2011 @ 8pm

Tickets as low as $50

www.goranbregovic.rs/

KINGS OF SALSA – CUBA

An explosion of high voltage salsa and sexy choreography, THE SALSA KINGS is Cuba’s hottest
new export! Backed by a live onstage band, this international sensation pays homage to the classics; Mambo, Rumba and Cha Cha Cha, while adding a cool, contemporary twist from Havana’s street salsa and hip hop scene.

Saturday, October 22, 2011 @ 8pm

Tickets as low as $45

www.thekingsofsalsa.com/

BHARATI – INDIA

BHARATI is a live music and dance spectacle which journeys through the colours, scents and flavours of India. It tells the story of a young man, raised in America, who returns home cynical of all things Indian. In spite of his contempt, he becomes attracted to the mysterious and elusive Bharati. As she re-introduces him to the wonders of India, he discovers himself and the true meaning of love in a powerful story of homecoming and identity.

Tuesday, October 25 – Sunday, October 30, 2011

Tuesday-Saturday @ 8pm, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday @ 2pm

Tickets as low as $39

www.bharatitheshow.com/

LOVE LIES BLEEDING - CANADA

David Mirvish presents Alberta Ballet’s LOVE LIES BLEEDING, inspired by and featuring the music of Sir Elton John and Bernie Taupin. Alberta Ballet’s internationally acclaimed Artistic Director and Choreographer Jean Grand-Maître has created “a three-ring circus à la Elton John,” and as one would expect, there is plenty of spectacle including aerialists, dancers on spinning turntables, and fire-emitting roller skates. Set to 14 classic songs composed by Sir Elton and Bernie Taupin, the ballet is an examination of the cult of celebrity and the triumphs and challenges of superstardom.

“The screams of appreciation started early and came often during the debut performance of Love Lies Bleeding.” – Paula Citron, The Globe & Mail

November 8-10, 2011 @ 7:30pm, November 11 & 12, 2011 @ 8pm,

November 12, 2011@ 3pm, November 13, 2011 @ 2pm

Tickets as low as $33.10

www.albertaballet.com

SHUMKA AT 50! – CANADA/UKRAINE

SHUMKA at 50! is a celebration of the Edmonton-based company that has created a unique hybrid of the rich Ukrainian dance heritage and a contemporary Canadian dance dynamic, recognized as distinctively Shumka-style. SHUMKA AT 50!, a two-act evening of mixed repertoire, includes a 50th anniversary Hopak featuring the trademark Shumka whirlwind!

Friday, November 25 and Saturday, November 26, 2011 @ 8pm

Tickets as low as $35

www.shumka.com/


CLASSICAL MYSTERY TOUR – USA

A tribute band backed by the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, CLASSICAL MYSTERY TOUR is a note-for-note live reincarnation of The Beatles. The show presents 30 tunes – from the beginning of The Beatles through the solo years – sung, played, and performed exactly as they were written: "Penny Lane" with a live trumpet section; "Yesterday" with an acoustic guitar and string quartet; and "I Am the Walrus" with George Martin’s original orchestral accompaniment.

Thursday February 9, 2012 @ 8pm

Tickets as low as $45

www.classicalmysterytour.com

Tango PASIÓN – ARGENTINA

Twenty-one years ago, Tango Argentino revitalized Tango the world over with its triumph on Broadway. Now, the same producers, with choreographer Hector Zaraspe, former friend and private teacher of Nureyev, and current faculty member of The Juilliard School, present TANGO PASIÓN.

Featuring the world’s greatest tango dancers and a live orchestra, TANGO PASIÓN weaves together a variety of exhilarating tango stories representing the full diversity of Argentine society.

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Tickets as low as $45

www.tangopasion.com/

SOWETO GOSPEL CHOIR – SOUTH AFRICA

The SOWETO GOSPEL CHOIR, formed to share the joy of faith through the inspirational power of African Gospel music, has amassed a world wide fan base that includes Oprah Winfrey, Nelson Mandela, Carlos Santana, Peter Gabriel, Diana Ross, U2 and Celine Dion. Charting a meteoric rise to international fame in less than ten years, the two-time Grammy Award-winning, 52-strong choir of young and dynamic singers, dancers and musicians, delivers a flawless performance of traditional and contemporary songs infused with the irrepressible spirit of Africa.

Friday, February 24 and Saturday, February 25, 2012 @ 8pm

Tickets as low as $38

www.sowetogospelchoir.com/


TAO – JAPAN

TAO is a company of martial arts drummers trained in traditional Japanese percussion who use their entire body to express the music they create. The drumming ensemble, made up of 13 men and women, work, train and live together – a cross between the ancient monks and an elite army boot camp. Created by a former punk drummer who was inspired by Cirque du Soleil’s integration of Japanese taiko drumming into circus arts, TAO also draws on other sources such as Korean dancing and drumming, Indonesian bamboo marimba, and New Zealand’s Maori people to create a raucous contemporary, combative concert.

Friday, March 30, 2012 @ 8pm

Tickets as low as $35

www.drum-tao.com/en/main.html

DISTANT WORLDS: MUSIC FROM FINAL FANTASY – JAPAN/USA

Back by popular demand, DISTANT WORLDS: MUSIC FROM FINAL FANTASY features award-winning music from the record-breaking video game series “Final Fantasy”. The 71-member Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony, conducted by Grammy Award-winning conductor, composer, and record producer Arnie Roth, perform live to the games most memorable sequences on a massive 22’ wide video screen. Since its 1987 debut the “Final Fantasy” franchise has sold over 100 million copies worldwide and become the most recognized role playing game in the world.

Saturday, March 31, 2012 @ 8pm

Tickets as low as $30

www.ffdistantworlds.com/


NATIONAL CHINESE ACROBATS – CHINA

Visually stunning, the NATIONAL CHINESE ACROBATS join the Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony in an unforgettable performance featuring daring maneuvers, feats of strength, gymnastics, balancing and more. Featuring traditional Chinese instruments along with western orchestral instruments, the acrobats will mesmerize and mystify with its stunning displays of the best in Chinese martial arts, illusion, acrobatics, music, dance, and drama in a thrilling display of artistry and daredevil acts.

Saturday, May 12, 2012 @ 2:30pm and 7:30pm

Tickets as low as $38

BOLSHOI BALLET presents SWAN LAKE – RUSSIA

The Bolshoi Ballet returns to Toronto with the most revered of classical ballets, SWAN LAKE, a perennial dance favourite about sorcery and royalty. Based on Russian folk tales, SWAN LAKE, which the Bolshoi premiered in 1877, is the haunting story of Odette, a beautiful maiden turned swan by an evil sorcerer. A tragic love story, Odette’s romance with Prince Siegfried is doomed by a curse which leaves him to wander endlessly on the empty banks of the lake of his dreams. Today, the Bolshoi Ballet remains one of the world’s most famous ballet companies, even Lady Gaga is a fan, and has performed with them!

Tuesday, May 15 – Saturday, May 19, 2012

Tuesday-Thursday @ 7:30pm, Friday & Saturday @ 8pm, Saturday @ 2pm

Tickets as low as $71

www.bolshoi.ru/en/

The newly refurbished Sony Centre reopened for its 50th anniversary on October 1, 2010, after being closed for two years of renovations. In the eight months since, the Sony Centre has seen more than 200,000 ticket holders go through the refinished bronze doors for such shows as: Robert Lepage’s Eonagatta, The Merchants of Bollywood and Dr. Seuss’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical; high profile acts like Gene Simmons, Robert Plant and Janet Jackson; corporate events for Rolex, OLG and Stikeman Elliott LLP; and to visit the Sony Centre Gallery – currently hosting an extensive exhibition of the work of painter/muralist R. York Wilson who is also responsible for The Seven Lively Arts, the stunning 15’ X 100’ panorama mural of the arts through the ages – and the high tech Sony Store.

Partnering with Sodexo, a world leader in food services, the Sony Centre is offering an international culinary experience that reflects and compliments the diversity of the onstage performances. For example, Executive Chef Stephen Lee created un menu délicieux français to set the stage for turn-of-the-century Paris for Moulin Rouge – The Ballet. The prix fixes menu included Smoked Duck, Baked Brie, Coquilles St. Jacques and Crème Brûlée. All prix fixes menus are $39 (taxes and gratuities extra) and include an appetizer, entrée, dessert, one glass of wine or beer or unlimited soft drinks, and coffee or tea. Alternatively, arrive leisurely and enjoy the hot and cold food concessions in the main lobby. Menus change frequently and are always themed to the presentation on stage.

SONY CENTRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS, Toronto’s first performing arts centre, has played a defining role in the cultural life of Toronto for more than 50 years. Today, the newly renovated Sony Centre is home to a roster of national and international artists that reflect the diversity and sophistication of 21st century Toronto. In addition, the Sony Centre is dedicated to developing Toronto’s younger audiences through family programming, workshops targeted towards school-aged audiences, an under-30 membership program, and other community initiatives including an international culinary experience. www.sonycentre.ca

SONY CENTRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
1 Front Street East, Toronto

For more information visit www.sonycentre.ca

Tickets can be purchased in person at the Sony Centre box office,
over the phone at 1-855-872-SONY (7669) or online at www.sonycentre.ca

Tickets available to the General Public beginning May 20, 2011

American Express brings you to the Front Of The Line
Visit www.americanexpress.ca/frontoftheline
for information on advance ticket purchasing from May 12-19, 2011

Groups 8+ can call THE Group Tix Company 647-438-5559, toll free at 1-866-447-7849
or visit www.thegrouptixcompany.com for discounts.


Media Contact:

FLIP Publicity & Promotions Inc., www.flip-publicity.com, 416.533.7710
Carrie Sager, X224, carrie@flip-publicity.com or
Amy Orfanakos, X232, amy@flip-publicity.com

Media Downloads: http://www.sonycentre.ca/Home/Media.aspx

Amy Orfanakos - Marketing Manager FLIP Publicity & Promotions Inc. amy@flip-publicity.com 416.533.7710 X232


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