Cape Breton’s Savoy theatre was built in the 1920s, inspired by the famed Victorian show houses of the time. Since then, it has been the cultural centrepiece of Glace Bay.
The Savoy has seen a lot of special shows over the years. One of the biggest came last spring, with sold out, encore performances of the musical ‘Les Miserables’.
The success of the show has the Savoy looking to build on its momentum.
“Les Mis really brought a lot of people back to the theatre, a lot hadn’t been in the Savoy in years,” says Savoy Theatre Marketing Director Alanna Bresson.
The audience’s enthusiastic reaction to the musical has prompted the theatre to bring back another musical this year and the they will get to choose which one they want to see.
This November, the Savoy will present a showcase of five musicals: The Wizard of Oz, The Secret Garden, Evita, Chicago and Rent. The audience will get to see a selection of songs and scenes from each one and then they can vote for which show they would like to see in full this May.
Even after the show is picked, local actor Paul Turner says audiences are still in for a mystery.
“Expect the unexpected,” says Turner. “If anyone has a preconceived notion of what they’re going to see, they can be sure they’re going to be surprised.”
While the voting process is getting the community engaged, packed houses on production nights mean excitement downtown.
“The downtown area really seemed to come alive because of the traffic flow from that,” says Cecil Saccary of the Glace Bay and Area Business Association. “It showed how important the Savoy Theatre is to the culture of Cape Breton and the hidden talent we have in Cape Breton.”
