In addition to looking forward to the usual pleasantries associated with our annual celebration of Thanksgiving Day, City View readers may be interested to learn about two Thanksgiving entertainment options that promise to make the upcoming holiday weekend even more enjoyable and meaningful.
I was surprised the other day to hear an interview with the mayor of the Alberta city of Brooks - home of the besieged XL Foods meat-packing plant - who mentioned that his community a couple of hours southeast of us is home to 37 different nationalities. I was aware there are many transplanted Africans living in Brooks, but had no idea whatsoever that so many different countries are represented in just one city in our province.
Soul Influence is a music group made up of expatriate Africans that specializes in a capella music. African in its rhythm and beat as well as Afro-jazz in its musical styling, Soul Influence will perform at Faith Community Baptist Church in Airdrie this coming, Oct. 7, at 10:30 a.m. This amazingly talented ensemble is comprised of young people from Ghana, Kenya, Zimbabwe and Zambia who have come together in commitment to keeping at least something of their African cultures alive even though they now live in Canada.
Against a background of Western culture, Soul Influence fuses the distinct African spiritual sounds of Zulu, Shona, Ndebele, Bemba, Lingala, Tswana, Tonga, Twi, Taita Nyanja and Swahili origin with contemporary Christian gospel music. Their music is deeply rooted in African tradition and culture but its message exalts Jesus Christ. The sound and rhythm of the music brings to life the vibrancy of Africa to the hearts of those who hear it.
In addition to having recorded two CDs, Soul Influence has sung alongside noted musical artists like Alicia Keys, Nelly Furtado, Chioniso Mawarire, K-OS, Keisha Chante and Stephen Page. The upcoming concert affords a good opportunity to hear the kind of music being listened to by more Albertans than you might think.
Fire Exit Theatre kicks off its eleventh season of live drama with BREATHE that runs October 3 to 7 (7:30 nightly Wed-Sat and 2 p.m. matinees on Sat-Sun) on the stage of the Engineered Air Theatre at the Alberta Theatre Projects complex in downtown Calgary. This world-premiere is based on Greg Paul’s award-winning book Close Enough to Hear God Breathe, a story that unravels the beautiful messiness of divine intimacy. The plot traces the experience of a man immersed in the busyness of everyday life who finds himself desperate to discern something of the breath of God in his chaotic world.
Tickets and additional information on the drama are available online at www.fireexit.ca.
Tim W Callaway is pastor of Faith Community Baptist Church. He can be reached at [email protected]
