The Fugitives are bringing the memory of Vimy Ridge to the Dow Centennial Centre in Fort Saskatchewan this weekend.
On November 12, The Fugitives will be performing Ridge, their theatre show that revisits the Battle of Vimy Ridge from the perspective of front-line soldiers.
“It kind of follows their experiences directly, and it does that mainly through song,” said Brendan McLeod, a performer with the band. “We take some World War I songs that soldiers sang in the trenches and we put music to that, but kept the lyrics the same, so that you can hear their experience.”
The show was initially meant to run in March 2020 but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the meantime they released an album and movie of the event. The album was nonimated at the JUNO awards for best traditional album, and the movie was ma,ed a top ten arts event in 2020 by The Globe & Mail.
“The show is a mixture of storytelling, music, and historical readings from soldiers who fought. The storytelling is my own and it treks the World War I experience and tries to understand the indescribable devastation of trench warfare,” added McLeod. “It’s a reflective show and really good for Remembrance Day to think deeply on the memory of veterans.”
Tickets for the show are still available. You can pick them up at the Shell Theatre website.
