PEI

Confederation Centre launches tour to celebrate Canada 150

Charlottetown's Confederation Centre of the Arts will be reaching out across the country in celebration of Canada's 150th birthday next year.

Young Company will be part of national production

The Confederation Players, who will travel to Ottawa as part of Canada 150 celebrations, were part of the announcement. (Angela Walker/CBC)

Charlottetown's Confederation Centre of the Arts will be reaching out across the country in celebration of Canada's 150th birthday next year.

Confederation Centre announced its plans for the sesquicentennial Tuesday, plans supported with financial help from Heritage Canada's 150 Fund.

The signature project is The Dream Catchers. A creative team will travel the country, holding workshops to explore the dreams of young people, both for themselves and for the country. Material gathered will be developed into a new musical for an expanded Young Company that will perform the show both on P.E.I. and nationally.

Theatre general manager Dean Constable discusses The Dream Catchers. (Angela Walker/CBC)

Actual dream catchers will also be created at the workshops, which will be integrated into an installation at the centre by Indigenous artist Nick Huard.

The Dream Catcher project is supported by a $1.5 million grant from Heritage Canada.

The Confederation Players will also be on the road, travelling to perform at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities conference in Ottawa in June in partnership with CN.

The centre has negotiated a multi-year agreement with CN in support of the Confederation Players worth $450,000 over five years.

Celebrating in Charlottetown

The centre is also planning local celebrations.

The art gallery will present a major show of its own collection, including indoor and outdoor spaces.

In September, the centre will host the Charlottetown Festival Conference, a national gathering to celebrate the theatre.

In July, the centre will celebrate one of the Charlottetown's Festival's greatest successes. Kronborg 1582, a musical based on Hamlet, produced by the festival in 1975 eventually went on to play Broadway. A concert version will be presented at the centre July 28.