Coming off a successful, if altered, fall season, the Prince George Symphony Orchestra is preparing for its return on Jan. 30 when they launch their spring series of concerts, Celebrating the Joy of Live Music, to mark their 50th anniversary.
There will be five classic concerts from Jan. 30 to May 30.
There are four shows performed over two days for each concert, which accommodates smaller audiences that are in accordance with current pandemic guidelines.
"Michael Hall will conduct three of those concerts and our core musicians with invited musicians and strings will perform the other two," Teresa Saunders, PGSO general manager, said.
There will be a Kinderconcert and a family concert called Peter and the Wolf held later in the season.
"So it's a full spring season," Saunders said. "We'll be busy that's for sure."
The non-profit organization will use the same format as they did for the fall season, where patrons attended the show using the theatre in the round style that sees the orchestra in the middle of the ballroom at the Prestige Treasure Cove Hotel.
Seating is at bistro tables for up to four people from the same pod that are spaced six feet apart.
Patrons will purchase their tickets in advance and as they gain entry into the casino floor, they sanitize their hands while wearing masks. Guests then drop their tickets into a basket and access a program if they wish from another basket. Patrons are asked to purchase beverages before they enter the ballroom where they will be escorted to assigned seats. Once seated, guests can then remove their masks, partake in refreshments already at the table, along with their chosen beverages and enjoy the show. At the end of the show, members of the audience are asked to don masks once again as they exit the building.
A survey the PGSO conducted of those who attended the shows in the fall found 99 per cent who felt completely safe and would repeat the experience. Some even said they prefer the more intimate setting and were happy to enjoy live music once again.
The Prestige Treasure Cove Hotel has sponsored the entire season by providing the venue at no cost to the non-profit organization.
"We seem to have a bit of a template that has worked very well for us and we'll just carry on with that until the end of the season unless the whole thing opens up at the end of May and we might try something else but I think not," Saunders said. "I think this is how this particular 50th anniversary season is going to go."
For more information about the upcoming season visit www.pgso.com.
