Hey Viola!

FOR SINGLE TICKETS or GROUPS OF 3+ (IN THE SAME BUBBLE), PLEASE CALL 604-521-5050 TO BOOK SEATS.

Running time 80 minutes with no intermission.

After months of being closed, the Anvil Centre is thrilled to raise the curtain, light up the stage and present the premiere of Hey Viola!, a musical exploration of Canadian Civil Rights hero, Viola Desmond, which will play from Oct. 15 – 25. Set in a cabaret style, this one woman show could not be more relevant in this time of Civil Rights, Black Lives Matter, and Women’s Rights movements.

But who is Viola Desmond...? other than the newest face on Canada’s ten-dollar bill. She is best known for her courage in refusing to leave the whites-only section of Nova Scotia’s Roseland cinema in 1946; a decision that made history, but she was also a feminist and beauty product icon. What was the fire within this successful black Canadian businesswoman that gave her the courage and confidence to stand up to systemic racial injustices in Canada?

In Hey Viola!, Vancouver songstress and performer Krystle Dos Santos, with the support of local musicians Chris Davis, Steven Charles and Mary Ancheta, brings the life of Viola Desmond to the stage using the dynamic and inspirational music that filled the home of this trailblazer of the civil rights movement. Using the musical format enriches the telling of her amazing and powerful story, and ultimately an important Canadian story.

Teaming up to create this work are two immense talents: Tracey Power, Co-creator and Director, who created Glory, Chelsea Hotel, The Songs of Leonard Cohen and the musical Miss Shakespeare and Krystle Dos Santos, an extraordinary actor, blues, jazz and soul singer and creator of “BLAK”, exploring Canada’s Black history.

With brilliant hits of the era, and songs that influenced history; “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood”, “A Change is Gonna Come”, “Sinnerman”, and “Mississippi Goddam”, this personal, and powerful cabaret, gives audiences an opportunity to discover how the actions of one woman played such a huge role in a movement that Krystle herself continues today.

PLEASE NOTE: That by attending the performance you, and the members of your party, hereby assume the risk of possible exposure to and illness from infectious or communicable viruses and diseases, including but not limited to COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, Ebola, and Influenza (collectively, “Transmittable Diseases”), incurred or sustained in connection with their attendance at the Theatre. You knowingly and freely assume all such risks, both known and unknown, for yourself and any guests even if arising from the negligence of the City or others. Further, you agree to comply with all applicable municipal, Provincial, and/or Federal regulations, guidelines, orders, directives or rules, as may relate to minimizing the risk of transmission of any Transmittable Diseases, and agree to inform and make this information available to any parties coming to the Facility.