The Bells of Baddeck, an opera on the lives of Alexander Graham and Mabel Bell by Canadian composer Dean Burry has won the Parks Canada CEO Award of Excellence (Visitor Experience Category), at a ceremony held in Gatineau, Quebec on June 13, 2016.

The libretto is by Lorna MacDonald, Professor and Lois Marshall Chair in the Faculty of Music, University of Toronto. She is a native of Port Morien, Cape Breton Island, near Beinn Bhreagh where the Bells lived. The rest of the creative team include director Mimi Mekler, music director Stuart Calvert, and musical arranger Lydia Adams. The Parks Canada team members include Madeline Harvey, Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site and Visitor Experience Manager and Lisette Ingraham, office administrator; local business team members include Joan Peterson of the Bell Museum Gift Shop and Jeremy White of Big Spruce Brewing, who created a new beverage for the show, “The Silver Tart”, from a raspberry recipe of Dr. Bell.

Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Catherine McKenna, praised the public service of Canadians, and especially Parks Canada sites across the country. All winners, which included three members of the Cape Breton Field Unit were lauded by Parks Canada CEO Daniel Watson in the live-streamed event.

The Bells of Baddeck, premiered last summer, is returning this summer for 21 performances from July 2 to August 2. It features an all-Canadian cast of fine national and local performers. There’ll be Bell Chats with descendants of the characters. Tickets are available at 902-295-2069, and at www.bellsofbaddeck/tickets

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Joseph So

Joseph So is Professor Emeritus at Trent University and Associate Editor of Opera Canada.He is also a long-time contributor to La Scena Musicale and Opera (London, UK). His interest in music journalism focuses on voice, opera as well as symphonic and piano repertoires. He appears regularly as a panel member of the Big COC Podcast.He has co-edited a book, Opera in a Multicultural World: Coloniality, Culture, Performance, published by Routledge (Taylor & Francis Group).

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