Prairie Fusion Arts & Entertainment was humming with music, laughter, and a whole lot of Christmas spirit on Wednesday night as the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra brought its annual holiday tour to Portage la Prairie.
The main theatre at the William Glesby Centre inside Prairie Fusion was packed for the concert, which blended orchestral favourites, carols, and community performers — including the Vox Choir and a local narrator — into an evening that Executive Director Timothy Brown describes as “an absolutely fantastic night.”
Full house and a building buzzing with activity
Brown says the WSO’s visit has grown into one of Prairie Fusion’s marquee holiday traditions, with audiences increasing each time the orchestra has returned to Portage la Prairie.
“We had the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra come in for their holiday tour, and we’ve also brought in the Vox Choir to do their piece,” he explains. “It was just an absolutely fantastic night… We filled out the entire place. It’s just a wonderful showing of how much community there is in Portage and just how much holiday spirit people have.”
While the main event was on stage, Brown notes that the entire arts centre was alive at once — something staff and volunteers strive for but don’t always get to see in action.
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He says they were close to a sell-out this year, with fewer than 30 tickets left scattered among the risers, and the rest of the building was just as busy. Downstairs, a line-dancing class was in full swing, kids’ dance classes were running elsewhere in the facility, and a local business was hosting its staff party — complete with tickets to the WSO concert as part of the celebration. Out in the hallways, the Vox Choir helped set the tone long before the orchestra struck its first note.
Coordinating all of that, Brown adds, takes months of behind-the-scenes work with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra and a dedicated group of volunteers.
“A lot,” he laughs, when asked how much effort goes into a night like this. “It’s pretty much putting out one fire after another until everyone’s in their seat and the music is playing and you can kind of breathe a little sigh of relief.”
The Executive Director also had a personal role on stage, stepping up as narrator for the orchestra’s performance of ’Twas the Night Before Christmas.
“I got the chance to narrate The Night Before Christmas on stage,” he says. “A little nerve-wracking, but absolutely amazing experience… It’s just wonderful to see so many musicians and choir singers all in one space. It’s like 100 people going crazy with Christmas tunes, and that’s what we love to see here.”
With steadily growing audiences each time the holiday concert has come through, Brown says the WSO’s December visit has become a tradition Prairie Fusion hopes to keep going.
Monica Chen, at the conductor's stand, ensures that each section of the orchestra plays with the utmost precision and perfection, while the Prairie Vox Community Choir lend their voices to the mix. PORTAGEONLINE / TYLOR BAERYoung conductor, big sound
On the podium for Wednesday’s concert was Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra assistant conductor Monica Chen, who is now in her third season with the orchestra.
“This is actually my third year with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra as their assistant conductor,” she says. “I’ve already done two of these holiday tours, so this is now my third. It’s been a wonderful time with this amazing symphony. I think Winnipeg is really lucky to have such amazing musicians right here in the city.”
Chen originally trained as a violinist, completing a bachelor’s degree, artist diploma, and master’s degree on the instrument before a single university course changed her path.
“I didn’t actually think I was going to become a conductor,” she explains. “After I took a course in university, my teacher was like, ‘Have you ever considered conducting?’ I was like, ‘No,’ because I’d never really thought of myself as that person with the stick.”
What ultimately grabbed her wasn’t the spotlight, but the craft of shaping an ensemble’s sound.
“It was just watching the technique of it all and how one person can really, really influence the whole sound and concept of the orchestra that really fascinated me,” she says. “Through a series of very lucky events, I have now found myself as a conductor.”
Holiday favourites and blockbuster scores
Chen says the WSO’s holiday tour is rebuilt each year, blending new ideas with returning traditions and taking the orchestra out to communities like Steinbach, Portage la Prairie, and Brandon.
“We do this holiday tour every year,” she explains. “We come out to Steinbach, Portage, as we are here now, and also Brandon. This show, we build it every year. We take some holiday favourites, some classics. We have our own traditions — for instance, Sleigh Ride is always a crowd favourite, as well as ’Twas the Night Before Christmas with the local narrator. It’s always really, really fun, as well as a sing-along at the end.”
For Portage audiences, that meant an evening that felt both familiar and fresh: core Christmas pieces that long-time concertgoers expect, plus a few surprises, with local voices woven in through the Vox Choir and narration.
Back in Winnipeg, the orchestra shows no signs of slowing down after its holiday run. Chen notes the WSO is jumping almost immediately into a film-in-concert program this weekend.
“We’re doing How to Train Your Dragon, which is going to be fantastic,” she says. “It’s an amazing score — incredibly difficult for the orchestra — but I’m sure they’ll be really, really great.”
Looking further ahead, she says movie music fans can also look forward to dedicated James Bond and Indiana Jones programs later in the season, alongside the WSO’s classical masterworks series and a slate of guest artists.
“In Winnipeg, we have so many different series that hopefully can have a little bit for everyone,” she adds. “We’re quite busy all the way through May. We have lots of shows, so hopefully something will invite the listener to come in.”
A big night for Prairie Fusion
For Prairie Fusion, the WSO’s visit capped off a stretch of high-profile events and served as another reminder of what the downtown arts hub can do when it’s firing on all cylinders.
Brown says nights like Wednesday are exactly what the organization wants to see more of: music pouring out of the theatre doors, classes and programs filling the rest of the building, and community members bumping into each other in the lobby on their way between it all.
“We’re just really grateful that they came,” he says of the WSO. “They were wonderful to work with. Monica Chen was just absolutely fantastic.”
If the near-capacity crowd and buzz in the building are any indication, Portage la Prairie is more than ready to welcome the symphony — and all the holiday chaos that comes with it — back again next year.
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