Happy 30th Anniversary High Performance Rodeo!

Happy 30th anniversary High Performance Rodeo! I loved last night’s show and can’t wait to see more. 🎟👏🏼The arts festival runs until Jan 31 y’all – don’t miss out! #instagood #happybirthday #anniversary #yyc #yycarts #fun #culture #play #theatre #stage #music #dance #performance

A photo posted by Irene Seto (@heyseto) on Jan 8, 2016 at 9:00am PST

Boom! High Performance Rodeo is off and running and is showing no signs of slowing down this 30^th anniversary year. Calgary’s international festival of the arts is running until January 31^st with over 140 performances taking place at 14 venues around the city. With so much going on, here’s a peek at a few of the highlights and I highly encourage everyone to pick up a copy of the HPR Program Guide to join in on the fun.

A new SPIN on things

Opening up the festival is celebrated Toronto artist evalyn perry and her bicycle-inspired show, SPIN. The musical show takes a look at the 150 year history of the bicycle and how it has shaped society and culture for women. Going into this show, I didn’t know what to expect, but left feeling entirely inspired to get on my bike immediately even in a sub-zero, snowy Calgary night. evalyn’s skillful wordsmithing and melodies makes for beautiful story-telling about this unheralded two-wheeled vehicle. Plus, a bicycle is used in amazingly creative ways as a percussion instrument throughout the entire show.

30 songs for Calgary

Our city is home to some amazing musicians. In celebration of the Rodeo’s anniversary, artist Kenna Burima and the Calgary Cassette Preservation Society have put together the Calgary Songs Project: 30 songs that represent our fair city and home. Chixdiggit, The Dudes, Samantha Savage Smith, Chad Vangaalen are just a few of the artists included in the list. Instrumental versions of the songs will be played on the bells of the Calgary Tower throughout the festival. The original artist recordings will also play under the Galleria Trees on Stephen Avenue. Be sure to take a stroll by both of these Calgary landmarks to listen in on the tunes.

Calgary, I Love You, But You’re Killing Me

HPR wouldn’t be the same without a performance from the festival’s organizing troupe, One Yellow Rabbit. This year’s Rodeo show is “Calgary, I Love You, But You’re Killing Me,” a musical comedy that pays homage to Cowtown. The show asks the audiences questions of what and who our city is and how we define this place called home.

The Year of Music

What’s cool about this year’s festival is that it is just the beginning of an amazing year-long Calgary arts season. 2016 is officially proclaimed as The Year of Music with the launch of the Music Mile, the Juno Awards coming to town and many other arts offerings that will show off the cultural capital that Calgary truly is.

‘I hereby proclaim 2016 as the year of music!’ – @nenshi #yyc #yycmusic pic.twitter.com/CwD7FCKYuO

— Irene Seto (@HeySeto) January 8, 2016

So what are you waiting for? Tickets are on sale online at hprodeo.ca.