Plans are well underway for this coming summer at the Marble Church Arts Centre as the renovations are nearing completion and with that the start of a busy summer scheduling season.

In 2008 the Tweed and Area Arts Council acquired the former Actinolite United Church to prepare to bring the former church into a performing arts centre. The renovations have never stopped and are continuing with the help of the community and funding announcements.

TAAC is pleased to announce that former Tweed resident Tim Porter who owns his own production company will be performing three musicals at the Arts Centre this summer. Porter, 23, and his company “Iana” will be doing three major musicals on May 16th, July 16th & 17th and August 14th. Porter will be bringing his theatre group into Tweed for the musicals that will surely be very entertaining and a good way to open the Arts Centre. While attending St.Theresa Secondary School in Belleville, Porter began acting in plays which took him to the Stirling theatre where he performed for six seasons. He lives in Toronto now.

Porter will be bringing his theatre group into Tweed for the three shows that begin with “A Taste of Broadway,” a broadway revue on May 16th. The show will feature three professional singers, comedy as it will be a very funny show. The show will have a montage and lots of fun

broadway acts. The July 16th and 17th shows will be “Tweed!”, A New Canadian Musical. Porter and Andre Morin, a Madoc native, wrote the play dealing with the history of Tweed. Porter explains that “it is a love story with crazy stuff happening.” The final performance in mid summer on August 14th is “Cocktails For Two Hundred”, a Musical Comedy. The show is what Porter’s company would like todo with his company, focus on Canadian content and bring Canadians back into the limelight.

It should be a fun time this summer for Porter and the TACC in preparing for the summer performances.

Roely DeVries, Vice Chair, TAAC, explained that she went to see Porter’s performance in 2007 when he did a show in Stoco. “It was all young people promoting theatre in Tweed.” Once TACC took possession of the Arts Centre, DeVries started to talk about the possibility of Porter coming to the Arts Centre when it opened. Porter said he isexcited about coming to Tweed this summer. He added that for the July show “Tweed!” his company will be workshopping in Tweed and casting some Tweed residents for the show. Those residents will be performing in the show and leading up to the show they will be practicing in preparation. Auditions will be in May. Porter will be going across Canada beginning March 1stwith “Doodle Bops” a CBC kids’ show. In Tweed he will be behind the scenes for the shows.

DeVries noted that there will be a full line up of events for 2010 that will be announced at a later date. She added that the renovations are still being done but the Arts Centre will be ready for the first of the events. Tickets for the shows will be available at The Tweed News or online at www.ianatheatre.com.

Porter’s company will construct the sets for each of the shows as they will have designs taken from the community, “recycled stuff”, said Porter.

The acoustics for the shows should be very good in the former United Church that holds approximately 150 people.

To accommodate the shows the Arts Centre is renovating the stage and also constructing a back stage for the actors and crew. “It will be a great multi purpose centre,” said Porter. The actors that Porter will bring with him for the shows will be billeted in Tweed. They will be able to see first hand what it is like living in this area and Porter’s home town.

DeVries explained that things are progressing nicely at the centre adding “now is the exciting part.” She also said “it feels that the community wants this (Arts Centre).” DeVries also confirmed that TAAC is hoping to revive the Tweed National Theatre as plans will include auditions and shows.

Plans for this summer are shaping up nicely with more events planned at the Arts Centre. It will be a veryenjoyable summer season.