Cow Town

Week 35: Calgary, AB

"Oh Rose Marie, I love you!" warbled Canadian Mountie Nelson Eddy to Jeanette MacDonald. And Calgary was originally a Mounted Police outpost. There is also a decided Country and Western vibe about this town, home as it is to the Calgary Stampede--a spectacular outdoor festival of rodeo, native culture, agricultural competitions and chuck wagon races. I admit that as an American, I thought the whole cowboy thing was a truly American tradition--something defining about our country. But it is a large part of the Canadian tradition as well.

I find Calgary a very pleasant city that seems to be doing extremely well for itself. Voted one of North America's cleanest cities, it just feels well-heeled.
The foundation of the city has long been the oil business, so 'nuff said. I am staying in a fabulous condo in a trendy neighborhood and rooming with the lovely Angela, our wardrobe mistress, whose genius landed us this sweet pad we are in. My days have been filled with visits to the gym or yoga class; happy dreaming as I browse through the furniture stores and art galleries of the Design District; a little retail therapy along the trendy 17th Avenue strip. Our audiences this week have been our most enthusiastic audiences in Canada thus far. The show was reviewed very favorably in the major dailies here and attendance has been great.




On Wednesday, Angela and I were picked up by Tim, who rented a car so we could drive to Banff, the beautiful town in a glorious national park at the foot of the Rockies.
And man, is it ever beautiful out there. Just an hour and a half outside Calgary is this majestic panorama of mountains and pine forests and crystal clear lakes and rivers. It's just spectacular. The town is very touristy and playing up the Swiss mountain village theme to the hilt. It's all very quaint and picturesque and surrounded by incredible natural beauty. But there's still the Gap and McDonald's. Sigh.


On the way back from lunch in Banff, we stopped at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel, a sprawling castle and grounds built in the late 19th century by a visionary railroad magnate who saw in this beautiful location, with mountains and lakes and the therapeutic hot springs, a gold mine of a tourist destination. So he erected a compound reminiscent of a castle in the Scottish Highlands. And the place is dramatic, over the top, swellegent and just plain glamorous. The terraces overlooking the mountains, the golf course, the huge ballrooms and soaring cathedral ceilings... we decided it was the perfect location for some Hercule Poirot 1930s murder mystery. It was a real treat to see a resort that still does it with style. There was even a bagpipe player greeting the bus groups that pulled up!



Later in the week I visited the Glenbow Museum. It is a very interesting place that is primarily a showcase for anthropology and for exploring culture and cultural phenomena. They have a primary exhibit on called "Mavericks," which tells the history of the Province of Alberta through the stories of various people, both powerful and ordinary, who shaped the land. I enjoyed aspects of the museum but have been disappointed yet again in a Canadian city that does not have a real fine arts museum. I appreciate all the art institutions I have visited thus far but am at a loss to understand why some of these major urban centers don't have more collections of antiquities and classical art. Ah well. It is truly always a great thing to get to visit these places and to learn about the local culture. Speaking of local culture, I have observed that the punk revival has firmly taken root in Canada, much to my amusement. I guess you know you are getting older when the teens and 20-somethings are discovering the fashions and trends of your youth. Every day I see kids with neon colored mohawks, tutus, leopard tights, high top sneakers, rubber gasket bracelets, safety pins in their noses and t-shirts emblazoned with the names of rock bands that disbanded long before they were born (and some of those I saw in concert in the 80s!). It's a bittersweet moment when you realize you are "retro." Emphasis on bitter...

My dresser in Calgary is Lillian.
Lillian is the prop master for Calgary's major resident theatre. She is dressing us this week "on the side," as it were. She is efficient and very nice to work with. Calgary audiences have been great and I have very much enjoyed the low key week I have spent here. But New York beckons! While the set is trucked down to Philadelphia for our opening there on Thursday, we get three days off. And I can be in my apartment in my city for the first time in nine months! I can't begin to express how excited I am about getting a dose of home. More from Philly next week.