Crocus Plains Regional Secondary School is thrilled to announce that their production of The SpongeBob Musical is coming to Brandon! This is an exciting new musical featuring irresistible characters and magical music; this deep-sea pearl of a show is set to make a splash with audiences young and old. Plunge into this stunning all-singing, all-dancing, dynamic stage show! When the citizens of Bikini Bottom discover that a volcano will soon erupt and destroy their humble home, SpongeBob and his friends must come together to save the fate of their undersea world. With lives hanging in the balance and all hope lost, a most unexpected hero rises up. The power of optimism really can save the world! The SpongeBob Musical is based on the beloved animated series created by Stephen Hillenburg and features the original book by Kyle Jarrow, with songs by Yolanda Adams, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Sara Bareilles, Jonathan Coulton, Alexander Ebert of Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, The Flaming Lips, Lady A, Cyndi Lauper, John Legend, Panic! At the Disco, Plain White T’s, They Might Be Giants and T.I., and songs by David Bowie, Tom Kenny and Andy Paley. Additional lyrics are by Jonathan Coulton, with additional music by Tom Kitt. The musical production was conceived by Tina Landau. The future is bright, the future is bold, the future is The SpongeBob Musical performing at the Western Manitoba Centennial Auditorium (WMCA), April 13th, 14th and 15th, 2023. Tickets available now at http://www.wmca.ca/spongebob2023.html

The Art Gallery of Southwestern Manitoba is offering spring classes for all ages. Classes run from April 8th to May 27th for children, teens and adults. Kids will have lots of creative projects to choose from when they check out the line-up for Art Saturdays 4 Kids. Every Saturday brings forth new creative exploration for those enrolled, from utilizing found objects to creating kinetic sculptures in Earth Day Extravaganza to painting masterpieces in Colour Pop Painting. The popular Teens Studio class, Spring Swirl, will take place on Thursdays in the Spring session with a new selection of creative projects designed specifically for ages 11 to 17. Adult art classes for the true beginner and for those with experience are also available! Whether it is in clay, drawing, painting or printmaking, there is a creative class for you no matter your skill level. Last but not least for those who want to try something new and creative, Zen Doodling, a new two evening therapeutic workshop open for ages 9-99 yrs. Learn a new drawing method which is relaxing and enjoyable, and will help you unwind after a busy day. The AGSM would like to thank Christie’s Office Plus for the sponsorship of select materials for the Children’s and Teens’ art program.

WHERE: Western Manitoba Centennial Auditorium - Brandon, Manitoba WHEN: June 19th 2023 Burton Cummings & His Band Unplugged General Public Onsale: Wednesday, March 22nd at 10AM CST Tickets available at the WMCA Box Office, Online at www.wmca.ca or by calling 204-728-9510 Few artists have achieved the level of public success and critical acclaim that Burton Cummings enjoys in a dazzling career spanning more than forty years. Burton’s voice has been rated among the finest in rock music. He has amassed more hit records than almost any performer in Canadian history. As lead singer and songwriter with the Guess Who, Burton recorded hits “These Eyes,” “Laughing,” “No Time,” “American Woman,” “Share The Land,” “Hang On To Your Life,” “Clap For The Wolfman,” and many more. As a solo artist, he leaves his mark with “Stand Tall,” “I’m Scared,” “Dream of a Child,” “You Saved My Soul,” “I Will Play a Rhapsody,” and “Timeless Love,” among many other much-loved tunes. Burton is a member of the Canadian Music Hall of Fame, Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, Canadian Walk of Fame, Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame, and Prairie Music Hall of Fame. A six-time Juno Award winner, Burton has received the Order of Canada, Order of Manitoba, and Governor-General’s Performance Arts Award as well as twenty-two SOCAN Awards and several BMI (Broadcast Music Industry) awards for more than 1 million airplays of his songs. With the Guess Who, he earned recognition for the first U.S. platinum album by a Canadian artist and, as a solo artist, the first quadruple platinum Canadian-produced album. Burton is honored to have received, in total, 80 platinum and gold record awards. Recently, the best-selling book The 100 Top Canadian Singles ranked “American Woman” the greatest Canadian single of all time. As an international artist, Burton enjoys world-wide stature shared by only a select few Canadian performers. A consummate showman, Burton possesses an extraordinary gift for entertaining. He is second to none in delighting audiences numbering from 10 to 10,000. Critically-acclaimed Above The Ground is his first album to feature all original songs written by Burton. Reviews from both fans and music critics glow with superlatives. Canadian rock-music royalty, Burton Cummings remains at the top of his game as an unrivaled singer, songwriter, showman, and recording artist.

Manitoba Natural Resources and Northern Development is encouraging Manitoba Parks customers to plan ahead for the launch of the new Parks Reservation Service on March 27. Manitoba Parks is reminding campers the existing service at www.manitobaparks.com will be available until March 24 at 4 p.m. to access and take note of any favourite sites from previous reservations. Account information will not be transferred from the old reservation service to the new site. All users will need to create a new account starting on March 27 and are encouraged to browse the site to become familiar with the new service in advance of reservation opening days. Reservations for the 2023 season will occur over six days in April. Reservations will open at 7 a.m. each day for the following campsites and facilities: April 3 - All cabins, yurts and group use areas (including Hecla and Camp Morton recreation halls); April 5 - Campsite reservations for all western and northern region parks including Asessippi, Bakers Narrows, Clearwater (Campers Cove and Pioneer Bay), Duck Mountain (Blue Lakes, Childs Lake, Wellman Lake), Manipogo, Paint Lake, Rainbow Beach, Rivers, Spruce Woods (Kiche Manitou), Turtle Mountain (Adam Lake), William Lake and Wekusko Falls; April 11 - Campsite reservations for Birds Hill and Winnipeg Beach; April 12 - Campsite reservations for south Whiteshell including Caddy Lake, Falcon Beach, Falcon Lakeshore and West Hawk Lake; April 13 - Campsite reservations for Nopiming (Tulabi Falls main campground, Bird Lake, Black Lake, Shoe Lake, Beresford Lake) and north Whiteshell (Big Whiteshell, Brereton Lake, Nutimik Lake, Opapiskaw, Betula Lake and White Lake); and April 14 - All remaining locations including Camp Morton, Grand Beach, Hecla, Hnausa Beach, Lundar Beach, Moose Lake, St. Malo, Stephenfield and Watchorn. Otter Falls Campground in Whiteshell Provincial Park, Tulabi Falls walk-in backcountry sites in Nopiming Provincial Park, and Birch Point Provincial Park Campground will not open for reservations, as the campgrounds are under construction for flood-related repairs this spring. Opening dates for these campgrounds are undetermined at this time. Campers should continue to check www.manitobaparks.com for additional information and updates prior to the opening of the reservation service. - 30 -

Local promoters are very happy with their first venture by selling out the Keystone Centre Amphitheatre tonight with over 500 people attending.   Comedian Jordan Welwood opened the evening and then of course the main attraction, 50 year old, Debra DiGiovanni from Ontario.   If you don't know much about DiGiovanni you can click her bio below. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debra_DiGiovanni Promoter Tammy Ballingall told BDNMB.CA that she expects to bring more shows like this to Brandon in the near future.