megram - Index

megram - 55GTA - Index

Stratford
Few places in Ontario are lovelier or more alive with culture
than Stratford. Come stay a few nights at one of
Stratford’s charming hotels or cozy B&Bs. Stroll the
banks of the Avon River to watch flirting swans and see
the glorious vistas of Stratford’s Victorian rooftops, turrets
and bell-towers. Linger in the refreshing scents of
over a thousand acres of parks filled to the brim with
80,000 annuals. We are a Canada Communities in
Blooms favourite. Our streets are awash with colour –
from hanging baskets and bouquets on patios in the heritage
neighborhoods to lilac dells, the formal ornamental
Arthur Meighen Gardens and beds of hundreds of
irises – Stratford’s floral emblem. Follow the aromas of
our many restaurants – from Perth County-raised haute
cuisine to bistros to country comfort food. Many of our
chefs trained at the renowned Stratford Chefs School.
Year ’round, our city is filled with the sounds of actors
and musicians. In June it is the annual Southwestern
Ontario Fiddling and Step Dance Competition in
Travistock. Stratford Summer Music invigorates Stratford
in July and August, with concerts of every kind. Measha
Brueggergosman hits operatic high Cs; a heavenly Scottish
Elizabethan Choir descends and gospel, jazz and blues
spark late night cabarets. Be enveloped in transcendent
aural environments created by the Forty-Part Motet – 40
separate voices surrounded by 40 separate audio speakers.
Free out-door concerts in parks and on water barges
are perfect for a picnic. You will be delighted by musicians
spontaneously breaking into performance as you wander
our heritage shopping district.
Starting April 23rd, Stratford Shakespeare Festival
previews its season and is commanded by some of the
greatest names in theatre. British theatre giant Adrian
Noble directs Hamlet. Christopher Plummer is Caesar
with young Broadway star Anika Noni Rose as Cleopatra.
For the grandkids there is The Music Man and for the
adults we have Cabaret. And for everyone from July to
September, Shakespeare’s Universe presents the era of
Shakespeare’s time from a woman’s perspective in an
open-air revue in word and song.
Come to Stratford often this spring and summer.
Escape from the family cottage for a few days as a couple or
bring the whole family along and introduce them to thrilling
theatre, music and great food - with an afternoon spent getting
lost in the largest corn maze in Ontario. For lots and
lots of ideas visit www.welcometostratford.com/50
or call 1 800 561-7926.
May 2008 • 60 • Fifty-Five Plus Magazine
E xplore Ontario