Laura Power
Northern News Services
Published Friday, November 30, 2007

YELLOWKNIFE - It may not be possible just to fly off to New York to see the opera or the ballet. But, Capitol Theatre, along with Canadian Cinemas, is working on bringing the next best thing to Yellowknife.

Anna Netrebko will star in the live showing of Romeo et Juliette which will take place at Capitol Theatre next week. - photo courtesy of Peter Rigaud and Deutsche Grammophon

High definition, live screenings of opera and ballet events at movie theatres have been tried out in several cities in Southern Canada, including Ottawa and Vancouver. Reaction to the experiment has been good according to Susan Johnson of Canadian Cinemas. She said after some success, Cineplex approached Capitol Theatre because the city is "an untapped market."

"It's something exciting. We're looking forward to see how people respond to it," she said.

Josh Krauskopf, co-manager of Capitol Theatre, said this will be good for Yellowknifers as it will bring them something different to experience.

"A lot of people will get a chance to actually see a live performance," he said.

Johnson said it may take some time for it to catch on, but said "I think it may be something that Yellowknife wants."

The first show Yellowknifers will get to experience - Gounod's Romeo et Juliette as performed at the Metropolitan Opera in New York - will take place on Dec. 15. According to Krauskopf, tickets have already begun to sell.

Following that, a number of screenings have already been scheduled, including National Ballet of Canada's The Nutcracker on Dec. 22 and seven more between January and April.

If the live screenings do well, Krauskopf said they may add a little more excitement to the mix by screening live Edmonton Oilers games from time to time. He said it could become a year-round thing for Capitol Theatre.