A CROONER CHRISTMAS SPECIAL - 2024
created by Rick Kish
We not only enjoyed your wonderful voices and the great band, but your vulnerability and emotional connection with the audience"
P. Browning
THE CROONERS are BACK on The Auburn Stage at The Grand!
2024 Forest City London Music Award (FCLMA) winning duo The Crooners, Rick Kish and Connor Boa, are joined by Special Guests Hilary Welch (December 12), A Mystery Guest (December 13), and Denise Pelley (December 14) with The Nevin Campbell Trio. They bring Christmas to the stage as only they can deliver. Great music, entertaining stories and lots of laughs are guaranteed in this Retro Christmas Special! Don't miss this once a year opportunity to be part of this very special event! Grab your tickets before they sell out!
A Crooner Christmas Special - December 12th - 14th - Auburn Stage at The Grand
2024 Forest City London Music Award (FCLMA) winning duo The Crooners: Rick Kish & Connor Boa are joined by Special Guests Hilary Welch (DEC 12), A Mystery Guest (DEC 13) & Denise Pelley (DEC 14) with The Nevin Campbell Trio. They bring Christmas music to the stage as only they can deliver. Great music, entertaining stories and lots of laughs are guaranteed in this Retro Christmas Special! Don't miss this once a year opportunity to be part of this very special event! (120 minutes - includes a 15 minute intermission).
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A Crooner Christmas Special - December 19th - ITOPA
2024 Forest City London Music Award (FCLMA) winning duo The Crooners: Rick Kish & Connor Boa are joined by Special Guest Denise Pelley with The Nevin Campbell Trio. They bring Christmas music to the stage as only they can deliver. Great music, entertaining stories and lots of laughs are guaranteed in this Retro Christmas Special! Don't miss this once a year opportunity to be part of this very special event! (120 minutes - includes a 15 minute intermission).
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Where we've been before...
2023
2022
Pictures & BIOS of "The Crooner Christmas Show" Company!
Rick Kish: Rick is the creator this show. He also produces and stages this production.. Each year Rick looks forward to this production and its various incarnations. He’s shared the stage with so many wonderful and talented people from the London and surrounding area over the years, too many to list here - see list below... It’s always and adventure and one that he’s so happy to see how people embrace these shows again and again. Rick is a 4 time nominee and the proud recipient of the 2019 FCLMA Jazz Vocalist Award.
Connor Boa: Connor is very excited to be back again doing another Christmas show along side Rick, He has been a part of almost every Christmas show with Rick for the last 9 years. These shows have always been Connor’s Segway into the Christmas spirit and season and he hopes that they do the same for everyone attending. He is also an actor and musical theatre performer. He has appeared at Jazz for the People at Wolf Performance Hall with Rachelle Courtney and Nevin Campbell. Connor began performing at 6 years old at many Renaissance and Pirate Festivals. He has been in six of the Grand Theatres Highschool Projects.
Credits: For LINK theatre; The Crooner Show 21 & 22, An Intimate Crooner Christmas 20 & 21, a really Retro CROONER Christmas 15, 17, 18, 19, Saucy Jack and the Space Vixens 2017 & 2018 as Mitch and JUDY: Stonewalled!', a public reading as Steve.
Nevin Campbell: Nevin has been MD/Pianist and arranger for various Crooner themed shows with LINK since 2017. He is a jazz pianist from London, Ontario. He is a graduate from the prestigious jazz performance program at Humber College and has studied with some of Canada’s top jazz pianists including Dave Resitvo, Brian Dickinson and Mark Eisenmann. Nevin spent several years touring the world while performing on Holland America and Celebrity cruise ships. Now settled in London, you can see Nevin perform regularly at Restaurant Ninety One and as a frequent guest of the Jazz for the People series at Wolf Performance Hall. He plays with many of Southwestern Ontario’s finest musicians and ensembles including the Basically Basie Big Band, London Jazz Orchestra, Alfredo Caxaj Latin Ensemble, Peter Hysen Septet, Denise Pelley, Sonja Gustafson, Rachelle Courtney, Larry Smith, Darryl Stacey, Sandy MacKay, Jeff Christmas, Paul Stephenson, and Barry Usher. Nevin is a regular with Rick Kish & Friends!
Larry Ernewein: Larry has been playing bass, both electric and acoustic, since the 1970’s. He has toured Canada and the United States as a classic rock bassist with numerous show bands, and performs in several styles including jazz, country & western, classic rock and folk music. He is one of the busiest bass players in Southwestern Ontario, working with many small combos, backing vocalists (which he’ll be sharing with you all here), and recording. He’s looking forward to hanging out with these guys onstage and entertaining you!
Sandy MacKay: Drummer Sandy MacKay has a long history with Port Stanley starting with the old Stork Club in 1969. (There's a photo signed by Sandy back in the day on display at Mackie's) . He has played several Crooner shows with Rick & Connor, including a really Retro CROONER Christmas at PSFT. Sandy has performed with various groups at Jazz Festivals in London, Brantford, Toronto, Kingston, Ottawa, Montreal, Edmonton and Vancouver. In 2011 he was the recipient of the (London) FCLMA award for best jazz instrumentalist. Sandy "digs all this cool music" and hopes you will as well!
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An Intimate Crooner Christmas / a really Retro Crooner Christmas
The show comes in various forms. 4 to 8 artists on stage. The show always filled with swingin' tunes as we celebrate those Dean, Frank & Bing style Christmas Specials. Filled with festive fun & surprises, the show features popular standards of the era as well as a whole lotta Christmas Music.
2021
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2020
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Our 2019 Tour
Check out our YouTube Video to see where we went in 2019
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About The Show
This show brings together Crooners Rick Kish & Connor Boa, with the Nevin Campbell Trio, as we celebrate those Dean, Frank & Bing style Christmas Specials. Filled with festive fun & surprises, the show features popular standards of the era as well as a whole lotta Christmas Music. A LINK theatre Concert. Created by Rick Kish.
Come Celebrate the Holidays in CROONER Style...
This show has been called by many “...the PERFECT kickoff for the holiday season”.
“Your show kept me smiling from start to finish. The voices, the trio, the warmth, the spontaneity, the joy! I was so happy all afternoon”! - J. HetheringtonK. Patton, as she left the show, “...such a feel good two hours, I can’t stop singing. I’m ready for the holidays”!
“My best friend and I attended your Christmas Crooner’s Concert and truly LOVED IT. …we’d love to introduce this show as part of our family’s Christmas traditions! Thank you for your excellent show”! - L. MacRobbie
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About The CROONERS
Rick Kish (R) **
Rick is the creator this show. He also produces and stages this production.. Each year Rick looks forward to this production and its various incarnations. He’s shared the stage with so many wonderful and talented people from the London and surrounding area over the years. It’s always and adventure and one that he’s so happy to see how people embrace this show again and again. FULL BIO Click HERE
Connor Boa (L)
Connor is very excited to be back Crooning in his favourite Christmas Special! Connor is a long time crooner and has a deep love for the music. He is also an actor and musical theatre performer. He recently appeared at Jazz for the People at Wolf Performance Hall with Rachelle Courtney and Nevin Campbell. Connor began performing at 6 years old at many Renaissance and Pirate Festivals. He has been in six of the Grand Theatres Highschool Projects.
Credits: For LINK theatre; a really Retro CROONER Christmas 2015, 2017 & 2018, Saucy Jack and the Space Vixens 2017 & 2018 as Mitch and JUDY: Stonewalled!', a public reading as Steve.
He encourages you to sit back, relax and enjoy this wonderful band and fun afternoon/evening.
** The participation of this Artist is arranged by permission of Canadian Actors’ Equity Association under the provisions of the Dance Opera Theatre Policy.”
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About The BAND
PIANIST / Band Leader /Musical Director - Nevin Campbell
Nevin Campbell is a jazz pianist from London, Ontario. He is a graduate from the prestigious jazz performance program at Humber College and has studied with some of Canada’s top jazz pianists including Dave Resitvo, Brian Dickinson and Mark Eisenmann. Nevin spent several years touring the world while performing on Holland America and Celebrity cruise ships. Now settled in London, you can see Nevin perform regularly at Restaurant Ninety One and as a frequent guest of the Jazz for the People series at Wolf Performance Hall. He plays with many of Southwestern Ontario’s finest musicians and ensembles including the Basically Basie Big Band, London Jazz Orchestra, Alfredo Caxaj Latin Ensemble, Peter Hysen Septet, Denise Pelley, Sonja Gustafson, Rachelle Courtney, Larry Smith, Darryl Stacey, Sandy MacKay, Jeff Christmas, Paul Stephenson, and Barry Usher. Nevin is a regular with The Rick Kish Combo and can be seen monthly at Michael's Jazz Room and occasionally at Olive R Twists.
He's thrilled to be back working with this amazing company of performers!
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About The ARTISTIC TEAM
Setting Designed by Eric Bunnell
"If it weren't for Christmas, what would we do December 25th"? worries set designer Eric Bunnell, who is grateful for the day. He has been involved in a number of a LINK theatre productions ... Most recently, by wallpapering a dive space bar with a lot of tin foil for Saucy Jack and the Space Vixens. Eric has a very long collaborative design relationship with Rick, Including, Wang Dang Doodle at the Grand Theatre in London, and far too many to mention at Port Stanley Festival Theatre, Bluewater Summer Playhouse and a missing link theatre company. Happy Holidays!
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LINK theatre& concerts would like to say "thank you" to the following people without who our various Christmas Shows would not have been possible...
Thank You!!
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a really Retro CROONER Christmases Past
Samples
Opening Theme with VO
a really Retro CROONER Christmas 2017
The Croonettes - Kaitlin Benoit, Caitlin McKeon, Kieryn Mounsey
with Nevin Campbell on Piano, Anne Pin on Bass & Jake Schindler on Drums
Composed by Eli Pasic
The Most Wonderful Time of the Year
a really Retro CROONER Christmas 2017
The Crooners - Rick Kish & Connor Boa
with Nevin Campbell on Piano, Anne Pin on Bass & Jake Schindler on Drums.
Written by Edward Pola & George Wyle
Jingle Bells - Edited
a really Retro CROONER Christmas 2018
Those Fabulous Croonettes - Caitlin McKeon, Kieryn Mounsey, Kaitlin Benoit
The Crooners - Rick Kish & Connor Boa
with Nevin Campbell on Piano, Anne Pin on Bass & Jake Schindler on Drums.
Written by James Pierpont - Arranged by Dave Foster, Patty Andrews, Victor Schoen and Mac Huff
I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm
a really Retro CROONER Christmas 2018
The Crooner - Rick Kish
with Nevin Campbell on Piano, Anne Pin on Bass & Jake Schindler on Drums
Written by Irving Berlin from the musical film On the Avenue in 1937
with Nevin Campbell on Piano, Anne Pin on Bass & Jake Schindler on Drums.
Written in 1945 by Bob Wells and Mel Tormé
I Won't Dance
a really Retro CROONER Christmas 2018
The Crooners - Connor Boa with Rick Kish & Caitlin McKeon
with Nevin Campbell on Piano, Anne Pin on Bass & Jake Schindler on Drums.
Written by Jerome Kern. Oscar Hammerstein II, Otto Harbach, Jimmy McHugh & Dorothy Fields, originally performed in Three Sisters in 1933
Witchcraft
a really Retro CROONER Christmas 2017
The Crooner - Connor Boa
with Nevin Campbell on Piano, Anne Pin on Bass & Jake Schindler on Drums.
Composed in 1957 by Cy Coleman with lyrics by Carolyn Leigh
Jingle Bells
a really Retro CROONER Christmas 2017
The Croonettes - Maya Lacey, Nicola Klien, Jesslyn Hodgson
The Crooners - Rick Kish & Connor Boa
with Nevin Campbell on Piano, Anne Pin on Bass & Jake Schindler on Drums.
Written by James Pierpont - Arranged by Dave Foster, Patty Andrews, Victor Schoen and Mac Huff
MORE PAST PERFORMANCES - Where we've been...
