Ontario

(EMAILWIRE.COM, May 13, 2007 ) Cedar Park, TX -- This summer, legendary Canadian composer R. Murray Schafer will be returning once again to the beautiful Haliburton Highlands in Ontario Canada to thrill audiences with another spectacular outdoor musical theatre extravaganza. The Princess of the Stars, prologue to Schafer’s epic 12-part Patria Cycle of musical dramas will be performed live, at dawn, upon a remote wilderness lake within the borders of the 60,000 acre Haliburton Forest & Wildlife Reserve, one of Canada’s top eco-tourism destinations and first certified sustainable forest.A lifetime in the making, Schafer’s prolific Patria has been performed over the past several years to great acclaim in numerous unique and unusual venues worldwide. Interwoven with fanciful mythological tales and themes that explore love, nature, and change, the entire Patria Cycle follows the drama of two lovers and their quest to find one another across time and space. To achieve the best possible effect, the works are often staged in unconventional locales, usually outdoors where the natural beauty of the surroundings becomes an integral part of the performance. The time of day that these operatic dramas are performed also plays an important role. Last year’s live theatre performance of the Palace of the Cinnabar Phoenix, at the Haliburton Forest & Wildlife Reserve, was presented to thrilled audiences at dusk, in order to capture the beauty of the sun as it set over the lake. This year’s Haliburton outdoor theatre presentation of The Princess of the Stars, which runs from August 28 through September 3, 2007, is destined to be as spectacular and awe-inspiring as last year’s production. The performance will begin at 4:00 a.m., just before dawn. In the dark and stillness of the early morning hour, Schafer’s unforgettable music will begin. As the sun slowly rises, the drama will unfold to reveal a vision of more than 60 musician, singers, dancers and canoeists highlighted against the backdrop of the sun rising over the still lake waters - one of nature’s most breathtaking special effects. According to R. Murray Schafer, "Dawn itself is the most neglected masterpiece of the modern world." R. Murray Schafer, whose work is revered by music scholars, critics, and the theatre-going public, will once again be assisted by an extraordinarily talented creative team - many of whom have been with him for more than twenty-years - when he returns this summer to Haliburton and the Haliburton Forest & Wildlife Reserve to present The Princess of the Stars. “This will be the third production in Patria’s initial five-year agreement with Peter Schleifenbaum, owner of the Haliburton Forest & Wildlife Reserve. An expansive wilderness reserve of incredible natural beauty, the Haliburton Forest is the ideal setting for R. Murray Schafer’s musical theatre. We are very pleased with the relationship that Patria has developed with the Haliburton community and with the reception that our performances have received,” states Lesley English, Patria Music/Theatre Project’s General Manager (http://www.patriamusic.ca). To attend a R. Murray Schafer musical event is always a unique and moving experience for patrons. For those lucky enough to attend this year’s Haliburton outdoor theatre presentation of The Princess of the Stars, it may prove to be the highlight of their summer season. Patria Music/Theatre Projects is producing this year’s Haliburton outdoor theatre presentation of The Princess of the Stars, which runs from August 28 through September 3, 2007, with the performance beginning at 4:00 a.m., just before dawn at Haliburton Forest & Wildlife Reserve. For more information or to order tickets, please visit Patria Music/Theatre Projects or call Lesley English at 705-754-4167.###This press release was issued through GroupWeb EmailWire.com. For more information on press release distribution, go to http://www.emailwire.com.

Kevin Dill

hillaryalane@yahoo.com