Crichton Cultural Community Centre

Interested? It's on Nov. 27 at the old Crichton School. Contact Jennifer Barbarie ( 613-695-5010) for details, and tickets.

As the flyer indicates (attached), this is a 1950's style High School "reunion", including a sock hop with music of the era (Elvis, Buddy Holly, Bill Haley and the Comets, you get the picture..), and a multi-media presentation with TV commercials etc. of the 50's. We're also hoping to have some professional swing dancers on hand to show the rest of us the tricks of the jive and jitterbug trade, and we've got a great DJ to call the tunes. In fact it's Gary Frith, Angela Bogdan's husband. Food provided by local caterers. Vintage outfits and dancing encouraged but not necessary to have a good time. Tickets are available at Books on Beechwood, but I would be happy to deliver... - Jennifer Barbari

Here's more, from a New Edinburgh News article.

For the first time this year, the timing of the CCCC’s popular annual fundraising event, Cocktails for Crichton, is out of step with the NEN publication schedule, with the result that we’re obliged to report on the event before it has actually taken place- treacherous waters indeed! That said, if the efforts of our outstanding event co-ordinators, volunteers, generous sponsors and donors are any guide to its ultimate success, our 1950’s era High School Sock Hop on November 27^th has all the makings of yet another in the CCCC’s series of awesome (and memorable!) community gatherings.

It’s perhaps worth emphasizing that these fundraisers are not optional on the annual events calendar of the CCCC, but rather play a critical role in helping to finance our ongoing operations which, unlike most community centres, receive no support from the City of Ottawa. When you pitch in and join the party, you’re giving us much needed help to keep our programs running and our facilities shipshape, and (we hope!) having a heck of a good time in the process!

Grease Comes to Crichton

What began as the germ of an idea for a reunion of Crichton Public School alumni gradually morphed into plans for a full scale, community-wide High School Dance, set in the unforgettable era of Elvis, Buddy Holly, Bill Haley, and countless more of the great names of Rock ‘n Roll. It was the age of poodle skirts, saddle shoes, white socks, sweater sets, cat’s eye glasses, and a wild polarizing of male fashion ranging from preppie nerd to ultra-cool greaser. At the time of writing, CCCC organizers were doing their level best to ensure that participants come suitably attired in the fetching styles of the era, and ready to rock around the clock (well, maybe for an hour or two..!) on November 27^th.

As always, this year’s fundraiser is very much a collective community effort, and we are extremely grateful to the many individuals and businesses who have pitched in to help make it a success. Since the event is still a work in progress as this goes to press, it’s very likely that yet more volunteers and donors will come forward in the remaining weeks before the party, and we look forward to acknowledging their contributions in the next edition of the NEN.

Special thanks to our 2010 Sponsors who have given us the means to host a really first class, fun event for our community:

• Governor’s Walk Retirement Residence

• Sheila Whyte’s Thyme and Again Creative Catering

• BMO Financial Group and

• Quality Entertainment.

Thanks also to the local businesses who, along with our sponsor Thyme and Again Creative Catering, have generously donated food for the hungry contingent of dancers and party goers we look forward to entertaining on November 27th:

• Arturo’s

• Bread and Roses Bakery

• Bridgehead

• Da Bombe Desserts

• Epicuria

• New Edinburgh Pub and

• The Scone Witch

While we took the conscious decision not to undertake a full scale Auction this year, a number of generous contributors have donated a select few extremely attractive Silent Auction items to top up our proceeds from the event. While there may be more names to add to this list as we approach the finish line, at this point, we’d like to express our thanks to the following group of staunch supporters:

• A Week in Tuscany will again be auctioned, courtesy of our hard-working Board member Jennifer Barbarie, whose home away from home in Anghiari was among the most popular items at last year’s Cocktails for Crichton Auction;

• Ingrid McCarthy, founding Director of the New Edinburgh Players, and multi-talented artist and author, has donated a framed water colour of Anghiari to complement Jennifer’s contribution; and

• Gift Certificates were donated by

  • El Meson

  • Farb’s Kitchen and Wine Bar

  • Fraser Café

  • Groovy Grapes

  • Scissors Hair Salon and

  • ZaZaZa Pizza

Shake, Rattle ‘n Roll

The central focus of this year’s Cocktails for Crichton event is, as our eye-catching poster suggests, dancing to the unforgettable rock ‘n roll music of the ‘50’s- and more specifically, jiving, a skill which may not be in your repertoire unless you’re a veteran of that era, or perhaps a dance history buff. To lead the way on the dance floor and to pass along a few of the tricks of the jive trade, we’re fortunate to have a lined up a pair of experts from Swing Dynamite, a leading Ottawa swing dance group directed by Byron Alley. (Stay tuned for photos of the rest of us trying our hand- or rather feet- on the dance floor in the next edition of the NEN!)

And of course, no High School dance would be complete without a DJ. As luck would have it, we were able to enlist the services of Gary Firth, a consummate DJ and broadcaster with extensive experience in the business, who just happens to live on Crichton Street directly across the road from the school! Gary has participated in the planning process with enthusiasm and much-needed expertise, and we have no doubt he’ll be a smash hit with the neighbourhood on November 27^th.

No one who attended last year’s Cocktails for Crichton Auction will forget the star of our show, Mama Morton (aka Joseph Cull). Despite a fully packed schedule of benefit performances and volunteer gigs of all descriptions, Joseph was generous-spirited enough to join our organizing team again this year, and to play a leading role as the High School Principal. While best is yet to come on November 27^th, there’s no doubt that Joseph will work his magic in this role, dishing out plenty of knuckle rappings, finger-wagging scoldings and flamboyant expressions of disapproval to the unruly nerds and greasers in the crowd. Thank you, Joseph: it’s a simple truth that we couldn’t do this without you, and we’re eternally grateful for your presence and support.

Finally, no tribute would be complete without a hats off to our core group of organizers. At the helm again this year is our Event Co-ordinator par excellence Alex MacDonald, whose powers of imagination, attention to detail, organizational experience and expertise have combined to lift our soirée out of the realm of the mundane fundraiser and into the stratosphere of truly great parties. Not only does she “think of everything” as the saying goes, she thinks of it with a flair and genius which inspires her cohorts and greatly enriches the event.

Her partner Martin Clary is equally talented and dedicated in the handling of all the technical aspects of the event, from lighting to floor plans to the all important musical production. And on top of this daunting task list, Martin is preparing a multi-media presentation to complement the music and dance elements of our Sock Hop, and to thoroughly immerse the party goers in the inimitable aura of the 1950’s.

Many thanks also to the other hard-working members of the CCCC organizing team, Jennifer Barbarie, Carol Burchill, Ingrid McCarthy, Vicki Metcalfe and Jane Heintzman, and to the many volunteers who have agreed to pitch in on the day and evening of the event, including our ace organizer and staunch supporter Hilary Armstrong, who has generously agreed to return to the team on November 27^th.