As I indicated in earlier posts on this blog writing journey, I had unfortunately never heard of Petula Clark or encountered  any of her music before the release of “Downtown”. I had no idea of her history in England or of her performing in French (and other languages) or indeed of her connection to the French speaking province of Quebec, in my home country. It was a strong connection, and, very interestingly is related to the title of Petula’s newly released autobiography, Is That You, Petula?’

The release of “Downtown” though brought instant fame to Petula in English- speaking Canada and her frequent visits to Toronto in the sixties carried with it a bit of “Petulamania”. A perusal of the Toronto Star Entertainment Section archives opens  a revealing cache of gushing reviews of Petula’s trips to the city. One features Petula riding a subway as publicity for “Don’t Sleep in the Subway”.

The O’Keefe Centre was the premier entertainment venue in Toronto at that time –later it was named the Hummingbird Centre.  Petula came back often  to that venue through the decades, last appearing there in 2005. She also did a week of dinner- theatre at the Royal York Hotel in 1987 and appeared in the London Palladium Tour at Ed Mirvish’s Royal Alexandra Theatre for an extended period  in 1968.. Notably, as well, Petula’s last full concert appearance occurred in Toronto in June of 2109 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. My husband and I enjoyed seeing her at all of these venues./

But for this Post  I am going to focus on her appearances in Niagara Falls, Ontario; Edmonton, Alberta and Vancouver, British Columbia. As with  all of our “Petula Adventures” there are highlights that make each of these experiences unique.

Niagara Falls, Ontario ,was  literally a twenty minute drive from our home in 2006.The Avalon Show Room at the Fallsview Casino Resort had only been opened for two years when Petula made her appearance there. Our excitement was  palpable as we made the short journey to see Petula so close to home. The Avalon is a very intimate, modern theatre and apparently has great acoustics. Petula told us so when at one of our “Meet and Greet” experiences years later; she also spoke about her beautiful accommodations at the resort with a breathtaking view overlooking the Falls. It was remarkable in our view that in merely mentioning that we were from Canada, near Niagara Falls,that Petula instantly conjured up these details some years later. After all, she had performed in many, many venues. At any rate, the concert was memorable for us as well!!

According to Petula Clark’s Official website the song list that day was: Who Am I , The Twelfth of Never, Don’t Sleep in the Subway,  I’m Not Afraid,  This Is My Song,  I Know a Place,  Look to the Rainbow,  Colour My World , To Memphis,  60’s medley,  Tell Me It’s Not True,  With One Look,  Love Song medley,  Downtown.  Encores: Here for You I Couldn’t Live Without Your Love.

Of course I enjoyed absolutely every song but I was always particularly amazed by “Tell Me It’s Not True” –Having never seen Petula in Blood Brothers hearing her sing that song was for me the nearest thing to seeing her perform in the musical. I was happy it was a staple of Petula’s shows for several years, usually ending the first half of the show.

The audience was of course, as usual, very appreciative. On exiting the theatre we noticed a group of gentlemen in the first balcony wearing customized tee-shirts  with letters spelling  WE LOVE YOU PETULA !  Years  later my husband and I met one of these gentlemen at a UK concert –he told us that Petula came to talk with them after the concert. The stories from Petula fans and of their interaction with her I think help explain the longevity and depth of her loyal fan base. 

Geographically, Canada is a vast land. Ontario is pretty much in the centre of the country. Remarkably, in 2007, although we had travelled eastward and internationally, my husband and I had never travelled west of Ontario in Canada !! Maybe something about being slow to recognize the beauty in one’s own backyard.. At any rate in September we flew from Toronto  to Edmonton, Alberta to see Petula perform at Festival Place, a venue  just outside of Edmonton at Sherwood Park where Petula performed on two consecutive dates, Sept 9 and Sept. 10. We took in both performances.

At this time Edmonton, a centre of the oil sands development, was a very  booming place and finding reservations for our stay or even places to eat proved surprisingly difficult. We had not anticipated the number of business people being in the city in September, expecting instead a sort of “off-season’ tourist slump. We were definitely wrong! There were no “Hop on Hop Off Tours” of the area or similar standardized tours but we managed to book a private tour with a driver who was very knowledgeable about the area.

Edmonton is perched  on the bank of the Saskatchewan River. My husband was anxious to see Rexall Place –the then home of the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers and its famous statue of Wayne Gretzky, famed Canadian hockey player. Unfortunately we were unable to access the building, so it was sort of a drive-by experience. Downtown Edmonton, in 2007, with its many construction projects and  an abundance of cranes everywhere contrasted with the  park-like open space of the River Valley that surrounds the area. But our driver maneuvered us through and we  managed as well a visit to the West Edmonton Mall –at that time the largest mall in the world. I might add that my enthusiasm for the place greatly surpassed my husband’s! We also were able to see the University of Alberta, impressively  situated across the river from the downtown core. Such was our introduction to western Canada–We had always thought that we would return to Edmonton and  take a drive across the prairies to have a true feel of our west, but alas, not all plans materialize.

The performances at Festival Place were part of Petula’s larger tour of western Canada and the US , but we were only seeing the Edmonton shows. Petula’s ability to enchant her audience was on full display in both performances. For us a highlight was the ability to see Petula after the performance and to have her sign her recently released cd of Rod Mc Kuen’s songs, “Solitude and Sunshine”. While we waited outside the stage door, as Petula was greeting fans from the inside in a small office area, chatting easily with everyone looking to have various memorabilia signed, Kenny Clayton, Petula’s musical director at the time, was outside enchanting another group of fans with what appeared to be humourous anecdotes.

Our next trips to western Canada were to the Pacific coast area of Vancouver. Vancouver has  a picture post-card skyline, nestled in front of a snow covered mountain range  and surrounded by water on three sides. It is one of Canada’s largest cities and its temperate climate has made it a very popular tourist location. On both visits to the Vancouver area we took time to visit the tourist sites –Stanley Park, Granville Island and the Gaslight District. A ferry ride to Victoria on our first trip in 2008 was a wonderful addition to the trip. Victoria is a storybook town at the southern tip of Vancouver, giving it probably the mildest weather in Canada. We were totally enchanted by Victoria! We visited the beautiful Butchart Gardens and walked the Inner Harbour area with its tony shops and restaurants. The imposing Parliament buildings and old British architecture make it feel like a step into Victorian England –so it is indeed aptly named!

We actually saw Petula perform in two different venues in the Vancouver area. In September 2008, Petula had just completed some concerts in Manila, in the Phillipines and stopped in Vancouver to do a concert at the River Rock Casino in Richmand on the outskirts of Vancouver. The concert surprisingly was never listed on her Official web-site. I suspect it was a last minute addition on her way back from Asia. My husband I made a long weekend trip from Toronto to Vancouver, leaving on September 18 and returning on the 21st. On the morning after the concert we came down for breakfast and sitting in the lobby were Petula and her musical director, Kenny Clayton waiting to go to the airport. We stopped to say how much we had enjoyed the previous evening’s performance and our travels to see her perform. She jokingly suggested she would try to find some nice places in the future for us to travel. She actually kept her word!

The following Septemeber we again saw Petula perform in Vancouver. This time at the Red Robinson Theatre at the Boulevard Casino Resort, Coquitlam, outside Vancouver. It was our final stop in a journey that began on August 27 when we saw Petula perform in Toronto at the Canadian National Exhibition with her new musical director, Grant Sturiale; from there we travelled to see her in Las Vegas and from there we went to Vancouver.

The Red Robinson Theatre was a lovely venue and the concert was memorable for a few reasons. Petula had changed the setlist from the previous year. She included her self-penned “Starting All Over Again“, a poignant reflective song that was well received by the audience. As well in her piano solo she did a slow tempo version of the Beatles, “I Want to Hold Your Hand“, a beautiful version of the song, I think. But, Petula no longer included her Blood Brothers‘, “Tell Me It”s Not True” which was disappointing to me. As with absolutely every concert we ever attended, the audience was thrilled with the evening , as evidenced by their thunderous applause and standing ovation. And again we wondered, “Where next?”

/