If you’re looking for some fabulous entertainment this weekend, be sure to check out the charming musical duo The Rail Birds at the Sunset Theatre in Wells.
The soothing and stirring vocal offerings of songstress Onalea Gilbertson will sweep you off your feet. Her voice is spine-tinglingly gorgeous, and she has you in the palm of her hands from the first note she sings.
Gilbertson and her partner in crime, Bruce Horak, have been travelling the country since last year as The Rail Birds, a fitting name they adopted after being hired by Via Rail to entertain travellers who were venturing across country by train.
Last weekend, the dynamic duo’s toe-tapping, tear-wiping, musical offerings charmed the Sunset Theatre crowd, and they are back at the venue this Saturday (July 27) to grace the historic theatre’s stage once again.
Describing themselves as “road-living and road-loving,” the Rail Birds bring old-time country grace and silky torch-songs wrung from the Canadiana songbook. They’ve honed their sound around campfires and back-kitchens from one end of Canada to the other. As a part of their travels, they enjoyed a premiere performance at Rockwood Music Hall in New York City last July.
Over the past year, the Alberta-born artists have put 44,000 kilometres on their van Goldie, the trusty steel steed that has shuttled them across every province and territory.
“That’s more than the circumference of the Earth!” chuckled Horak.
The charming couple are full of joy as they regale the audience with stories of their adventures and share some of their favourite tunes. The Rail Birds will put a smile on your face and a shuffle in your step.
The Huffington Post wrote, “Gilbertson’s distinctive, charming voice bristles with intelligence and captures your attention effortlessly. You always sit up and pay notice when she’s singing.”
Edmonton’s VUE Weekly posted, “Horak’s musical prowess is unparalleled, he is a consummate showman with comedic timing you could set your atomic clock by.”
On Friday (July 26), the Sunset will also host the Wells Historical Society’s annual Comedy Auction. James Douglas and a company of comedic actors host the evening of laughter as they auction off some stellar prizes to help raise money for the Wells Historical Society.
For reservations to the Rail Birds and the Comedy Auction, call 250-994-3400. For full details on the Sunset Theatre’s 2019 season, visit sunset-theatre.com. See you at the Sunset, located at 2357 Pooley St. in Wells!
— Submitted by The Sunset Theatre