COLE HEARTED Comes to The Simcoe Street Theatre in April

On Tuesday, April 11th Theatre Collingwood will launch its 2023 Theatre Season at the Simcoe Street Theatre with a show you may think you know, but you probably don't. It hasn't been performed in over 20 years!

Many folks in Collingwood and beyond know the actor, Dean Hollin, and his love for the music of the Great American Songbook. You may have heard him sing the music of Cole Porter before. But this is not that. This is the STORY of Cole Porter and his incredibly complex life. Yes, Dean will grace us with his beautiful music, but in this play you will be invited into the life of a man who had a profound effect on the music of yesteryear, and of today. Gosh, one of Cole Porter's biggest fans is Lady Gaga. Cole Porter's life was complicated, inspiring and beautiful all at the same time!

Theatre Collingwood is dressing up the Simcoe Street Theatre for this live theatrical production which will tell the intimate story in an equally intimate space. "We are delighted to be presenting our 2023 season in downtown Collingwood, so that our patrons may also enjoy the great dining that the area offers, and then come together in a really sweet and accessible space for a very special production", said Executive Director Erica Angus.

Dean Hollin was born and raised in Hamilton, Ontario, where he became captivated with the notion of becoming a stage actor. Opting to remain in Canada, and to blend his career with family life, Dean has worked for over two decades in numerous regional theatres throughout Ontario in both musical and non-musical roles, including the role of Billy Flynn in the musical Chicago (Drayton Entertainment), Young Whit in Of Mice and Men (Theatre Aquarius), Bill Page in The Voice of the Turtle (Helen Gardiner Phelan Playhouse), and the title role in the tour de force production, Billy Bishop Goes to War (Gayety Theatre, and tour). On two occasions he played the role of Mark Dolson in the two-man play Mass Appeal - the second time opposite actor Jonathan Frid of Dark Shadows fame. In 2001 he began singing the role of Frank Sinatra in C2 Productions' Memories of the Rat Pack - a production that has taken him to Germany, Austria and various Canadian and U.S. destinations including Las Vegas.

COLE HEARTED will run from April 11th-15th at The Simcoe Street Theatre, 65 Simcoe Street, Collingwood. This production is proudly sponsored by Duntroon Highlands .

Tickets are available at www.theatrecollingwood.ca or by calling 705-445-2200. Special prices are available for all students and arts workers.