A little piece of Prince Rupert history returns to the Lester Centre of the Arts stage this summer.
The Janis Joplin Tribute Show, which was the first local band to grace the Lester Centre’s stage, will be playing a second show on June 10. The band, consisting of Tracy Masson, Ian Lihou, Gordie Olsen, Nick Adey and Karl Oystensen, all are originally from Prince Rupert.
“I’m really excited about it and couldn’t ask for a better lineup of guys to perform with,” said Masson, who now lives in Langley and plays Janis Joplin in the show.
The group played a one-off show in February 1990 when the then-director of the Lester Centre, Alan Burnett, heard Masson’s band, which included Olsen and Adey, playing some Joplin and asked them to do a show. Fast forward 30 years and Crystal Lorette, now director of the theatre, asked if they would be interested in reuniting.
“For myself, it’s exciting for a number of reasons. We’re getting together again, being reunited with our friends and in our hometown to play the show that really kicked ass,” said Oystensen, who is now a professional keyboard player in Vancouver.
It also reunites the group with Janis Joplin’s music, which will be on full display on June 10. The show will have two different sets of material.
“The first will be geared toward the Big Brother and the Holding Company era of Janis’s career and then the second set will be geared towards the Pearl album that she was recording when she died,” Masson said.
The quintet encourage people to buy tickets early as they expect a sold-out show.
“It’ll be a real good experience like it was and even better, I think,” Oystensen said.
The musicians have grown over the past 30 years, so Masson said the show will likely showcase a renewed energy from what it was originally.
“It’s going to have a kind of renewed energy now because we’re older and we’re all more experienced players and performers. It’s just going to have that cool edge of experience,” she said.
Lihou added that Lester Centre technical director Dwain Harrison is essential to the show.
“We couldn’t do this show without Dwain Harrison. He’s as much a member of the group as any one of us,” he said.
Tickets are available at the Lester Centre.