Mariposa in Concert

More Music Beyond the Summer

The Mariposa Folk Festival produces concerts throughout the year usually held in Orillia. These intimate affairs often feature artists that have played the Festival.

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Mariposa-In-Concert presents Amanda Rheaume and School House on March 15th

For Information on the March 15th Amanda Rheaume and School House show, scroll down below the Lance Anderson show. Tickets available at the Mariposa office at 10 Peter Street South in Orillia (705-326-3655), or online here

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Mariposa-In-Concert presents Lance Anderson’s 13th annual Blues & Gospel on February 22nd at the Orillia Opera House

BUY TICKETS HERE

Mariposa in Concert’s (MIC) wildly popular ‘An Evening of Blues & Gospel’ Show returns Saturday Feb. 22, 2025 at the Orillia Opera House with another incredible lineup of all-star vocalists and musicians assembled, arranged and directed by Orillia’s own JUNO award winning producer, Lance Anderson.

“This is our 13^th annual Blues & Gospel Show and it is a great way to ward off the winter blahs,” Mariposa Folk Festival President Pam Carter said.

Tickets are $35 (all fees and taxes included) and are available at the Orillia Opera House Box Office or online at orilliaoperahouse.com. Doors open at 7:00 p.m. and the show starts at 7:30 p.m.

The stellar lineup this year includes Andrew Craig, Jim Bowskill, Brittany Brooks, Selena Evangeline and Emily Burgess, with Lance Anderson as musical director.

“Mariposa is so fortunate to have Lance Anderson bringing such great musical talent to its annual Blues and Gospel Show,” Carter said. “This show is a sell-out every year.”

Andrew Craig

Andrew Craig creates and performs original music, writes plays, directs music, theatre and festivals, produces audio and video, and teaches. 

He’s worked with Molly Johnson, Wynton Marsalis, Measha Bruggergosman, David Clayton Thomas and Jackie Richardson, opened for Bobby McFerrin, directed tributes to Oscar Peterson and Quincy Jones, and performed twice for Nelson Mandela.

He specializes in the music of the African diaspora: jazz, Gospel, funk, soul, R & B, Blues, and many African continental styles.

Brooks & Bowskill 

Brooks & Bowskill is the collaboration of Canadian wife-and-husband musicians Brittany Brooks and Jim Bowskill. Their genre-bending sound journeys between folk, country-rock, pop and rock and roll.

Jim Bowskill, a multi-talented instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, producer and recording engineer, has established himself as one of the most profound musicians in Canada. Beginning his career at the age of 12, Bowskill has been performing music and touring the world ever since with a variety of bands and his own projects. He is a member of Blue Rodeo as their multi-instrumentalist and previously spent 7 years as lead guitarist of Canadian rock band The Sheepdogs. 

Brittany Brooks is a singer and songwriter known for crafting lyrically evocative songs steeped in wisdom beyond her years. She has become notable for her unique and poignant vocal styling reminiscent of female folk music pioneers like Joni Mitchell, Sandy Denny and country artists like Emmylou Harris and Sylvia Tyson. In addition to releasing multiple solo albums of her own, Brooks has provided background vocals on numerous studio albums and in live performances for a range of artists including Blue Rodeo and Greg Keelor. 

“Whether you’re a believer in fate, or even God, it’s hard not to feel some sort of gratitude to whatever force brought Brooks and Bowskill together. Maybe it wasn’t divine intervention, but it is surely evidence of some sort of cosmic destiny that these two musicians could come together to create such an ethereal and moving set of songs.” — Americana UK

Selena Evangeline

Selena Evangeline is without question a world-class singer. The sounds of Ella Fitzgerald, Chaka Khan, Prince and Stevie Wonder helped shape the multi- instrumentalist and musician she is today.

By way of her travels, Selena has shared stages with Sheila E., Patrice Rushen, The Nylons, Latin Grammy winner Maia and more.  Recently you may have seen her on stage backing Amanda Marshall and CMA winner Johnny Reid.

Selena was a featured singer in ’60 in 60’ the Celebration concert for Mariposa’s 60th Anniversary, and is a member of the Matchedash Parish.

Emily Burgess

Emily Burgess is a guitarist, singer, and songwriter based in Peterborough, Ontario. As a freelance guitarist, Emily has worked for a wide variety of artists and groups, including The Weber Brothers, The Women’s Blues Revue Band, The 24th Street Wailers, Rita Chiarelli, and Sue Foley.

Fronting her own trio, she won the Best New Artist Maple Blues Award in 2018. As a member of The 24th Street Wailers, she and her band mates were nominated for a JUNO award for their 2014 album ‘Wicked’.

As an independent artist, Emily has recorded 3 studio albums: Are We in Love? (2017), Never-Ending Fling (2019), and Arrow (2023).

Lance Anderson

Internationally recognized Producer, composer Lance Anderson has brought together the best in Canada’s Blues, Gospel and R&B world for the 13th time, for Mariposa. This series showcases the best artists in the genre but also emerging talent that Orillia artists may not be familiar with, but will not forget.

Anderson has a long career recording artists like Blackburn, The Cameo Blues Band, Garth Hudson (The Band), 2B3 The Toronto Sessions, Matchedash Parish and is about to release a N’Orleans themed CD as Lance Anderson and the NOLA Parish and a world Jazz CD called Lance Anderson and the Word Jazz Asylum. He produces The Last Waltz – A Musical Celebration of The Band and tours Ontario theatres with other shows he has created.

He has recorded and performed with the Maple Blues Band, Shakura S’Aida, Shawn Kellerman, Roly Platt, Al Lerman, Ken Whiteley and US artists like with Johnny Rawls, Lee Oskar, Deanna Bogart, Anne Harris, Tommy Castro, 

He was co-producer of the ‘Oscar with Love’ 3CD set that commemorated the 90th Anniversary of Oscar’s birth and featured Michel Legrand, Chick Corea, Oliver Jones, Ramsey Lewis and many more.

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March Mariposa Concert features Amanda Rheaume, School House

On March 15, the unpredictable, roller-coaster winter weather will be pushed out of mind by a night of musical sunshine, courtesy of the Mariposa Folk Festival’s third and final concert of its 2024-25 season. 

That night, award-winning Indigenous singer-songwriter Amanda Rheaume and folk-pop trio School House will be taking to the St. Paul’s Centre stage to sing away any late winter blues.    

“Both Amanda Rheaume and School House were crowd favourites at the Mariposa Folk Festival in July and this March concert will reprise their unique musical stylings and bring us all a little Mariposa sunshine,” Mariposa Folk Festival President Pam Carter said.

The concert is on Saturday, March 15, at St. Paul’s Centre, 62 Peter Street North, Orillia. Doors open at 7 p.m. Show starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $35 (all fees and taxes included) and are available at the Mariposa Folk Festival office, 10 Peter Street South in downtown Orillia, or online at this link.

Amanda Rheaume

Recipient of the 2024 Spirit of Folk Award, 2023 Canadian Folk Music Award for Indigenous Songwriter of the Year and the 2023 Capital Music Awards’ Album of the Year, Amanda Rheaume’s rootsy, guitar-driven ballads introduce crucial dimensions to the world of Heartland Rock.

In a genre characterized by anthems of underdogs, assumptions and unfair advantages, Rheaume’s sound and story radically expand the boundaries, both geographic and cultural, to make space for new perspectives on resistance and resilience. A Citizen of the Métis Nation, and an active and proud member of the 2SLGBTQ+ community, Rheaume’s music is indeed from the heart, and the land.

First a songwriter, Rheaume comes from a long line of tireless, transformational organizers and activists. She carries this lineage forward in her ever-growing role as a crucial builder of Indigenous music infrastructure and community. From the International Indigenous Music Summitand Ishkode Records, to the National Indigenous Music Office, the goal of raising Indigenous sovereignty in the music industry drives all of Rheaume’s work. 

Rheaume has released 5 full-length albums and four EPs, all while fostering a self-managed career travelling on numerous tours and achieving many milestones. 2013’s Keep a Fire was nominated for a JUNO Award and won a Canadian Folk Music Award for Indigenous Songwriter of the Year. As a follow-up to 2022’s The Spaces In Between, Rheaume is currently writing her next full-length album, set to release in 2025.

School House

2024 Mariposa Showcase winner School House is a folk band from Ottawa. After moving in together in 2021, the three best friends discovered that their new home was a century-old school house — inspiring the name and giving them a dedicated space to create. They were awarded Group of the Year at the 2024 Ottawa Music Awards and their debut release was named Album of the Year by Ottawa Faces Magazine.

Their sound was born around a campfire, taking turns sharing songs and joining in three-part harmony. They combine upbeat singalongs with emotive folk ballads to bring a wise, yet youthful perspective to the Canadian folk music scene. Releasing their debut album in 2023 and an Acoustic EP in 2024; the band has amassed over 350k online streams.

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Mariposa In Concert Sponsors

Thank you to our Mariposa In Concert sponsors, whose support means we can present high quality artists at affordable ticket prices: