Peters coming to MTS Centre this fall

Rainbow Stage’s Legally Blonde a lovely legal musical

Omigod, you guys! Rainbow Stage kicked off its penultimate summer production Thursday with a high-octane joy machine bathed in a sea of pink.

Inspired by the 2001 Hollywood film starring Reese Witherspoon, and Amanda Brown’s same-titled novel, the award-winning Legally Blonde: The Musical — featuring a book by Heather Hach, with music/lyrics by Laurence O’Keefe and Nell Benjamin — opened on Broadway in April 2007, followed by a subsequent West End run.

The tale — equal parts cheesy rom-com and potent siren call for female autonomy and empowerment — focuses on quintessential Cali-girl Elle Woods (a pitch-perfect Claire Mac Master). A proud daughter and president of Delta Nu sorority house, she enrols at Harvard Law School to win back her upwardly mobile ex-boyfriend, Warner Huntington III (Duncan Cox).

Laser-focused on marrying a “Jackie, not a Marilyn,” Warner dreams of becoming an American senator, latching onto uber-preppy fellow pupil Vivienne Kensington (Julie Davis), who becomes Elle’s arch nemesis.

Coalition dismayed after U of M decides not to establish master’s in speech-language pathology

A new coalition representing students who stutter, speak with a lisp and struggle with other speech challenges is decrying the University of Manitoba’s decision to shelve plans to train in-demand clinicians.

U of M recently scrapped a proposal to establish a master of speech-language pathology — a program that exists only outside the province.

“It’s hard to provide the support that students deserve and support teachers and school teams and families with our large caseloads,” said Allison Sexton, a speech-language pathologist who works in the public education sector.

Sexton is one of the organizers behind a campaign that is ramping up ahead of back-to-school season to raise awareness about a chronic shortage of experts in her field and related wait lists.

Peters coming to MTS Centre this fall

Comedian Russell Peters’ Almost Famous World Tour will make a stop at the MTS Centre on Sept 16.

In addition to his regular standup schedule, the Toronto-born Peters is a judge on this season’s NBC’s Last Comic Standing and can be seen in the movie Chef, which opens in Winnipeg on Friday.

He promises to introduce new material to the tour, which will also hit mega-hockey rinks Air Canada Centre in Toronto and New York’s Madison Square Garden.

Tickets go on sale Monday, June 16 through Ticketmaster. Prices range from $44.50 to $111.75.

All eyes on Brachetto ahead of Downs’ yearling sale

While Brachetto is at Woodbine attempting to become the first Manitoba-bred horse to win the King’s Plate on Saturday, a yearling colt out of his winning half-sister Aramon will be busy preparing to strut his stuff in the annual Manitoba CTHS Yearling Sale on Thursday.

And whether his famous relative wins or loses the 167th running of the $1-million event, he is sure to attract much attention.

Owned and bred by Manitoba veterinarian Dr. Ross McKague and wife Brenda, Brachetto became one of three Manitoba-breds to win a graded stakes when he claimed the Marine Stakes (G3) at Woodbine on June 27. The others were million-dollar earner and 2018 Canadian Champion Older Mare Escape Clause, bred by Cam Ziprick and Arnason Farms, and Misty Drone, bred by Phil Kives, who won the 1986 Comely Stakes at Aqueduct in New York.

Named Catawba, Brachetto’s relative is Hip no.7 in the yearling sale, and joins 47 others that will be offered at 3:30 on Thursday at the sales pavilion in the Assiniboia Downs backstretch. There will be others attracting attention too, including Hip #12, a half-brother to Escape Clause by Speculating; Hip #18, who is out of multiple champion mare Hidden Grace, and also sired by Speculating; and Hip #34, a gelding named No Bro by top Manitoba sire Nonios out of local overnight stakes winner Purrsistent.

City Lego seller continues to build up its business

Brick by brick, a Winnipeg Lego seller is building its third expansion — in less than two years.