In full bloom

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This article was published 16/09/2023 (1095 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Alexa Dirks is strapping herself in for Begonia’s next wild ride.

The seven-year journey of the Winnipeg pop singer’s flamboyant alter ego reaches a new apex next week.

Dirks heads to Toronto Tuesday for the Polaris Gala, where Begonia is one of 10 artists who could be named the winner of the prestigious Polaris Music Prize, which has been awarded to the Canadian album of the year, regardless of genre or sales, since 2006.

Begonia then brings her Powder Blue tour to the Club Regent Event Centre for concerts on Sept. 22 and 23, a set of shows Dirks describes as her version of a Vegas residency she has always dreamed of having.

“There’s just a low rumble underneath that’s ready to explode at any moment,” Dirks says of the building excitement. “When it rains, it pours, and I’m ready for it.”

At Toronto’s Massey Hall on Tuesday, Begonia will perform a seven-minute medley from Powder Blue, the February album that caught the attention of the Polaris prize jury. It should provide a welcome distraction from a night full of nerves that will build while waiting for the envelope to be opened and the winner of the $50,000 award to be announced.

“I’m thinking of it as a fun celebration, a party, and no expectations. I’m not going in, ‘If I’m going to win, I’m going to freak out,’ ” Dirks says, laughing. “I’m excited that we get to have that performance moment because that’s always when I feel the most myself and alive and connected.”

Past winners of the Polaris Music Prize include Arcade Fire, Feist, Tanya Tagaq, Buffy Sainte-Marie and Congolese-Canadian rapper Pierre Kwenders, who won in 2022.

Begonia’s debut record, Fear, made the 40-album Polaris long list in 2020 and gained her some national attention, but nothing like making the short list of 10 this year.

CBC Music gave a one-hour deep dive into Powder Blue earlier in September (wfp.to/begoniacbc) and introduced songs such as Chasing Every Sunrise, Married By Elvis and Right Here, which showcases Dirks’ remarkable vocal range. The record was described as “acid-soul disco.”

Odario Williams, the former Winnipegger and host of CBC’s Afterdark radio program, said on the Powder Blue show that Begonia reminds him of an engaging schoolteacher who has a firm grip on the class’s attention.

“It’s like she’s telling a story every time and this vibe that’s so inviting, kind of like the person-next-door type of thing,” he says. “That’s why I think she’s buzz-worthy.”

The publicity — not to mention five sold-out shows at the West End Cultural Centre in February 2020 — has given Dirks the courage to up the ante for her long-awaited return to the Winnipeg stage.

“A lot of artists who are comparable to me in age but are way more famous than me do Vegas residencies all the time,” she says. “I don’t think that’s going to happen for me in Vegas so I’m going to make this happen for myself in Transcona.”

The back-to-back concerts at the Club Regent Event Centre is a risky bet. While gamblers at the Transcona casino would love to be dealt a handful of aces or a royal flush after making their wager, Begonia will settle for a full house.

Make that two of them.

“When you try to put together big shows, you never know who’s going to show up. Is it going to meet expectations? Is it going to be good enough? Especially for hometown shows, because I want them to be the most spectacular they can possibly be,” Dirks says.

Dirks will amp up the Begonia experience for the Club Regent crowd. A special stage setup is in the works and she has invited backup singers and a string section that will support the members of Begonia’s band, who Dirks says have honed their craft while touring throughout 2023.

Begonia will, of course, be dressed in her full concert regalia for the occasions; Dirks asks the crowd to dress up for the events too, creating a Rat Pack on Regent Avenue atmosphere.

“Whatever makes them feel their finest,” she says. “I just want people to have a good time, get a little escape for a couple of hours and come to this wacky venue in Transcona. I really want people to have a special moment with me.”

Witch Prophet, the Toronto-based R&B artist, opens the Sept. 22 concert, while Winnipeg’s the Haileys, the all-Hailey (Hailey Legary, Hailey Hunter and Haley Matiation) alt-rock band kicks off the Sept. 23 show.

The casino concerts will be in stark contrast to Begonia’s humbler beginnings in June 2016, when she opened for Swedish pop group Peter Bjorn and John at a Winnipeg International Jazz Festival concert at the Burton Cummings Theatre.

“For that first show, I was just throwing a lot of spaghetti at the wall. I barely had enough songs to fill a 45-minute set,” Dirks recalls. “I feel the trajectory of the kind of music I wanted to make wasn’t even fully formed yet.

“When I was first starting this solo project, I was kind of like, ‘I’m not ready, I’m not ready.’ I’m never going to feel perfect, I’m never going to feel fully ready, so I just have to take the leap and start somewhere — and that kind of catapulted everything for me.”

Alan.Small@winnipegfreepress.com

Twitter: @AlanDSmall