Winnipeg dinner theatre revival

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This article was published 04/09/2024 (392 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The show must go on — and it will, in the former home of Celebrations Dinner Theatre.

Canad Inns is starting its own venture. Enter: Destination Dinner Stage.

“I think dinner theatre had a very long-standing success story in Manitoba,” said Dan Lussier, Canad Inns chief executive. “We want to continue on that success story.”

The curtains are set to open Oct. 10, with a spoof on The Golden Girls. Tickets go on sale Thursday.

Canad Inns has been working on Destination Dinner Stage for nearly a year, since Celebrations exited its digs inside the hotel chain’s Fort Garry location.

The building at 1824 Pembina Hwy. has hosted dinner shows since the early 2000s, Lussier estimated. Celebrations was the headlining business. In September 2023, its unionized staff went on strike. Within a week, company leadership announced the dinner theatre would close.

Between 450 and 500 guests can fit in the dedicated event space. However, aside from the “odd function,” the area has sat empty, Lussier said.

Destination Dinner Stage will start by running shows Thursdays through Sundays. Like Celebrations, the performances will be musical twists on popular productions. Menus will be themed.

Lussier declined to say whether Canad Inns will hire former Celebrations actors. The Manitoba-based chain has slated a job fair for Sept. 9. New employees will be selected based on their suitability and qualifications, he relayed.

Destination Dinner Stage’s first show — Golden Gals Vacation — will run from Oct. 10 to Dec. 31. A spoof on Yellowstone follows from Jan. 16 to March 16. In the spring — March 27 to May 25 — Canad Inns has scheduled Grease Lightning.

Kid-friendly matinee shows are to come, Lussier hinted.

An adult ticket costs $62, plus Ticketmaster’s fees.

Unused Celebrations Dinner Theatre gift cards cannot be used for Destination Dinner Stage tickets.

Several Celebrations customers have told the Free Press they weren’t reimbursed for purchased gift cards, including those used to reserve seats for now-cancelled shows. Act Three Entertainment, Celebrations’ parent company, has not responded to interview requests.

“We have no control on what they do and how they respond,” Lussier said, adding: “We would’ve hoped that they would’ve taken care of all their obligations.”

Destination Dinner Stage will be a “great attraction” for Winnipeg, he added.

Michael Juce, president of the Manitoba Hotel Association, echoed that stance: “(It’s) great to see a local Manitoba business supporting Manitoba theatre and really activating that space.”

The dinner theatre — the only one of its kind in Winnipeg — adds to the city’s entertainment options for locals and tourists, Juce noted.

He said he considers the investment in Destination a positive, especially after years of industry-wide COVID-19 pandemic-related stagnation.

Hotels have generally experienced “slower and softer” uptake this year, mirroring parts of the economy, Juce said. Bookings boomed in 2023; “revenge travel” had become a buzz phrase.

William Ellis is among former Celebrations patrons enthusiastic about the new dinner theatre.

“Very glad to hear that something will be here to fill the void,” Ellis wrote in an email.

Randy Apostle, who was previously Celebrations Dinner Theatre’s artistic director, has been named Destination’s creative director. Apostle has created more than 100 musical theatre productions, according to the Canad Inns.

The company has 11 hotels, including one in Grand Forks, N.D. It owns commercial properties spanning 336,000 square feet, its website boasts.

Canad Inns will provide updates about Destination Dinner Theatre at destinationdinnerstage.com. Ticketmaster will sell the dinner theatre’s tickets.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com