Greetings old friends and new,

July will be here before we know it. I have some information and news that I wish to pass along at this stage. You will receive a final mailing with full details for Toronto Pursuits in mid-June. Please read through this message carefully and respond to anything that applies to you.

TAX DEADLINE LOOMS

I want to make sure that all of you know about the new Canadian HST (Harmonized Sales Tax). It is possible to avoid this tax this year by paying your fees in full by April 30. Until that time, the program fee is subject to the current GST (Goods & Services Tax) at 5%. The new tax will jump to 13% starting May 1. Tax is already included in theatre tickets and on-campus accommodation fees.

A FEW SEMINAR SPACES REMAIN

A very few spots remain in the following seminars: The Muddle and Mystery of India; Strange Episodes and Awakenings: Melville, Kafka and Conrad; The Playful Puritans: Emily Dickinson and Wallace Stevens; the Music of Gustav Mahler; and afternoon art walks with Betty Ann Jordan, Thinking Animals: Animals and the development of human intelligence. Remember, if you bring a friend who is new to Classical Pursuits, both of you will receive a $150 discount.

THREE FABULOUS THEATRICAL OPTIONS

You, no doubt, know about two of our great theatre options for this July.

Sunday, July 11 - Excursion to the Stratford Festival to see a matinee performance of The Tempest with Christopher Plummer. The trip includes return transportation in an air-conditioned coach, a premium seat in the Festival Theatre, en route talks about the history of the Festival and about the play, a  backstage tour of costumes, wigs, shoes, millinery, bijoux, a visit to the armory (the men will love it!), a picnic lunch by the river (weather permitting), intermission refreshments in a special members' lounge, and a wrap-up conversation about the play on the return trip. A few tickets remain at $150 for the package.

Thursday, July 15 - Many of you have elected to go to one of the two plays being offered by Toronto's Soulpepper Theatre, Ivan Turgenev's A Month in the Country or David French's Jitters. If you would like to go to one of these plays but have not yet ordered a ticket, there is still time. The cost is $60.

And, a great NEW addition to our line-up, a great dinner/cabaret evening with Bremner Duthie. Bremner Duthie, one of Canada's foremost interpreters of Kurt Weill's music, has created a new show, Speak Low - the life, love and music of Kurt Weill and Lotte Lenya. Bremner will be singing songs from Weill's career and exploring the relationship and careers of Weill and Lenya in a musical soiree accompanied by Neill Kernohan. Kurt and Lotte were married, divorced and married again. In Berlin, Hollywood and Broadway, they lived through the most important events of the twentieth century and moved in the artistic circles of Marlene Dietrich, Cole Porter, Charlie Chaplin, Langston Hughes and of course, Bertold Brecht.  They left behind a legacy of music and performance.

‘Oh show us the way to the next Whiskey Bar,

Oh, don't ask why, no don't ask why.

For if we don't find the next Whiskey Bar,

I tell you we must die.'

Prix-fixe dinner and 7 pm show on Tuesday, July 13 at Annex Live Theatre is  $38. Since we need a critical mass to reserve the theatre space, please let us know right away if you would like to reserve a spot for this great evening. It will be of particular interest to those who are considering our trip to Germany in 2012.

AU REVOIR ST. MIKES; HELLO VIC

The garden oasis of St. Michael's College has been our home from the start, a dozen years ago. This year St. Mike's will be in the middle of major construction and renovation projects. We thought we would be able to work around the work on the campus. As it turns out there will be no suitable room for us to have lunch that also has air-conditioning. Since it already feels like July in early April, I have decided not to take the risk that the weather will be comfortably cool.

The very good news is that the equally lovely campus of Victoria College, immediately adjacent to St. Mike's can accommodate us, and all the spaces we will use are air-conditioned. We will send details about exact location in June. For those of you who have requested accommodation in the student residence, rest assured that we have rooms for all of you in Rowell Jackman Hall at "Vic." For those who have booked rooms at the Sutton Place Hotel, you can add five minutes to your walk to the campus.  The elegant Park Hyatt Hotel, directly across the street from the Royal Ontario Museum, is a shorter walk to Victoria College. We have negotiated a rate of $149/night for a block of rooms. This rate is good until May 31, 2010. To call for reservations, use this central booking number, 1-800-233-1234. The code for our group is GGCLA.

That's it for now. Please be in touch if you have questions about anything,

Ann
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1.877.633.2555 / 416.892.3580