Sword Fight: Prince Arthur, Guinevere and the Knights of the Round Table are galloping across the prairies in a three-city tour of Camelot that's currently underway at the Winnipeg Theatre Centre. The Lerner and Loewe big-budget extravaganza is a mainstay of musical theatre. Robert Goulet was discovered thanks to his time spent in Broadway's Camelot. Richard Burton took a memorable turn; as did Julie Andrews and Vanessa Redgrave. Now the 1,000-year-old tale of love, power, bewitchment and chivalry is being remounted in the Canadian prairies.

There's something about Camelot that continues to draw us back to its mythical well. "Sir Thomas Mallory wrote the first account, Le Morte D'Arthur, in the second half of the 15th century. Almost 400 years later, Lord Alfred Tennyson was so inspired by Mallory's work that he wrote The Idylls of the King, and several other poems about Arthur, Lancelot, Guenevere, and the Knights. And then, in 1939, the tomb of a 7th-century king was found at Sutton Hoo, near Woodbridge in Suffolk, England. A ship had been dragged to the top of a bluff and laid in a trench; inside was an astonishing collection of treasures and a very large, empty, coffin. The last sixty years have brought us the work of Mary Stewart, T.H. White (The Once and Future King), Marion Zimmer Bradley (The Mists of Avalon), and movies such as Excalibur, First Knight, and A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court." Nevermind the mythical Kennedy Camelot connection.

This ambitious, Canadian three-city mounting of Camelot promises to offer up some great entertainment. (The production moves on later to Calgary and Edmonton.) It's also interesting to note the co-production aspect of the musical. Three companies threw their resources into one creative pot, allowing for a more ambitious production. This seems to be the zeitgeist in Canada these days, and if buddying up is going to provide a greater calibre of entertainment, I say hear hear!

Cash for Culture: Attention coin collectors, the Royal Canadian Mint and the National Ballet of Canada have launched a new silver dollar coin. This is the 39th sterling silver dollar is part of a series which celebrates Canadian Historical Events, People and Places. The series was launched back in 1935 and the new coin celebrates the 50th anniversary of the first performance by the National Ballet. On had for the first toin-coss last week were James Kudelka, Artistic Director, The National Ballet of Canada and Karen Kain, the Ballet's Artistic Associate and former prima ballerina. For more info, check the website:

TV Buzz: The Genies have announced that Brian Linehan (the man who practically invented the notion of the cerebral celebrity interview), will be hosting the 21st Genie Awards on CBC TV, January 29th. Linehan's history with Canadian films awards began way back in 1980 when he hosted a special "Canadian women in film" segment. He was called back to host the entire gala in 1981 and 1982. Welcome home Brian.