John Wort Hannam and his amazing trio with Scott Duncan and Jason Valleau are playing a fundraising concert at the Trinity United Church in Fort Macleod! Join us on Friday, Sept. 26 to help raise money for the seat, floor and washroom renovation currently underway at the Empress! Tickets are $42.50 and on sale now! BUY TICKETS

PART OF THE 2025-26 CENTRE STAGE SERIES - Singer-songwriter pianist Jeffery Straker serves up a rootsy-storytelling brand of song that has been said to transport listeners - out onto a northern Canadian Lake or to the main street of a prairie town.  With critical comparisons to the likes of Kris Kristofferson, Jackson Browne and Murray McLauchlan he was awarded the 2025 Canadian Folk Music Award for ‘Contemporary Canadian Folk Singer of the Year’.  Wherever he performs his audience connections are stand-out and CBC Radio has said: “He has a way of drawing us into his world and making us feel like we’re an old friend he’s ready to catch up with”.

Grab your lederhosen and get ready to raise a stein - Fort Macleod’s most festive fundraiser returns on Saturday, October 18! This Oktoberfest bash is brought to you by a powerhouse partnership between the Fort Macleod Public Library and the Empress Theatre — one incredible team, two amazing causes, and a whole lot of fun! Expect a night packed with: .Delicious Dinner .Live Entertainment .Games & Shenanigans .Silent Auction .Live Auction .Drinks Galore .And a whole lot of FUN!

PART OF THE 2025-26 CENTRE STAGE SERIES - Madison Violet is a Canadian Juno-nominated female musical duo, consisting of Lisa MacIsaac and Brenley MacEachern. 2025 marks the 25th anniversary of Madison Violet. A rare and impressive feat that they are both proud of and grateful for. The pair, who both have roots in rural Cape Breton, came together musically in the late 1990s. Influenced by their maritime heritage, Brenley and Lisa began creating music together that had roots firmly planted in their past, but with contemporary and modern elements generously overlaid. Categorizing Madison Violet’s music is an impossible task, in that one can hear elements of folk, singer-songwriter, pop, indie, bluegrass, and country flawlessly interwoven throughout.

PART OF THE 2025-26 CENTRE STAGE SERIES - Women-led Flamenco Mediterranean Fusion. Tamar Ilana & Ventanas is a 6-piece global music and flamenco band based in Toronto, Canada. Founded in 2011 by "powerhouse vocalist" (Downbeat Magazine) and Jewish-Indigenous artist Tamar Ilana, they've received 4 CFMA nominations, and toured across Canada, the US, Colombia, Portugal, Ireland and Spain. They released their 4th album, AZADI, in 2024: original compositions that reflect on life’s freedoms with strong influences from their unique combination of cultural and musical backgrounds including Flamenco, Sephardic, Balkan, Greek, Turkish, Jazz, Pop, Classical and Mediterranean folk.

PART OF THE 2025-26 CENTRE STAGE SERIES - Lennie Gallant is an acclaimed East Coast songwriter with sixteen albums of original material to his name and a long list of awards recognizing his work. His iconic song Peter’s Dream was inducted into the Canadian Songwriters Hall of Fame, and his songwriting has reached audiences around the world—quite literally. One of his albums even accompanied astronauts aboard the International Space Station, orbiting Earth 248 times. Over the years, he has shared the stage with symphony orchestras and performed alongside numerous well-known artists, including the late Jimmy Buffett.

Valdy, is a Canadian folk and country music legend who has toured for forty-six years. HIs solo career began in the early 1970s. He is most known for "Rock and Roll Song", his first mainstream single but Valdy has a treasure trove of songs and stories. He is the winner of two JUNO awards including Folksinger of the Year and Folk Entertainer of the Year. His fourteen albums, including four which are certified gold, have achieved sales of nearly half a million copies.

PART OF THE 2025-26 CENTRE STAGE SERIES - Eighteen years ago a number of Ian Tyson's one time sidemen, collaborators and musical admirers came together under the banner of The Gift - Words and Music of Ian Tyson. The Gift rolls through 50 years of Tyson's catalogue, finding room for songs going back to the days of Ian and Sylvia and The Great Speckled Bird, through Ian's honky-tonk years, while making room for a large slice of the cowboy culture music that is heard on albums from Old Corrals and Sagebrush, Cowboyography, 18 Inches of Rain, I Outgrew The Saddle and Songs From The Gravel Road.

PART OF THE 2025-26 CENTRE STAGE SERIES - For nearly two decades, Delhi 2 Dublin has been at the forefront of South Asian fusion music, pioneering a global bass sound they call “Subcontinental Pop”—a high-energy blend of Bhangra, electronic, hip-hop, reggae, and Celtic influences that defies genre and unites dance floors worldwide. As they approach their monumental 20th anniversary in 2026, the band is re-energized, re-inspired, and ready to launch a bold new chapter, creating fresh music for the first time in six years. Founding members Sanjay Seran and Ravi Binning continue to lead the charge, pushing Delhi 2 Dublin’s sound and vision to new heights.