With just one month until the opening events of the 2010 Winter and Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver, Canadian musicians and entertainers involved in the Cultural Olympiad have hit the road with a national touring program featuring over 40 shows promoting the culture, spirit and excitement of Canada’s Games.

Just one month away from kicking off the opening of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, Vancouver is kick starting the entertainment program this week with a Cultural Olympiad national tour.

The events tour will cover cities large and small across Canada starting January 22 and carrying on into March during the Paralympic Winter Games.

The Olympic Winter Games starts on Friday, February 12 to Sunday February 28, 2010. The Paralympic Winter Games take place Friday March 12, to Sunday March 21, 2010.

Performers and artistic companies involved in the Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad National Presentation and Touring Program include: The Alberta Ballet and its presentation of famed Canadian songbird Joni Mitchell’s The Fiddle and The Drum, Quebec-based Compagnie Marie Chouinard and Cirque Éloize, as well as musical performances by Nova Scotia’s Jenn Grant, Saskatchewan’s Jason Plumb & the Willing, Yukon’s Spring Breakup, and Alberta’s John Wort Hannam.

“We want all visitors to Canada to feel they can share in the cultural celebrations surrounding the 2010 Winter Games,” said vice president of culture and celebrations for the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC), Burke Taylor.

The tours will coincide with hundreds of free and ticketed performances and exhibitions that make up the Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad festival. The festival features almost 200 incredibly diverse projects by artists from across Canada and around the world in music, theatre, visual arts, dance, and digital programming projects.

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