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Letters April 29: Praise for Belfry's Lightfoot show; political satire is best medicine

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30.04.2025

We have been fans of Gordon Lightfoot for many years and we absolutely loved Michael Shamata and Tobin Stokes’ presentation of If You Could Read My Mind: The Songs of Gordon Lightfoot, at the ­Belfry Theatre.­

It is amazing how many songs Lightfoot wrote and the performance by the five singers was stellar.

The harmony and how they moved into each song so magically was wonderful, It was a moving and outstanding performance.

I encourage anyone who likes popular music a little bit to see this show, as it will give you a real high and the unexpected comedy will delight you.

I hope that this show and cast will go on the road across Canada.

Terry Farmer

Victoria

Political satire is heady, entertaining, and powerful. It stimulates endorphins and serotonin, down-regulates stress hormones, and powerfully bonds us to those who share similar political views via the up-regulation of the bonding neurotransmitter oxytocin.

The effects are amplified significantly by our positive feelings toward the comedian who is delivering the one-liners, with the heady production of the comedians’ show further stimulating our brains.

The immensely popular Saturday Night Live continues to draw in impressive viewing figures and is now widely regarded as a de facto voice of ideologically liberal political resistance. It is a show that effectively encapsulates the power of humour in politics.

Whilst SNL and other comedy vehicles are largely viewed as sympathetic to left-wing ideologues, This Hour Has 22 Minutes offers more than its share of satirical ribbing during decades of political tenures, in more of a balanced way, where the value of political satire lies in its powerful voice of resistance and in holding the politicians of the day to account.

It is........

© Times Colonist