12/30/2025
Musique Royale welcomes us back to Cecilia's Retreat to hear actor and singer Chris Jackman and pianist Shari Porter (co-owners of the Old Confidence Lodge in Riverport) for an intimate cabaret reflecting on love, art, and new beginnings. Enjoy an eclectic combination of music theatre classics, cabaret standards, and popular favourites in the unmatched comfort of Cecilia’s Retreat. All proceeds go towards replacing the Lodge’s retired heat pump!
About Chris Jackman:
Originally from Corner Brook, Newfoundland, Chris has spent the last two decades as a drama professor, academic administrator, theatre director and educational programmer.
Select directing credits include “Dead and Breakfast” and “Myth of the Ostrich” (Lunenburg Theatre Collective), “Jacques Brel is Alive and Well” and “Soldier’s Tale” (Open Corps), “25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” (Lock & Keynote), “Wonderful World of Disney” (Camber Arts, formerly Gros Morne Summer Theatre), “Sound of Silence” and “Man in the Mirror” (Musical Stage Co, Toronto).
Directed adaptations include “Pictures at an Exhibition” and “Children’s Corner” (Open Corps), “Wake” (LaSalle Theatre), and “Dubliners” (Camber Arts).
Dr. Jackman (University of Toronto) is also a performance scholar specializing in creativity, play, and audience reception. He has taught at UofT and Brock, and was founding Chair of Arts & Design at Centennial College, Toronto. Chris looks forward to collaborating with more performing artists on the South Shore, and to presenting great entertainment here at the Old Confidence Lodge!
About Shari Porter:
Shari comes to the South Shore with 20+ years of experience as a theatre artist and a music educator. At Old Confidence Lodge, she is head of programming, is the resident piano and voice teacher, and has music directed “The Rocky Horror Show,” “The 25th Annual…Spelling Bee” and Lunenburg Theatre Collective’s Speakeasy Cabaret.
Select music directing credits: “Disenchanted” (Stephenville Theatre Festival), “Jacques Brel is Alive and Well”, Stravinsky’s “The Soldier’s Tale” and “Pictures at an Exhibition” (Open Corps Theatre, co-founder), “The Little Mermaid” (St. Lawrence College) and “Pippin” (Sheridan College, as assistant).
Her proudest professional achievement is her work with children. As founder and music director of Lock and Keynote Productions, Shari produced 17 seasons of summer theatre camps in small communities in Northern Ontario and Western Newfoundland, and has been running theatre programs for the South Shore for 2 years now!
About the Old Confidence Lodge:
Bringing good times to Lunenburg County since 1929 - Every resident of Riverport, Nova Scotia, has a story about the Old Confidence Lodge. Built nearly a century ago, it has been home to secret meetings, community dinners, and wild parties. In the 2000s the space was converted into a recording studio and concert space, bringing in some of Canada’s top artists including Matt Mays, Caribou Run, Rich Aucoin, Corey Isenor and Jennah Barry. In 2024, the Lodge reopened, thanks to Chris Jackman and Shari Porter, as a newly-renovated live performing arts hub. It is open for concerts, dances, theatrical performances, voice, dance and piano classes, community events, and weddings.
