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33 Friday , O ctober 22, 2010 O A KVILLE BEA V ER w w w .o akvillebeaver .co m Artscene By Dominik Kurek OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Off-stage he looks nothing like himadmits Oakvilles David La Thangue,but when he dons a costume and wig and starts to sing he becomes one of the top international Tom Jones impersonators. And the entertainer and musician will do just that on Monday, Oct. 25 at Mississaugas Stage West theatre. It took some time to get it, but when I come off stage I look nothing like him and when I go on stage I look like him and sound like him. Its a neat thing, La Thangue said, who goes by the stage name Dave La Fame. La Fame/Thangue will headline a con- cert as Tom Jones, following performers who will impersonate the likes of Ray Charles, Frankie Valli and Engelbert Humperdinck. He was born in Canada, but at nine- months-old his parents took him back to their native England where he grew up. In his teenage years he performed on stage as an actor and musician until a recession hit and finding work became scarce. At age 19 in 1984 he put his Canadian passport to use and came to Canada and has lived in Oakville for the past 24 years. He worked at a variety of jobs until he broke into the entertainment business on this side of the Atlantic, then a recession hit Canada in 1991. During a time when acting work was tough to get, he started his own business, Bulldog Productions, which pro- vides disc jockey and audio video services. Soon the company grew and with a steady income coming he was able to return to the entertainment world. La Fame produced a one-man show fea- turing himself doing impersonations of some of musics biggest stars from Frank Sinatra and Elvis to the Bee Gees and more. He had more than 200 impersonations at his disposal. However, after one performance an agent approached him and said he should turn the Tom Jones impersonation into a full act and so he did. She mentioned that the Tom Jones voice was really good and that I should explore it. Of course the issue was that I didnt look like him, he said. That problem was rectified when he and his then-new agent were able to get a wig from the Canadian Opera Company and had a costume custom-built to make him look like the Welsh singer. Doing Tom Jones impersonations has sent the performer to venues around Canada, the US and beyond. Hes also con- sidered one of the top Tom Jones imperson- Off stage hes Dave, but on stage hes Tom Jones Bringing the art of politics to the stage for local election BURNING UP WITH TOM JONES: Here, internationally-acclaimed Tom Jones impersonator David La Fame Thangue, does what Jones did best as he entertains Zonta Club of Oakville member Diane Daly at the local service clubs Rhapsody in Yellow fundraiser in 2008. Today, you can catch La Fame, an Oakville resident, on stage at Stage West. By Dominik Kurek OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Long-time Oakville musician Phil Kane has always had an interest in politics so hes getting involved. Hes not endorsing anyone, but is giving all candidates in the upcoming Oct. 25 municipal election a chance to shine on a musical stage. Kane, who has a degree in political sci- ence and communications from the University of Windsor, has sent a request to all candidates to come out and sing a song with his band on Sunday, Oct. 24, the night before the election. The performance will start at 8 p.m. at Moonshine Caf I have always been interested in politics, but its such a personal issue for people that if youre an entertainer its really hard to cross that line between entertaining and try- ing to influence people politically, he said. Kanes reasoning behind the event is twofold: one is to raise awareness of the elec- tion and to give the politicians a chance to express themselves outside the usual issues- based debates. I wanted to think about something that would generate more interest in the elec- tion, get people talking about it, thinking about it so that the more you think about it, the more likely youll go out and vote, he said. However, he added it was important for him to create a political event that was polit- ically neutral, something that could create awareness of the election, without endors- ing anyone. But thats only a part of the reasoning. Theres another thing about music. If you do it well you have to be honest about it. You cant be lying if youre singing a song See Appealing page 34 See Kane page 34 OAKVILLE BEAVER FILE PHOTO