In Tomatoes Tried to Kill Me, Keith Alessi touts the life-saving power of banjos, June 11 to 14
After a cancer diagnosis, the former CEO left the corporate world and finally fulfilled his lifelong dream of playing his favourite musical instrument
Keith Alessi in Tomatoes Tried to Kill Me But Banjos Saved My Life.
Western Gold Theatre presents Tomatoes Tried to Kill Me But Banjos Saved My Life at PAL Studio Theatre, June 11 to 14 at 7:30 p.m., with matinee performances on June 13 and 14 at 2 p.m.
MAYBE YOU’VE ALWAYS wanted to learn how to knit—or paint landscapes, or swim, or make a perfect omelette—but you’ve never managed to carve out enough time to start. Whether it’s bills to pay or kids’ hockey practices to race to, there’s always something more pressing that seems to get in the way.
Keith Alessi always wanted to play the banjo, and he even had a whole collection of the instruments, but his busy corporate role left him no time to actually make music with them. That all changed when Alessi was diagnosed with esophageal cancer and told by doctors that he didn’t have long to live. Suddenly, devoting his remaining time to playing the banjo seemed a whole lot more compelling than being a CEO.
Alessi beat the cancer, and he turned the experience into a one-man show with the unlikely title of Tomatoes Tried to Kill Me But Banjos Saved My Life. In the show, Alessi shares his story, and as you might have guessed by now, he also plays plenty of banjo.
This spring, Alessi has taken the show on the road, and with dates in places like Wells, Horsefly, and Saturna Island, it’s clear that he’s determined to take it as many places as possible. He’s coming to Vancouver too, of course, for a series of shows at PAL Studio Theatre.
Alessi donates 100 percent of his portion of ticket sales to charities, with contributions to date totalling over $1.3 million. Proceeds from his Vancouver run will support Western Gold Theatre’s Creative Accessibility Program and the West End Seniors' Network’s delivery of essential services. 
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