Composer/producer Danny Schur and co-writer Rick Chafe were joined by CBC Radio host Terry MacLeod, Bill Ashdown (great-grandson of two real-life characters in the musical), performers Timothy Gledhill and Kristen Harris, and film director Joseph Novak for a special concert-style launch of the publication and companion CD. The standing-room-only 150+ crowd was treated to a insiders look at the history of the development of the award-winning show, as well as an intimate performance of several musical "readings" from the book. Every one of the 168 copies allotted the event was sold. And congratulations to Grand Door Prize winner Jeanie Dubberly for winning a role in the upcoming movie adaptation of the musical.

Long-time Winnipeg activist Nick Ternette summarized the Strike! book launch on his blog:

On Monday, December 10th, Danny Schur and Rick Chafe launched the book version of the musical "Strike" at McNally Robinson Booksellers, to an enthusiastic crowd of about 200 people. And, as always, they did it with a different twist. This, in fact is about the 5th or 6th incarnation of the musical, and for those of you who have followed it since it was first workshopped at the University of Winnipeg, you wouldn't even recognize it now!

Terry McLeod from CBC Radio was the host for the evening, and the great-grandson of the famous Ashdowns that were significant during the strike, gave greetings on behalf of his family to the crowd. When asked what the most important point was about "Strike!", Danny Schur said that first, of course, it is an historical piece, but it is also about overcoming prejudice (in this case, between Jews and Ukrainians), and it is a love story.

Instead of doing an actual reading, two of the performers from the current version of Strike sang two new songs that have been written for the play. So, Strike has gone from being workshopped at the University of Winnipeg, to being performed at Rainbow Stage, to being staged at Persephone Theatre in Saskatoon last summer, to having it produced for CBC Radio in the fall, and now has become a book! What's next? Strike! is to become a fabulous, full-length feature film!

My prediction is that, ultimately, Strike! will become the "Anne of Green Gables" of Winnipeg!