CARTHAGE — Internationally renowned Canadian fiddler, singer-songwriter and step dancer April Verch will perform Monday, May 16, at Skye Theatre Performing Arts Center.

Skye’s 2008 Entertainer of the Year, Verch blends old-time, folk, jazz and bluegrass music  into a repertoire infused with soulful energy.

Other members of the April Verch Band are world-class musicians Clay Ross on guitar and Cody Walters on upright-electric bass and banjo. The band has toured across Canada, the United States, United Kingdom, Europe and Australia.

Verch has released seven albums to date and is putting the finishing touches on an eighth, “That’s How We Run,” recorded in Asheville, N.C., and due for release this fall.

She was born and raised in Canada’s Ottawa Valley, where music is a foot-stomping fusion of Irish, Scottish, French, German and Polish influences, sprinkled with American country music.  

Verch is the first woman to win both of Canada’s most prestigious fiddle championships, the Grand Masters and Canadian Open. She was asked to represent her country’s music at the opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics hosted by Canada.

Curtain is at 7 p.m. There will be a preshow jam session one hour prior to the show, presented by New England Celtic Arts. For tickets, $15, call 562-4445. Skye Theater is at 2 Highland Drive.

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