Northern Footlights

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Inside the spacious, but still intimate Festival Theatre, it's another opening night.

But first, the audience stands to sing a hearty rendition of "Oh, Canada."

That's a tradition at the Stratford Festival, in Stratford, Ontario, located about midway between Detroit and Buffalo, N.Y.

Two of the best repertory theater companies in North America make their homes in two scenic little Ontario towns. The Stratford Festival, founded in 1953 by the legendary British director Sir Tyrone Guthrie at the urging of Stratford citizen Tom Patterson, will celebrate its 50th anniversary next year amid flower gardens and footpaths along the Avon River. The Shaw …