Theatre Woodstock welcomes Western Ontario Theatre Festival
Theatre Woodstock is pleased to host the Western Ontario Theatre Festival March 15 to 19, 2004 at The Market Centre.
Each evening a different area group will present their own production selected by the preliminary adjudicator, David Phillips to compete in this week long festival. The announcement of the selected plays was made Feb. 22 at The Market Centre.
The competing plays are:
Monday, March 15
Weekend Comedy by Jeanne and Sam Bobrick
presented by Theatre Sarnia
Weekend Comedy" is a Fun-Filled Wilderness Adventure by Jeanne and Sam Bobrick. They are the celebrated co-authors of such classics as "Norman Is That You?", "Murder at the Howard Johnsons" and the hit comedy "Remember Me?" Sam and his wife Jeanne have created another sure-fire winner in which two couples rent the same Catskills cabin for the same weekend by mistake. One couple is staid and middle-aged; the other free-wheeling and young. They decide to share and before the weekend is over the youngsters have learned how to add stability to their relationship and the oldsters have learned to loosen up.
Tuesday, March 16
Fiddler on the Roof by Sheldon Harnick, Jerry Block and Joseph Stein
presented by Thistle Theatre, Embro
"Fiddler on the Roof", based on the short story "Tevye and His Daughters" by Sholom Aleichem, was one of the first musicals to defy Broadway's established rules of commercial success. It dealt with serious issues such as persecution, poverty, and the struggle to hold on to one's beliefs in the midst of a hostile and chaotic environment. Criticized at first for its "limited appeal", "Fiddler on the Roof" struck such a universal chord in audiences that it became, for a time, the longest running production in the history of Broadway.
Set in 1905, "Fiddler on the Roof" takes place in Anatevka, a small Jewish village in Russia. The story revolves around the dairyman Tevye and his attempts to preserve his family's traditions in the face of a changing world. When his eldest daughter, Tzeitel, begs him to let her marry a poor tailor rather than the middle-aged butcher that he has already chosen for her, Tevye must choose between his own daughter's happiness and those beloved traditions that keep the outside world at bay. Meanwhile, there are other forces at work in Anatevka, dangerous forces which threaten to destroy the very life he is trying to preserve.
Wednesday, March 17
Dancing at Lughnasa by Brian Friel
presented by Elora Community Theatre
"Dancing at Lughnasa", by Brian Friel, one of Ireland's most important playwrights, was first performed at the Abby Theater, in Dublin, in 1990, and garnered the 1991 Olivier Award. In 1998, "Dancing at Lughnasa" was adapted to the screen in a film directed by Pat O'Connor and starring Meryl Streep.
"Dancing at Lughnasa" opens with a monologue by Michael, who introduces his nostalgic memories of the summer of 1936, when he was seven years old, and the five Mundy sisters, who raised him in rural Ireland, acquired their first wireless radio. Their older brother, Michael's Uncle Jack, had just returned from twenty-five years spent as a missionary in a leper colony in Uganda. Michael was born out of wedlock to Chris, the youngest of the Mundy sisters, and Gerry Evans, who deserted her and the child and only returns every couple of years to see her. The radio, which breaks down more than it works, unleashes unarticulated emotions in the five women, who spontaneously break into song and dance, with or without its aid. By the end of the year, as the older Michael explains in monologue, two of the sisters, Rose and Agnes, had run off, never to return, and Uncle Jack had died of a heart attack.
Thursday, March 18
The Drawer Boy by Michael Healy
presented by Owen Sound Little Theatre
The poignant story of two childhood friends, whose lives are irrevocably altered by a single event is itself turned on its ear when a young stranger arrives on their doorstep. A naive young actor move onto Angus and Morgan's farm, lending a hilariously inept hand at chores while trying to collect anecdotes for a play about rural life. Instead, he stumbles upon the keys to painful memories locked in the mind of one man, which ultimately, opens the hearts of them all.
A hit at Theatre Passe Muraille in its acclaimed premiere, the play has since had two successful seasons a Blythe Festival and returned once again to the Toronto theatre scene. A true classic, "this play touches the heart and the mind in equal measure".
Friday, March 19
Love Letters by A.R. Gurney
presented by Theatre Woodstock
This play allows us to follow two good friends through their lifelong exchange of letters. They grew up together as childhood friends, went their separate ways, but continued to share confidences. An evocative, touching and frequently funny performance.
Following each evening performance there will be afterglow parties held to congratulate the cast and crew on their fine work and to socialize with the other theatregoers.
Each morning Festival Adjudicator Allan Stratton will provide a detailed adjudication open to all at The Quality Hotel and Suites in the Birtch Room at 9:00 a.m.
Two workshops by Allan Stratton will be held during the week on Tuesday and Thursday at 11:00 a.m.
One Saturday evening, March 20 an Awards Ball will be held at the Quality Hotel and Suites, where following dinner the preliminary and festival awards will be presented followed by a dance.
The Western Ontario Drama League was established in 1932 to unite community theatre groups in Western Ontario. It covers an area from Burlington west to Sarnia, east along the Niagara Peninsula, south to Leamington and north to Tobermory.
Current member groups are:
Binbrook Little Theatre, Dundas Little Theatre, Elgin Theatre Guild, Elmira Theatre Company, Elora Community Theatre, Galt Little Theatre, Garrison Little Theatre, Grey-Wellington Little Theatre, Guelph Little Theatre, Ingersoll Theatre of the Performing Arts, Kincardine Theatre Guild, Kitchener-Waterloo Little Theatre, London Community Theatre, Owen Sound Little Theatre, Petrolia Community Theatre, Players Guild of Hamilton, Port Elgin Saugeen Community Players, Royal City Musical Productions, St. Mary’s Community Players, Sun Parlour Players, The Aldershot Players, Theatre Burlington, Theatre Dundalk, Theatre Kent, Theatre Sarnia, Theatre Tillsonburg, Thistle Theatre, Theatre Woodstock, Wallaceburg Little Theatre, Windsor Light Opera Association.
Festival headquarters will be located at Quality Hotel and Suites 580 Bruin Blvd. Woodstock
Series Tickets (set of all 5 shows) $70.00 before March 1. Individual Shows are $15.00. Afterglow tickets are $5.00 for each evening and the Awards Ball tickets are $40.00 for Sat. March 20 at The Quality Hotel and Suites. Tickets for all events may be ordered through The Market Centre Box Office 519 537 2582. Further information regarding tickets for the Festival may be obtained by calling Brian George at 539 4987.
For further information contact Brian George 539 4987 bdgeorge@execulink.com
Release dated: 23 February 2004
