En garde! The Three Musketeers are back

“All for one and one for all.”

Yes, once again Alexandre Dumas’ legendary 17th century French Musketeers unite to defeat the scheming Bishop Richelieu’s evil plot.

There is the expected adventure and swashbuckling sword play to protect King and country. But in Dufflebag Theatre’s version of The Three Musketeers, debuting at Morinville Community Cultural Centre on Sunday, April 10, they do things differently.

With only four professional actors, they invite children from the crowd to play key character roles. The name of the game for this jaunty, light-hearted escapade is improvisation and the result is a fun, laugh-out-loud Three’s Company vibe.

“The audience is very receptive and they love being part of it, and no two shows are the same,” said artistic director Marcus Lundgren.

A narrator is responsible for shaping the story, inviting extroverted children to take part and keeping the story on track.

The one-hour show uses the basic archetypes of good-guy versus bad-guy featuring heroes and villains. Period props are supplied and it’s a go.

The youth, usually from kindergarten to Grade 8 step into the major roles, whereas professional actors play incidental characters or inanimate objects such as benches, desks and trees.

Lundgren compares it to the British panto modernized with topical references.

“There’s exaggerated acting and the audience are encouraged to cheer and boo. The entire audience plays a part. They represent the people of France. If something happens, they make their voice known.”

And just to keep everyone on their toes, Dufflebag throws in modern anachronisms such as modern music or iPhones.

“We like to catch people off-guard and get kids thinking. Quite a lot is off-the-cuff and a lot comes from the kids. They get right into character.”

In this low-budget production, sets are virtually non-existent. Shows are deliberately designed this way to nurture imagination and self-confidence.

“When we let kids mime and create, they do well. It’s important for young actors to succeed. And whatever they do is perfect. And we have this ability to make sure everybody shines on stage.

“We think there’s talent inside everyone. For some kids getting up on stage is terrifying. For others, they command the character and you want to give them an Oscar. Somewhere everyone fits and we find the confidence comes out.”

Dufflebag started in 1992 at the invitation of London International Children’s Festival in London, Ont. The premiere production was originally conceived as a five-day event for the festival’s run.

Performers strolled through the festival site with props and costumes in a duffle bag. They would stand under a tree, gather a crowd and improvise fairytales with whatever was yanked from the bag.

What started as a short five-day gig morphed into a successful 24-year troupe that performs approximately 360 shows annually.

At the Morinville performance, Lundgren will step into the Narrator’s role. Accompanying him is Holly Greene, Sheelagh Dailey and Michael Bennett Leroux.

“This will be one of those experiences where it will be talked about after the show, after dinner and a week later. It’s fun for everyone in the family – kids, parents and grandparents.”