Three Edmonton theatre companies are pooling their talent and resources to create stronger shows.
PREVIEW
Our Man in Havana
The Varscona Theatre Ensemble
Nov. 23 to Dec. 2
Varscona Theatre
10329 - 83 Ave.
Tickets: Call 780-433-3399 or email [email protected]
When most companies face economic hardship, they downsize. Edmonton's independent theatre community is adopting the opposite strategy.
Three indie companies are embracing a forward thinking philosophy to maximize their cultural assets. They have merged diverse talents and resources to maximize efficiencies, attract a wider audience and hopefully wield more clout.
The Varscona Theatre Ensemble, a coalition between artistic directors Kate Ryan of The Plain Janes, Julien Arnold's Atlas Theatre and Belinda Cornish's Bright Young Things, are attempting to push the reset button and change the way audiences view theatre.
"Basically there are so many dedicated independent theatre artists in the Edmonton theatre community that do really well at the Fringe. But when we want to extend it in terms of the season, we found it's hard to get publicity, technical support and audiences," said Kate Ryan, one of St. Albert Children's Theatre's founding actors.
"Fringe shows are in close proximity to each other and they help each other out. We wanted to carry that energy into the entire year and the process has been really exciting. We don't feel so alone anymore."
Each company will maintain their independence working on other projects. However, with the assistance of Teatro La Quindicina's artistic director Jeff Haslam acting as producer, the ensemble has developed a three-part subscription series.
The first offering is British playwright Graham Greene's classic
Our Man in Havana, a ’50s Cuban espionage thriller and political satire that still resonates today. The play makes fun of intelligence services and their willingness to believe reports from informants.
Greene, who joined MI6 in 1941 and was appointed to the Iberian Peninsula, first learned about double agents in Portugal sending Germans fictitious reports.
Adopting these real-life situations,
Our Man tells of MI6's newest recruit, Wormold, a former vacuum-cleaner salesman turned reluctant secret agent out of economic necessity to fund his materialistic daughter's tastes.
To keep his job, Wormold files fake reports and dreams up military plans from vacuum-cleaner designs. Surprisingly, his reports take on a life of their own.
"It's set in the Cold War and it's especially relevant with what's happening today. There are so many political comments Graham Greene made in the ’50s that we hear ourselves saying again," said Ryan.
As the spy spoof's director, Ryan works with four of Edmonton's brightest stars: Belinda Cornish, Mathew Hulshof, Ian Leung and Mark Meer. In a demanding production, the foursome will play 32 characters.
Ryan noted that Greene wrote the spoof in 1954, the height of Havana's high life when rich jet-setters seeking a playground propped up the island country's vices – gambling, prostitution and Mafia.
"Havana was amazing. At that time it was run by Batista. It was very corrupt, but luxurious with casinos, dance clubs, burlesque shows. It was very rich in extravagance."
Ryan has amassed an incredibly talented cast and is excited with the character transformations.
"It's great comedy. The actors take on the roles with heart and you are transported to this wickedly, weird world. It's a fun story. All of Graham Greene's books become films and to figure out how this guy thinks is fun."
Our Man in Havana runs at the Varscona Theatre from Nov. 23 to Dec. 2.
