How does an upstart community theatre company with no resources, no venue, no budget and no permanent stable of talent get off the ground? If you’re the newly formed St. Albert Theatre Arts Guild of Entertainers (STAGE), you risk it all.
And it’s that kind of bold chutzpah that is creating a buzz.
Betting on the heart and determination of local thespians and the goodwill of the St. Albert community, STAGE organizers have planned three shows this season, something virtually unheard of for a five-month-old bare-bones troupe.
The official kickoff production heralding Christmas is Alan Ayckbourn’s witty and acerbic Season’s Greetings running Nov. 25 to 27 and Dec. 2 to 4 at St. Albert Catholic High School. Following are Norm Foster’s Self-Help in January 2011 and Michael Frayn’s Alarms and Excursions in April.
In Season’s Greetings Ayckbourn puts the tall children, those 25 to 75 years old, under his microscope as they fight over toys, holler for attention, sneak around, bully, squabble, cry, kiss and make up.
“He’s saying ‘It’s your family and you may have your ups and downs, but at the end of the day this is who you are,’” says artistic director Beth Rogers. She also directed The Four Mommies for the 2010 StArts Fest.
This black farce is about a fractious middle-class family set over three days from Christmas Eve to Boxing Day. Belinda (Samantha Grant), a dreamer who yearns to see the world, is in a stale marriage with Neville (Steve Palmer), a rather dull man who spends more time working on mechanical objects than seeing his wife.
Then there’s Bernard (Kelly Aisenstat), a failed doctor, who partners Phyllis (Rita Jensen) his lush of a wife. Eddie (Rick Wirth), Neville’s lazy friend, is invited along with his wife Pattie (Lauren Baril). She is pregnant with their fourth child and constantly complains.
Belinda’s single sister Rachel (Kayla Manuel) drops by with Clive (Josh Shields), a writer of questionable talent. And finally there’s Uncle Harvey (Bob Lociero), a crotchety security guard who gorges on violent TV shows.
“Alan Ayckbourn does a very good job of writing his character’s personalities differently. The way they speak is consistent with who they are,” adds Rogers.
Collecting props for the show has had its moments especially for Uncle Harvey. “He’s a walking arsenal of guns. He keeps everything concealed ‘just in case,’” she laughs. “And Bernard has this puppet show of The Three Little Pigs and it turns out that things fall apart.”
Former Bellerose graduate Hans Potter, now a second year University of Alberta drama major is handling technical direction. Although St. Albert High has loaned the production several set pieces such as a couch and a tree, Potter and stage manager Amy Whitham have built stairs and boxes to give Neville and Belinda’s home a middle class look.
Potter adds, “Unlike the St. Albert Children’s Theatre where their focus is children, this is really for adults. People who come will say, ‘Oh yeah, I have an uncle like that, or I know someone like that.’ The show is a lot of fun and I think a lot of people will get something out of it and see some of themselves or family in it.”
Show times are 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $12. Reserve seats at STAGE box office 587-588-5338 or email [email protected]
Preview
Season's Greetings<br />St. Albert Theatre Arts Guild of Entertainers<br />Nov. 25 to 27 and Dec. 2 to 4 at 7:30 p.m.<br />St. Albert Catholic High School<br />Tickets: $12. Reserve at STAGE box office 587-588-5338 or email [email protected]
