april 4 | twu choir

This April, ring in the spring with a series of concerts from the talented musicians of Trinity Western University’s School of the Arts, Media + Culture (SAMC).

On April 4, join the choirs of TWU for Journey to the Cross. SAMC’s Concert Choir, Chamber Choir, Chamber Singers, and Masterworks Chorus present a reflective and poignant collection of works to suit the mood of Holy Saturday.

One hundred singers perform pieces from the Renaissance to present day, including 10 Canadian works, two of which are arrangements by Director of Choral Activities Joel Tranquilla, DMA, and one original composition, The Peace of God, by SAMC Dean David Squires, Ph.D. Other highlights include a world premiere of Nyne otpushchayeshi (a setting of the Song of Simeon, Luke 2, in Church Slavonic) by Ontario composer Jeff Enns, and Frank Martin’s Mass for Double Choir.

On April 10 and 11, get a taste of Italy at Italy Amore, featuring the SAMC Orchestra and a guest performance by the award-winning SAMC Piano Trio.

Coached by Heilwig von Koenigsloew, MMus, the trio of violin, cello, and piano will perform Johannes Brahms’ romantic Piano Trio No. 3 in C minor followed by Paul Schoenfield’s CaféMusic, a complex and lively blend of classical and jazz.

EVENTS AT A GLANCE:
Journey to the Cross
Saturday, April 4, 7:30 p.m.
Willoughby Christian Reformed Church (20525 72 Avenue, Langley)

Tickets are $15 each or a special family group rate of $30. Students are pay-what-you-can. Get tickets here or at the door.

Italy Amore
Friday, April 10, 7:30 p.m.
Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church (20097 72nd Avenue, Langley)

Saturday, April 11, 7:30 p.m.
Peace Lutheran Church (2029 Ware Street, Abbotsford).

Admission by donation ($10 suggested).

cultivation | photos

Some shots from yesterday's dress rehearsal of CULTIVATION.  Four more chances to see this script-in-hand presentation of a play from our playwright development program Working With!

cultivation | first read

This morning we gathered for the first read of CULTIVATION, a script-in-hand presentation of a new play by Krista Marushy. This is the first in-season presentation to come out of our Working With play development program, so we couldn't be more excited to see this on its feet! This week only, performances Wednesday-Saturday.

the whipping man | interview with the director

Before THE WHIPPING MAN opened, we chatted with director Anthony F. Ingram a bit about the play.  Here are his thoughts.

What excites you about this story?

As Canadians we generally consider ourselves free of racism. We’re quite smug about the racial tensions that bubble up within the USA, thinking that we’ve gotten over that sort of sordid squabbling up here. But really, our form of racism is more insidious and subtle. It expresses itself through entitlement, cultural segregation and appropriation, and a laziness with regard to exploring and understanding other cultural perspectives. And I see these themes being scratched at in this story where people of two minority groups are struggling with how to deal with each other once a new regime has been announced. Through a simple story - and there is really nothing remarkable about the story at all - we’re giving a multi-faceted look at racism on both a personal and systemic level. The story is framed - both historically and ritually - within events of reconciliation; yet, there’s a tenuousness and fragility that is really quite frightening.

Slavery is often seen as a historical issue, how does this story connect to current issues?

I think slavery is really only a symptom of one of the worst of human characteristics: this tendency to separate into distinct groups and demonize those other groups; and slavery is just one step away from genocide on the demonization spectrum. The fact that some Canadians are delineated as Asian-Canadian, Afro-Canadian or Indo-Canadian and yet, for some reason, I am entitled - as a person of northern european descent - to be delineated as “Canadian”. Why are these hyphens necessary for some people and not others? Why can’t every Canadian citizen be called “Canadian”? This, in my mind, is an example of the notion that “some are more equal than others”, and it’s an issue I wrestle with myself. I think that as long as we have this notion of difference, we are still subject to sliding down that spectrum of demonization.

Another part of slavery is the issue of rights. We’re a culture that’s big on “rights”: free speech, religion, privacy, the list goes on. However, we often demand these rights at the expense of the rights of other people. We forget that with every right comes a responsibility: a responsibility to afford those same rights to all others and consider how exercising those rights affects the lives of those around us. If I have a right to carry a weapon, I have a responsibility to ensure that no one is threatened or harmed unduly by that weapon. I have a right to express myself in any manner I desire - but I also have a responsibility to recognize the effect my words may have on how others think, feel and act. I think this is quite relevant to the here and now - especially in light of terrorist attacks on Charlie Hebdo and media outlets deciding whether or not to run potentially offensive cartoons. As a society, and in a world that keeps getting ‘smaller’, we’re still trying to figure out how to balance this tension of rights and responsibilities - and the characters in The Whipping Man are just starting that journey.

Tell me about the creative team - what are you looking forward to about working with this group?

Drew Facey always brings in an amazing sense of place and artistry to a production. I’ve not seen a design of his that didn’t serve the script beautifully - even when the production as a whole seems to fail, his designs succeed. Laughlin Johnston has worked deft magic with lighting and he’ll do the same with this one. I get to try out a new costume designer in Amy McDougall and that’s always a frightening and exciting prospect. Jeff Tymoschuk is a master of cinematic soundscapes and this script, with its historical setting, will give him huge scope within which to play.

What do you foresee as the biggest challenge for this play?

I think balancing the personal histories of the characters against the larger historical setting will be something that we have to be very aware of. We think we know what the story is about. It’s about slaves getting their freedom. Well, yes, but that’s merely a generality. We’ll have to be more specific than that. We have to get into what this new set of rights means to these specific people and what responsibilities are conferred to them along with those rights. If the production is to be immediate and relevant, it’s in that struggle that we need to engage the audience. Otherwise, it becomes a mere historical piece.

april 2 | auditions | the taming of the shrew

Actors!  Apprentice Eleanor Felton is holding auditions for her year-end project: THE TAMING OF THE SHREW.  It's a fun 1950's revisiting of the two shrews.

Show dates: June 24-28
Rehearsals: Part time May and June
Audition dates: April 2nd 3-6pm, April 3rd 11-2pm
Audition location: Pacific Theatre (1440 W 12th Ave)

Characters:
Kate
Bianca/Servant
Signora Baptista/Servant
Biondella/Widow/Curtis
Petruchio
Lucentio/Tailor
Tranio/Servant
Gremio/Vincentio/Grumio
Hortensio/Pedant/Servant

Most characters will be double cast.

Please prepare a 1-2 minute classical monologue. Please send a headshot and resume to stonesthrowtheatre@gmail.com along with your preferred audition time, and your potential availability for rehearsals.

Callbacks will likely be early in the following week.

the whipping man | photos (final round)

A last round of photos from THE WHIPPING MAN before it closes this Saturday!

the whipping man | responses

"What a fantastic production and what a brilliant play! I was on the edge of my seat for the whole show. All three actors give out superb performances, the design is absolutely stunning and the story is pretty amazing – full of twists and turns and at the same time quite profound and touching. Best show I’ve seen at Pacific since Jesus Hopped the A Train and possibly the best show I’ve seen in Vancouver all year. Well done!" | Itai Erdal, website comment

"Yet another compelling, must-see play at Pacific Theatre. Outstanding acting all around, gripping and haunting story, evocative set, beautiful lighting. The brief bursts of magically soulful singing from Simon (Tom Pickett) added further depth and, given the celebration in his singing, also added tragic irony. I highly recommend this intensely moving play." | Nancy B, website comment

"Theatre does not get much better than this – our attention is completely absorbed and we are transported to another time and place, yet by material that speaks to issues with which we still wrestle." | Tova Kornfeld, The Jewish Independent

"The production, however, directed by Anthony F. Ingram, is epic, historically interesting and visually wonderful under Lauchlin Johnston’s evocative and dingy lighting. And the performances by Pickett, Kennedy and Mocibob are excellent." | Jo Ledingham, Vancouver Courier

"....it was so very good. So thoroughly compelling, engaging, enthralling, and many other ing words. I recognized Tom, but I don't think those could have been the other two actors; I have seen them both before in multiple roles, and they were not the same guys. I'm kind of used to actors becoming different people - it's kind of what they too - but they were transformed into such different roles than I had seen them in before that they honestly were unrecognizable to me as the same actors. Wow. The set, Anthony's direction, the lighting, all wow." | Audience Email

"I did get in and I am SO grateful to have been in the audience for one of the best productions I have seen in… ages. Script, direction, performances, set design, costume design and lighting. ABSOLUTELY incredible. I’ve been talking it up all over the place. People need to pack the seats to see what you folks have managed to accomplish with this show. It is not only a testament to the artistry of what is possible in with theatre but a nutritious intellectual meal. I’m particularly grateful to have gone on a night with an artist talkback. I’m trying to figure out how to go again and who to drag with me." | Audience Email

"A fascinating and affecting drama that is immensely satisfying. If you like stories about race relations and the aftermath of civil war intrigue you and you like to clutch your heart because dynamic powerful actors are likely going to rip it out, then this is the show for you." | David C Jones, OutTV

"Carl Kennedy, who plays John, is one of the most mercurial and charismatic actors you’re ever going to see. His portrait brims with playfulness, intelligence, wit—and emotional depth. I’ve never seen Tom Pickett look better: he’s having a great time and he delivers nuanced and heartfelt work as Simon. In some ways, Caleb may be the most difficult role: after the surgery, Caleb barely moves, and he’s the former slave owner in a play about race in America. Still, Giovanni Mocibob offers an intriguing combination of innocence and guilt, good intentions and privileged blindness." | Colin Thomas, The Georgia Straight

"[The Whipping Man is] a fascinating piece of historical fiction. That it still resonates is strangely comforting, and equally chilling." | Mark Robins, Vancouver Presents

"It's taken me this long to process The Whipping Man. Yikes! So, I've seen Civil War movies, read books, watched TV - I'm no expert on the subject but I feel at least somewhat familiar with the events. North wins/South loses; slavery ends and the president gets shot. And a few years ago I found out that my great great grandfather fought in the Southern Navy - interesting bit of family lore.

Then along come 3 characters on a small stage in a gripping story and it became personal. Then the actors come out for the Q&A and Carl talked about how the script grabbed him, I choked right up. It became so real and close. What happened was that a pronoun shifted and moved in - I am the great great granddaughter of a confederate soldier and that gives me a great deal to think about.

So there. Sigh. Amazing. Amazing. Amazing." | Lorri R, Audience Email

"The Whipping Man is an excellent drama." | John Jane, Review Vancouver

"Wow, another amazing and powerful play done by PT! My hubby and neighbour loved it as well.
As always, the set design and lighting were phenomenal and the cast was fabulous!!!! WELL Done!" | Anne Chandler, Email Response

From the Twitter Feed:

@RandiEdmundson: Got to see some fabulous work tonight at @PacificTheatre The Whipping Man was great! ... and a just a little gross. #blood #ptwhippingman
@DianeLTucker: Oh you SO got it right! Stunning!
@genevieve_f: Congrats to the opening of #ptWhippingMan! Powerful, moving, with knockout performances and gorgeous design. See this show!

the whipping man | more photos

Some more production shots from THE WHIPPING MAN.

the whipping man | interview with matthew lopez

Playwright Matthew Lopez has done some fascinating interviews about THE WHIPPING MAN.  Here's an excerpt from a piece of one he did with the New York Times before the play made its debut on Broadway.

Mr. Lopez came to New York in 2000 to try acting (“I was not very good”) and ended up focusing on writing, another love. After watching films like “Glory,” about a regiment of black troops during the Civil War, he said he became fascinated with the question of how a person could be a slave for most of his life and then suddenly be free. “Before and after, there is no clean break,” he said. “How do you make that psychological change?”

It’s not just a matter for the history books. “One of my characters says, ‘What do I do now?’ ” Mr. Lopez said. “I think that’s a really important question. You can compare it to any great calamity. That question was asked after the Rwandan genocide, I’m sure. It was asked after the Holocaust. That question was asked after 9/11.”

Parallels between Jews and African-Americans came to Mr. Lopez as he did research for his idea of a play set in the crucial month of April 1865, when the Civil War ended and Lincoln was assassinated. While reading scholarly books and the autobiography of Frederick Douglass, he stumbled upon a casual reference to the fact that in 1865 the Passover observance began the day after Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox.

“It was this eureka moment,” Mr. Lopez said. “As these slaves were being freed in the American South, there was this ancient observance of the Exodus story.”

Read the full article here.

the whipping man | set design

Drew Facey's set for THE WHIPPING MAN is a beautiful piece of work!  Below, find the description of the set from the play, and then photos of the set model that had us all jumping up and down with excitement.

"The lights rise on what was once the front entrance of a grand town home, now in ruins.  Craters dot the hardwood floors.  The wallpaper is stand with soot and parts of it are burned away.  Most of the windows are broken.  The railing of the grand staircase leans perilously down to the floor, as if it would collapse with the slightest touch.  The steps themselves are broken and jagged.  The damage to the house suggests recent destruction rather than years of neglect.  This was someone's home not too long ago.  But now it is a haunted house."
-Matthew Lopez, The Whipping Man

new partnership | luke's corner bar & kitchen

We are proud to announce a new partnership with Luke's Corner Bar & Kitchen at Granville and 14th!  Bring in your ticket before or after seeing a PT show and get 15% off food.

the whipping man | production photos

Here are a few production shots from THE WHIPPING MAN.  All photos by Damon Calderwood.

the whipping man | opening night reception

Some shots from our opening night reception for THE WHIPPING MAN.  What a great night to open a show!

mar 10-28 | the drowsy chaperone | twu

PT veteran Angela Konrad (JESUS HOPPED THE "A" TRAIN, DOUBT) directs TWU's spring musical. Don't miss this shimmering explosion of song, dance, and silliness, THE DROWSY CHAPERONE! 

The Drowsy Chaperone presented by SAMC Theatre at TWU
March 10-28
Wednesday - Saturday Evenings @ 7:30pm, Saturday matinees @ 2pm

Lights up on a woman in a chair. She’s lonely, but she doesn’t know it. When she puts on her recording of The Drowsy Chaperone, a shimmering explosion of song, dance, and silliness lifts her out of her sadness and into the Roaring Twenties.
TWU’s spring musical, The Drowsy Chaperone, is as fun and glamourous as a bubbly glass of champagne. This 1920s spoof follows Janet, a Broadway star who wants to leave the spotlight for a storybook romance with her dashing fiancé. But Janet’s producer and a mischievous pair of gangsters-in-disguise won’t let their leading lady go without a fight! Enter a notorious Latin lothario, hired to seduce the bride. With a chaperone who’s not too good at her job, will there be wedding bells...or scandal?
“This show pokes fun at the musical theatre world from a 21st-century perspective,” said director Angela Konrad. “It celebrates all the things you love about musicals, while poking fun at the rest. Mistaken identities, zany plot twists, catchy song and dance numbers – I dare anyone not to have a good time!”

Click here for more information