Prince George hosts zone drama festival this spring
If you have a play in your pocket, the time is at hand to register for competition.
The Central Interior Zone Drama Festival is in Prince George this spring. March 15 is the deadline for applications to present your show, be that a solo, duo or group effort. Any one-act or featurelength play is eligible.
“We hosted zones last year as well, but before that it had been years and years since we had the festival here,” said local theatre figure Allison Haley, a board member for the zone organization. “It helps to get a year under your belt and then get a second crack at it. There’s some momentum, you’ve learned from your mistakes, and you build off it.”
The community of Kersley is already confirmed as the 2019 hosts, so the Prince George host committee wants to hand it off in great shape.
The most important thing to take away from back-to-back hosting opportunities is capacity growth, said Dominic Maguire, another local theatre figure on the zone board.
Prince George was once a force in the B.C. Theatre industry, and after a prolonged lull, there are signs of resurgence. The primary indication is the pair of plays already registered for the competition. Pocket Theatre Company is staging The God Of Hell directed by Peter Maides and Judy Russell Presents is performing 12 Angry Men directed by Anna Russell.
Both these plays will have their own commercial run this spring, then join other participating plays from around the region.
More P.G. productions are welcome. Awards are presented for on-stage and back-stage achievements, and one play wins the right to represent the zone at the Theatre BC Mainstage competition in July, where the best of all B.C. regional shows gather for the provincial competition.
“We are interested in being the host community for Mainstage one day,” said Maguire. “We have mulled it over for awhile now. We know that would be welcomed by Theatre BC. We just have to build up to it, so we can pull it off at the high level a festival like that demands. It always brings in hundreds and hundreds of people to the host community. It’s always a nice bump for the local economy, and it’s a cultural bonanza. But we need to have a volunteer base, we have to have sponsors in place, and we have to know there will be bums in seats.”
A positive working relationship has been established with the Playhouse operators, said Haley and Maguire. More partnerships are emerging. To enter a play or for more information on being a supporter of this year’s zone event, contact DOM at
The zone festival is scheduled for May 23-27 at the P.G. Playhouse.