The Chronicle Herald (Provincial)
Ship’s Company Theatre going online
PARRSBORO — For Ship's Company Theatre the show must go on — online, that is.
Faced with the potential loss of the 2020 season because of COVID-19, the artistic director of the Parrsboro-based theatre company said Ship's Company Theatre is offering a virtual season including readings and Q&A sessions with four playwrights and intimate evenings of music featuring Atlantic Canadian artists.
Starting July 10 and continuing Friday nights through the rest of July and August, the online shows available free of charge through Ship's Company Theatre's social media platforms is offering up-close and intimate evenings of music with some of the most acclaimed Atlantic Canadian musicians as well as powerful Atlantic Canadian stories through unique readings and interviews with a wide variety of talented writers.
“As I looked around and saw a lot of cancellations happening in many industries, especially the performing arts, we were trying to figure out how we could still offer something to our community for the summer,” Richie Wilcox said. “While we don't have a full summer to offer, we're still able offer some music and readings for Parrsboro and beyond and doing it virtually online.”
Wilcox said organizers of many events have been trying to come to terms with what is taking place around the world.
There have been numerous cancellations of festivals and events this summer, but completely sitting out the season wasn't something Wilcox wanted to do.
“It's totally understandable that a lot of places are having to shut down and I empathize with all these organizations. Ship's had to a full season ready for physical audiences. I had to postpone that till next year,” he said. “While I'm happy and excited about this season of offerings, I do feel the heartache around the cancellations and things that are being lost for this summer.”
He's thrilled with the quality Ship's Company Theatre is able to offer this summer.
“We're stoked to have these playwrights and concerts and to be able to offer them free to people. We recognize the economy is really a challenge for a lot of people right now,” he said.
He feels it will also give people an opportunity to participate in the arts while providing an inside look into the playwrights and a taste of what these plays are like in hopes these scripts will be on stage in the future.
“It's almost like they're little trailers,” he said.
He hopes it results in greater interest in the performing arts, music and Ship's Company.
The Shipwright Sessions will feature everything from published award-winning plays to still-in-development musicals, providing the opportunity to hear excerpts of these works from the playwright themselves combined with a close-up look at the writer through mini-interviews led by Wilcox.
The sessions feature Beneath Springhill: The Maurice Ruddick Story by Beau Dixon, Mind The Light by Gabrielle Papillon, Silence:
Mabel and Alexander Graham Bell by Trina Davies, and Mi'kmaq Stories: Past and Present by Catherine Martin, Trevor Gould, and Shalan Joudry, with a reading by Shalan Joudry.
Wilcox said the series, that will be on alternating Fridays, will feature the artist talking about the production before doing a reading from it. He said each of the sessions will be about an hour in length.
“You could watch while you're relaxing or even doing chores around your home. It's a completely different viewing experience that's coming right into your home,” he said. “It's up close and intimate.”
The Parrsboro-based theatre company will also offer Music Nights of four concerts through live streams on their social media platforms.
These nights will also be free to the public and feature Parrsboro favourite Ryan Cook, the dynamic Acadian trio Vishtèn, the internationally acclaimed guitarist Don Ross and Prince Edward Island's Juno award-winning folk gem Catherine Maclellan.
“Part of our mission at Ship's is to help develop Atlantic Canadian work, so this really falls into our mandate,” he said. “It also creates collaborations with these playwrights to see what we can do together in the future.”
For more information on the season, check out www.shipscompanytheatre. com/2020.