Rumours remake to bring the music of Fleetwood Mac to the stage in Wolfville
An updated version of Rumours, a musical written by local Kerri Leier and produced by the Edalene Theatre, will open at the Al Whittle Theatre Jan. 23.
“Rumours is about the pervasive nature of rumours in a small town spread in the digital world of oversharing. It follows the lives of several high school students and illustrates the emotional, humourous and life-altering impact of rumours in their lives,” said Leier.
The story features the music of Fleetwood Mac, arranged by Zoe Strutt and brought to life by a talented local cast and band.
“Rumours was a project that I developed in 2016 with Keegan Page, originally from Halifax, who was a teacher at an international school in Vietnam. He had the idea of using the music of Fleetwood Mac and telling a story that would illustrate to young people how damaging rumours could be in the world we live in — the digital age. I wrote the show and he put it on at his international school the same year we opened it for the first time here,” said Leier.
“Fleetwood Mac is touring again so the interest in the music has spread. Music that was written years ago still speaks to the same things today. I created characters with similar names to the people in the band. For example, there’s a character named Stevie and one named Nick. We wanted to talk about the little rumours that can escalate quickly and completely alter people’s lives. Not everyone gets a happy ending.”
The musical has been updated since the 2017 debut.
“I wrote it before consent was a hot button issue. Now we’ve updated it to talk about issues of consent and to honour people who go through those situations. It started off as something that would be fun and now it’s become a lot stronger piece about issues teenagers are really connected to and face each day,” said Leier.
The cast of 23 young actors, ranging in age from 13 up to
23, works together with a band formed by high school and university students to create a dynamic cohesive piece. The students come from schools all over the Annapolis Valley.
“Another update allows the chorus to become part of the band during scene changes, creating more movement and flow and a break-out moment for the talented singers,” said Leier.
This is the sixth original musical written and produced by Leier.
“I always have a team of people working with me and I’ve been working with the same team of actors for about 10 years. I write predominately with a youth focus. They’re filled with great energy and it’s great to tap into that. In this area, theater is so valued I can take risks and do some original productions,” she said.
She links her success thus far to her supportive family.
“I would be remiss if I didn't mention that Edalene's first production was funded by my paternal grandmother, Jean (formerly Steeves) Crowe. She directed theatre partnerships between the community of East Hants and the high school for many years. The first show I ever saw live was her final production, the Sound of Music,” said Leier.
Edalene Theatre also offers a three-week musical theatre camp in the month of August. Students ages 11-18 train in voice, dance, and acting and put on a full-scale production, which will be “13” this year. This summer, the camp is adding a two-week program in July for ages six to 10 and doing the production, ‘Winter Wouldn't Wait.’
Co-directed by Leier and
Keigan Richard, stage managed by Brianna Schwarz, and choreographed by Zoe Strutt, Jillie Richard and Charlotte Crouch, Rumours brings you the music of Fleetwood Mac along with a compelling and thought-provoking story line. The musical runs Jan. 23-25 at the Al Whittle Theatre in Wolfville, with shows at 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 23 and 24, and at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Jan. 25.
Tickets are available at http:// www.edalenetheatre.ca/store.php.