Famous opera comes to the ACT
Odeum Theatre is hosting a 1-day workshop for performers. From left, Lydia Querengesser, Jarrod Terrell and Sidney Cramer.
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Updated: August 11, 2009 4:38 PM
A classic comic-opera takes centre stage at the Maple Ridge Arts Centre and Theatre this month.
The Odeum Theatre has chosen The Mikado as its summer production.
The play was created by W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan in the 1800s and has been performed by many theatre companies around the world.
The Mikado is a satire that makes fun of political corruption in Japan and bizarre laws, such as facing the death penalty for flirting.
The one-hour production at The ACT will feature 17 performers, aged nine to 25, and is the product of a 10-day workshop.
The cast will receive their scripts on Aug. 20 and have eight days to learn the entire production.
“I think a lot of the students find it a daunting task,” said Rayne Beveridge, the show’s director and producer.
“But I find with that demanding experience, comes greater rewards. I think the most important thing for me is these kids learning to work together, learning to co-operate in a stressful, demanding experience, and being able to realize their own potential. I like being able to affect them in some way at this point in their lives. It’s more than just music for me.”
The Mikado has been adapted for this production to include some local humour. However, it still features classic characters like Ko-Ko, the state’s executioner, Pooh-Bah, who owns every major office in the state, and Yum-Yum, who is engaged to Ko-Ko but is also the love interest of the Mikado’s son, Nanki-Poo.
“The cast gets to experience a real accomplishment, something that is truly difficult and truly demanding,” Beveridge said.
“It’s such an amazing, rewarding experience to be able to perform for a real audience. It can be disheartening when you work so hard for so long and not that many people show up.”
The Mikado opens at The ACT on Aug. 28 at 7 p.m. There will also be two performances on Aug. 29, 4 p.m. and 7 p.m.
Mikado
Tickets to the show are $9 in advance, or $15 at the door, and include a reception after the show provided by Kingfishers Waterfront Bar and Grill. Kids aged 10 and under are free.
Tickets can be purchased from the Maple Ridge Arts Centre and Theatre box office, Jungle Jacs Play Centre in Pitt Meadows, and Kingfishers Waterfront Bar and Grill (located next to the former Albion Ferry dock in Maple Ridge).
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