'Shorthanded' is written by Michael Grant of Elmira
By Mark
Schadenberg
If
you want to attract a sports fan to live local theatre, plan on incorporating golf, football, baseball or hockey to the
storyline.
Right?
Why
not.
Theatre
Woodstock is doing just that with it's current production, which in
2012 saw the author recognized with the Best New Comedy award by
Playwrights Canada.
So,
does the production feature baseball, golf or hockey?
Shorthanded
is a play penned by the Elmira-based and Humber College grad Michael
Grant, and features a hockey theme.
Grant
has written other full-length plays, according to his bio, including
Bare Bear Bones and Hamish. Again, I have not seen any specific
details such as a script, but also intriguing (I'm sure) would be his
short play The Highway -- a tribute to Canadian troops.
It's
interesting that Grant calls Elmira home as the town's Sugar Kings
junior hockey team won the all-Ontario Junior B title – the
Sutherland Cup – in 2011.
In
the plotline for Shorthanded, a group of aging athletes are
attempting to re-live their former teenager prowess in Junior B many
many years later by challenging to earn an oldtimers league championship.
I
haven't seen the play, but it would appear to depict a fun premise for
a stage production of dressing room chatter and camaraderie,
good-natured ribbing, sarcasm, pursuit of a dream, redemption and
soul searching.
The
key here is that in the story for Shorthanded, it appears to be the
last opportunity for glory for these skaters as years earlier
they had lost their junior finals.
It's
easy to discover summaries of scripts online so I wouldn't expect any
secrets are being revealed here.
Shorthanded
does sound like a smart combination of sports lending itself to
acting – like Norm Foster's well-known witty look at golf, called
The Foursome.
Also,
since it's a hockey story, which is part of the Canadian fabric,
everyone should relate to Shorthanded. The Woodstock show will run Oct. 17-25 and is directed by Joanna Sweete.
Since
this is the October production of Theatre Woodstock it also marks the
beginning of a new (hockey) season, which will also include the
musical South Pacific (Nov 27 – Dec 6). Then - timely for
Valentine's – will be Norm Foster's Old Love (Feb 6 – 14), and
later a show by Ken Cameron called Harvest in April.
The
Children's CAST company will spend the winter preparing its rendition
of Aida, as created by Elton John and Time Rice.
Also,
as Theatre Woodstock is a non-profit charity organization of amateur
theatre, their website includes information on donating to the
association or even volunteering. Originally called Woodstock Little
Theatre, the group has been in existence for more than 60 years.
The
Market Centre theatre in Woodstock is in a great location in Downtown
Woodstock as its directly behind City Hall and across the street from
the Oxford County admin building. Just a short walk away is both the
museum and art gallery. The theatre's building itself dates back to
the late 1890's when it was the city's central farm market.
Box
Office:
The
ticket office is open weekdays 3 – 7 pm And Saturdays 9:30 –
12:30
Call:
519 537-2582
LINKS:
BLOG BY:
Mark
Schadenberg, Sales
Representative
Senior
Real Estate Specialist (SRES designation)
Royal
LePage Triland Realty
757
Dundas St, Woodstock
(519)
537-1553, cell or text
Email:
mschadenberg@rogers.com
Twitter:
markroyallepage
Facebook:
Mark Schadenberg, Royal LePage Triland
Discussion
. . . Direction . . . Determination . . . Destination
No comments:
Post a Comment