August 2007 — VOLUME 5 ISSUE 8
X marks the stage
“I like this place and willingly could waste my time in it”— William Shakespeare, As You Like It, Act IV, Scene 1.
The great man also wrote “action is eloquence” and there’ll be lots of eloquence along with fluid articulation this August in Kamloops’ Prince Charles Park.
For the fourth year running, Kamloops own company of players, Project X Theatre Productions, will present X Fest—an outdoor Shakespeare festival, which this summer includes a play by award-winning playwright Tennessee Williams.
It’s the only Shakespeare festival of its kind in B.C.’s Interior, an accomplishment Project X is proud of because they’re all about innovation, explains Co-Artistic Producer Samantha MacDonald. She notes the company aimed to fill a void in Kamloops by presenting outdoor Shakespeare, believing there’s a niche for this in what MacDonald describes as a city fond of arts and culture.
“It was something we felt strongly that Kamloops needed as a community,” confirms MacDonald. “There really is an incredible arts community here, we’re so lucky and we’re finally getting to see it blossoming and coming to fruition so it’s really exciting.”
X Fest is not only unique for the area, but it’s also novel in many ways—it’s Shakespeare with a little twist, creatively produced with a contemporary jive. This year the cast will light up the stage with Shakespeare’s As You Like It—1980’s style.
“It’s a comedy so we get to have a lot more fun with it,” explains MacDonald about the pastoral drama penned by the Bard early in his career. It will feature a series of songs and dances choreographed within the scenes based on an ’80s theme—Project X’s deliberately modern spin aims to make Shakespeare, which can intimidate even the well-read, more appealing to a wider audience.
“By finding some fun and interesting ways to reconnect it with modern audiences everybody benefits,” says MacDonald, the play’s producer.
In contrast to the flippant take on Shakespeare’s humorous frolic with love is The Glass Menagerie, the poignant, almost-disturbing classic by Williams. A period piece set in the 1930’s, its moody atmosphere sheds light on the relationships of a dysfunctional family.
“It’s very powerful and it’s very moving. It presents some incredible characters,” says MacDonald about the dark drama being produced by MacDonald’s partner and co-founder of Project X, Derek Rein. “It’s a beautiful piece of theatre.”
Both adaptations will feature emerging actors from Kamloops and professionals from Vancouver, spotlighting local up-and-coming talent as well as those with established careers.
The cast is in place and the stage is set for a feast of culture—two literary classics will come to life this month in Kamloops—“Can one desire too much of a good thing?” (As You Like It, Act IV, Scene 1).
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