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Home My WebLink AboutThe Brussels Post, 1977-08-24, Page 5What's going on at the Curling ub? A n yone who wandered into across from e building aforth's arena would certainly nt an answer to that question. Five or six young people are ding selections from Shake- eare.!s Midsummer Night's am. A young man is playing sic on a portable organ in the Aground. Another man with a g grey beard and curly hair is osely watching the action and out chortles and groans cording to his reaction to what going on. Suddenly the scene changes m a Stratford Festival style dering of Shakespeare's assic to a group of local people, cussing the play they are arming for a centennial cele- adorn It's simple really, and very manding work that's going on the curling club every weekday in nine or ten until four. eatre Passe Muraille, under e direction of Listowel native, ul Thompson (a "grandfather the theatre" he says in a creaky d voice) is putting together a ay. No Script There's no script as such. The pie who brought us The Farm ow, created several years ago ing a stay in the Clinton area, e "writing" a new play, based n Seaforth, that draws on local cots and experiences. They're rking it out as they go along d their concentration and dedi- ation shows even the casual bserver that it's very hard work. Paul Thompson says many Canadians feel like "misfits" in he regular established theatre.- at's because actors and - audiences have to pretend to be what they aren't in order to get nvolved in plays that come from somewhere else. "It's even more confusing when we have to pretend that our cultural base is somewhere else", Iv- says, referring to Stratford" Aannered English style of action. Thompson one' r'M are trying 'to see what we can do with what we are," he says. He's got nothing against. Shakespeare. "He has great lie 0111 e bet ix Pie s bout l! ch 41 9 tflut-t COMPANY' siNcE .1060 VG REDUCTIONS UP TO 50% Bargain Table of - Where. Personal Service is still Wiribet BB ( .887 ,9000. it, .4 tS PA,* rug gel:a'important I Earrings Costume Rings MUST SELL TO hmxt JEWEL FOR OUR NEW PALL JEWELLERY. Audrey Mayer S Lloyd. ' t-ostume Jewellery Necklaces Jewellerv & Gifts RIL—tra NEW MACHINERY CREW?— Actors from Theatre Passe Muraille, who've been rehearsing a" new play during July and August at the Seaf .orth Curling Club, ham it up for promotional photos at Vincent's Farm Equipment. - (Expositor Photo) and he's only half kidding. Ted, as Puramus, thinks his girl friend Thisbe has been killed by a lion and he kills himself. ".Wait a' minute, there are no lions around here", somebody says as Seaforthreality interrupts Shakespeare. Realistic There follows a discAsion about realistic violent death. "A car accident ... cars are the lions of our time," someone suggests. The girl could be killed in a farm accident, someone else suggeAs that Bottom, .the implement dealer objects "farm machinery is not' going to be the villain in this play." "It could do your business good. , You could say you got combines that don't attack people", another member of the centennial committee puts in. ':All I can say is this running around in a cemetery is not going to go over", says Ted Johns as Bottom and the cast goes, on, truggling to bring Shakespeare and Seaforth close to each other. At 4 P.M. the group recesses for the day. The director has to go pick up his kids at Seaforth's Snoopy Summer School. Home Hardware BARGAIN CORNER Up To 20% Off Prices are Falling All Over On - LAWN CHAIRS,BARBEQUES, CHARCOAL AND BARBEQUE EQUIPMENT PICNIC COOLERS AND PICNIC PAKS eatre Passe Muraille Seaforth , Shakespeare in play THE BRUSSELS POST, AUGUST 24, 1977 —S The Pall Bazaar, tea and bake sale were the main topic of discussion at the August meeting of the Huronview Auxiliary, held n the Craft Room on August 15. The suggested date for the bazaar %October 19 and it is hoped that many more members and visitors will be present at the next meeting of the 'Auxiliary on stories, the characters, even the words are good" but the TPM group want to •translate one of the great stories, Midsummer Night's Dream, into a play that's meaningful to Western Ontario , people. That involves trying, out the play's scenes "Stratford" style and then using the basic themes, love, death and family feuding to come up with a new Midsummer Night's Dream that is real to us here now. Bottom The play focusses on. John Bottom, a local farm implement dealer, played by Ted Johns, and a small group of "Seaforth" people who are planning a play as part of the town's centennial celebration's. The play inside a play is going to bear- some resemblance to Midsummer Night's Dream, I think. "It won't be all Greek to you," Paul Thompson promises. Centennials are really important to Canadian culture, Paul believes. They're an excuse to enjoy things like theatre, music, dancing, entertainment "things we're not supposed to enjoy", he jokes. At centennial time too, you` see sides of people you don't normally see", people you spend your lives with in small towns, people like the TPM actors are, trying to portray. Yup, the Centennial is an Underrated cultural catalyst, he says with mock seriousness. TPM's style of theatre demands a lot from, actors. "It's important to have people who are able to observe real situations accurately," the director says. The TPM people have been living,,and observing, iii Seaforth since early in July and will be rehearsing in their rented curling club space until August 21. Commercial Many of them are living at the Commercial Hotel. Paul Thompson and his family are in a farm house near Brussels. Ted Johns, his wife Janet Amos who directed The Blyth Memorial• History Show this summer and new born son are renting ahouse in Stanley Township. September 19 when plans will be finalised. During the business session, -members answered the roll call by giving their date of birth. Minutes of the previous meeting were read by Mrs. James Griffith in the absence of Mrs. A. McNichol. To conclude the meeting, jelly roll and tea were served. All 'of the actors, except Alan Brydle from Toronto, have lived and worked in small towns, Connie Kalder and Linda Grifith in Saskatchewan, veterans Ted Johns and David Fox in Ontario and Donna I3Utt in Newfoundland. "It's a whole new world for him, Brydle" Thompson says. Canadians have an easier time working on a play that draws on. Canadian roots. An American actor left the company after they started work in Seaforth because things didn't really make sense to him. He was lost and "had trouble digging into the local community', the director says. Sense of Geography Local people have more of a sense of geography, of what it is to be Canadian than Toronto people do, Paul Thompson thinks. Toronto is pre-occupied with American type fads, currently the Blue Jays baseball team. TPM will have to fight to get an audience when they take their Seaforth play to Toronto, the director says, because Canadian plays aren't "in" any more, the city is on an Americanizing binge. "Everybody is so, happy , about having a team that is last in the American League. The enthuse iasm about that is really, crazy," he says. Seaforth and area people will probably be able to see the play at the end of the summer before the cast goes to Toronto to 'refine what they are doing, perform there and then go on ' across Canada tour, but arrangements aren't final yet.. Death Scene Back at the rehearsal -in :the curling club the group is working out how to do the death scene between two lovers whose families are trying to keep them apart. "Whoops" says Ted. Johns when Paul tells him he's "too powerful, you're supposed to be hurting." The actors provide their own- sound effect and John Grey plays eerie tinkling music for the graveyard scene. "That's it, neurotic" Thompson says when Ted comes on more quietly, Insulate your home now for winter comfort Don't waif for cold weather! Insulate now to save heating costs and promote snug comfort when winter strikes. Every dollar you spend on insula- tion comes back in fuel saving dividends. Get the money you need — today — from Victoria and . Grey.. O.N.Letebvre, Manager Liitoweli Ontario• Huronview bazaar lanned for Oct. 1'9