Village Squire, 1977-10, Page 40since his initial success when he settled his
troupe in the Clinton area to research and
rehearse The Farm Show he has made his
old stomping ground of western Ontario a
second home for his troupe. They spent
two summers in Petrolia at the Victoria
Playhouse and have toured the area
annually with such shows as Them
Donnellys; 1837, The Farmers Revolt;
Horsburgh Scandal; The West Show; 18
Wheels; and a 10 -day, tremendously
successful stay at Memorial Hall, Blyth
this summer with He Won't Come In From
The Barn. They've also rehearsed shows in
the area before moving them to Toronto
and just generally bdcome more and more
a part of the local theatre scene.
This summer their base of operation was
Seaforth where they used the curling club
while they worked on Shakespeare for Fun
and Profit. It was a show that didn't come
easy. None of the Theatre Passe Muraille
shows do of course. They're called
collective creations and as such are the
products of the imaginations of the actors
and director, usually with no help from a
writer. It means a lot of hard work, of
grueling rehearsal. It takes a special kind
of actor to be able to do the work with the
result the same faces become very familiar
in Passe Muraille productions.
But Shakespeare For Fun and Profit was
even more difficult because it attempted to
interweave the plot of Shakespeare's A
Midsummer Night's dream with the small
town centennial plot.
The actors are well suited to delving into
smalltown life. Of the cast only Alan Bridle
of Toronto is a city native. Some, like
Connie Kalder and Linda Griffiths are
westerners from Saskatchewan. Donna
Butt is a Newfoundlander. David Fox is
from Ontario and Ted Johns, who holds the
major role as John Bottom the farm
machinery dealer who comes up with the
idea to stage Shakespeare, is from just
down the road in Mitchell. He's become a
favourite with local audiences with roles in
The Farm Show, Naked on the North Shore
and his outstanding performance as Elmer,
the rebellious farmer in He Won't Come Ir
From The Barn.
While in rehearsal at Seaforth, Thomp-
son told a newspaper interviewer that his
group would have to fight to get an
audience when they took their "Seaforth"
play to Toronto because Canadian plays
weren't "in" any more with the city on an
Americanization binge what with the
arrival of American League baseball in
town after years of waiting. His prediction
proved right as it was hard to get an
audience and those who did go
misunderstood much of what was there.
One local theatre person wondere_ why
Thompsoi1 bothers trying to t^'• • his
particular shows to Toronto anyway since
many of his later works such as He W n't
Come In From The Batn were met with
negative reviews and small audiences in
Toronto but have been immensely },:,pular
in this area for the people they we' really
meant to see. He won't Come In 1 r .n The
za vn I.AI:M: sOUIRE/OCTOBER 1977.
Barn, for instance, played to more than
3000 people at Memorial Hall in its 10 -day
stay.
So ;: will likely be with a great sense of
relief and homecoming when the troupe
settles into Memorial Hall for a two-day
stay on Oct. 11 and 12 with Shakespeare
For Fun and Profit. Thompson and his
actors readily admit they enjoy the local
audiences with their warm and open
response and he is particularly fond of the
old Blyth theatre building with it intimacy.
yet large capacity.
The Blyth visit, along with one to
Listowel on Oct. 13 at the Anglican church
and a stay in London at Talbot theatre on
Oct. 14 and 15 are part of a tour
of Southwestern Ontario that began at
Petrolia and Windsor. ❑
Operation
Lifwtl4I¢
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hol as a strong drink and
that six ounces or more of
alcohol per day can lead to
alcoholism and cause cir-
rhosis of the liver?
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