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The Citizen, 1991-07-10, Page 22Entertainment Fifteen visitors from Japan got a close-up look at the Blyth Festival Saturday when they were given a tour of the facility and a run-down on its history after attending a performance of Barbershop Quartet. James Roy, Festival founder tells some of the story. To his right is Toyoshi Yoshihara, head of Komatsu Canada and tour organizer for the Japanese theatre buffs. Japanese come to Blyth to see THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, JULY 10,1991. PAGE 23. ’Rita* provides laughs birthplace Add Blyth Festival to the list of tourist attractions for Japanese visi­ tors to North America. Saturday 15 representatives of a Tokyo theatre visited Blyth to see the theatre that made The Tomor­ row Box famous in Canada. The Tomorrow Box, Anne Chisleu's play about a Huron Coun­ ty farmer who decides, without telling his wife, that he is selling the farm and they are going to retire to Florida, has been a major hit in Japan, where the play has toured for three years. More than 100,000 people have seen the play. It all began with a Japanese busi­ nessman who began going to the­ atre in Vancouver to improve his English. Toyoshi Yoshihara, Vice- president of Komatsu, a road machinery and equipment compa­ ny, persuaded his university friend Tak Kaiyama to come to Canada to study theatre. Mr. Yoshihara trans­ lated The Tomorrow Box and sever­ al other Canadian plays. "Il was a form of self-education. I would take my favourites and see how well 1 could pul them into my own language." Those translations might have stayed in Mr. Yoshihara's desk drawer if he hadn't heard from Mr. Kaiyama, an old friend from uni­ versity days. "Tak Kaiyama had gotten a grant from the Japanese government to study theatre outside Japan for a year. He wanted to go to London but I told him. "Every­ body goes to London! Come to Canada instead and try something different." As an inducement he sent along his translations. Mr. Kaiyama came to Canada and the two decided to work together to present Canadian in Japan. Mr. Kaiyama directed the Japanese version for Bunk-z, a touring Japanese theatre company that boasts a membership of 250,000 people in various cities. The theatre has not taken govern­ ment funding because of the cen­ sorship that once brought in the days when government control was so strong during World War Two. Author Anne Chisleu and her husband James Roy visited Japan of ’Tomorrow Box’ to see the Japanese production. "During my visit, I was astounded at the number of people who come to the theatre," Ms Chislett says. "The star of The Tomorrow Box, Japanese actress Mitsue Suzuki, came to Canada last Fall to see the original home of the play and was special guest at the Blyth Festival's annual fund-raising auction. The play rings a bell with Japanese women. We've moved beyond the issue, but in Japan it is easy to imagine a woman pouring her life into a marital property, and then having her husband divorce her without a cent." The Japanese translation of The Tomorrow Box has left the play in its original setting, Huron county, at the original lime frame of 10 years ago where it is a shock to the farmer when his wife refuses to go along with his arbitrary move to Florida and instead divorces him, gets half of everything they own Battle of Belgrave in pre-mite ball It was the battle of Belgrave June 27 as the Pre-mile teams coached by Ken Marks and Ken Hopper met in Belgrave. The Marks team came out victorious by a 30-12 margin. The Marks team jumped out to an early lead of 7-0 in the first inning after Justin Campbell, Craig Marks, Jason Fear, Heather Black and Mathew Bromley stroked home runs. Also scoring were Derek Marks and Peggy Procter. The Marks team outscored the Hopper team 8-1 in the second inning. Scoring for the Marks team were Devon Moffatt, Dan Mullen, Adam McBumey and Justin Camp­ bell with homers and Candice Proc­ ter, Travis Campbell, Derek Marks and Craig Marks. The Hopper team scored five in the third but the Marks team scored another eight. Devon Moffatt scored a homerun and other runs came from Jason Fear, Heather Black, Mathew Bromley, Peggy Procter, Jim Wray, Laura Meier and Dan Mullen. The fourth inning saw the Marks team outscore the HopDcr team 7-6. and sets up her own life while he retires to a lonely existence in Florida. The visitors to Blyth were part of a tour organized by Mr. Yoshihara and the Roys to let the Tokyo vis- tors see the Festival. They want to convert their bustling road-house theatre into one that mirrors Blyth Festival. Saturday, they attended the mati­ nee performance of Barbershop Quartet, by Layne Coleman, then had a tour of the theatre hosted by development co-ordinator Lynda Lentz and board members Sheila Richards and Don McCaffrey. They were particularly interested in the fund-raising undertaken by the Festival for its $2 million expan­ sion program. The group also visited various places mentioned in The Tomorrow Box. Also on the tour was Margaret Lyons, former head of CBC Radio. Scoring for the Marks team were Travis Campbell, Adam McBumey and Jeremy Lcishman while Derek Marks, Justin Campbell, Craig Marks and Jason Fear belted homers. On July 4 the Marks team trav­ elled to Belgrave and came home with an 18-4 win. Belgrave took an 8-3 lead in the first inning and never looked back. Craig Marks and Justin Campbell stroked home runs to highlight the first inning outburst. Also scoring were Derek Marks, Jason Fear, Mathew Brom­ ley, Laura Meier, Adam McBumey and Peggy Procter. The teams traded runs in the sec­ ond with Devon Moffatt homering for Belgrave. Belgrave scored eight more runs in the third inning. Jason Fear hit a home run and also scor­ ing were Derek Marks, Justin Campbell, Craig Marks, Mathew Bromley, Laura Meier, Adam McBumey and Peggy Procter. Devon Moffatt hit his second home run of the game to cap the Belgrave scoring in the fourth inning. When a young, working class wife who wants to better herself selects an at first reluctant boozy professor as her tutor the laughs keep coming in Educating Rita, which runs July 9 - 20 at the Huron Country Playhouse. After realizing she had "been out of step for years" and "if you want to change you've got to change from the inside (of yourself)". Hair­ dresser Rita May Brown, 26, played by Marcia Kash, joins Britain's Open University Program, working at her regular job, studying at home and attending tutorials at night at Oxford. Dr. Frank Bryant, the scotch-sodden don, played by distinguished Canadian actor, director, and writer Sean Mulcahy, who also directs Educating Rita in the Playhouse production, tries earnestly to have Rita select anoth­ er tutor. He tells her he doesn't like participating in the Open Universi­ ty "because I don't like the hours - it's when the pubs are all open." Rita turns out to be a brilliant stu­ dent who brings an innate intelli­ gence and simple logic to her studies. More and more, Professor Frank encourages his protege because of her intuitive and avari­ cious lust for learning. Each meet­ ing between the two results in a frank and often laugh-provoking dialogue. The modem "Pygmalion" story was a long-running West End play that won the prestigious SWET Award as the Best Comedy in 1980. In 1983, Julie Wallers recreated her stage role as Rita in her movie debut, with Michael Caine as Pro­ fessor Frank. This won an Acade­ my Award nomination for playwright Willy Russell. Marcia Kash returns to Huron Country Playhouse after a long absence. Audiences will remember her many roles at the Playhouse, including Libby in / Ought to be in Pictures, Kate in Bedroom Farce, %oses is Viofets is ‘Bfue Now it's yer Birthday Happy Birthday to Sue! From yer pals at The Citizen and Mrs. Markham in Move over Mrs. Markham. Since her last appearance at the Playhouse, her career has taken her to such places as Broadway in Sherlock's Last Case-, Stratford Festival as Lady Macbeth in Macbeth-, Alberta The­ atre Projects in Calgary as Belinda in Season's Greetings and Theatre Plus in Toronto as Rita in Educat­ ing Rita. Happy 25 th Anniversary Mom and Dad Pauline and Alex Gulutzen July 9 Lots of Love, Darlene, Bill and Charles the Blyth I<W THURSDAY NIGHT IS WING NIGHT Wings 30e each MINIMUM ORDER 10 a variety of sauces available SORRY NO TAKE-OUTS FRI. & SAT. NITES 5 P.M. - MIDNIGHT CHICKEN WINGS & CHIPS $4.95 EAT IN OR TAKE OUT THURS., FRI. & SAT. NITES PIZZA BUY ONE & GET A 2ND FOR 1/2 PRICE 5P.M. - MIDNIGHT EAT IN OR TAKE OUT ENTERTAINMENT July 12 -13 Ben Gerding 523-9381 L.L.B.O.