The Citizen, 2019-06-20, Page 20PAGE 20. THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, JUNE 20, 2019.
Due to Don Nicholson taking ill
the week before Jumbo was set to
premiere at the Blyth Festival, both
Artistic Director Gil Garratt and
Layne Coleman will don the
wardrobe of P.T. Barnum in
Nicholson’s stead.
Garratt was set to play Barnum for
a handful of appearances until
Coleman, a well-known Canadian
actor, could be brought in.
“Don had to step away for illness
and has been sidelined,” Garratt
explained during the media call for
Jumbo last week.
Garratt said that it was a wild
experience for him, being both the
director of the show and one of its
most prominent roles, especially
with so little time to prepare and
most of that time working on a
nearly-finished product.
“It’s really unfortunate that Don
couldn’t be a part of the show, but,
following the tradition of circus
masters, ‘The show must go on’,”
Garratt said.
Coleman is an amazing actor,
Garratt said, and being one of the
few cast members to appear in The
Team on the Hill who wasn’t already
cast in Jumbo, it made sense for him
to take on the role. “It’s a logical fit,”
Garratt said.
Jumbo playwright Sean Dixon and
Garratt have worked with Coleman
after asking him to step into the role,
and Garratt said he believes things
will go smoothly.
The play, he explained, is
something new and adventurous
for the Blyth Festival stage and it’s
an enormous team effort, so it made
sense to push on with himself and
Coleman taking over for Nicholson.
GARRATT SIGNS EXTENSION
Shortly before Garratt took to the
stage as Barnum on Friday evening
for Jumbo’s premiere, Blyth Centre
for the Arts Board of Directors
President Elli Cohen announced that
the artistic director’s contract had
been extended to 2025.
The announcement was made at
the gala dinner before the show.
Garratt was named to the position in
2014, replacing Marion deVries.
Garratt steps into Barnum role, receives extension
Off the bench
Due to star Don Nicholson coming down ill just weeks before the Blyth Festival’s production
of Jumbo opened to the public, Artistic Director Gil Garratt, who also directed the show,
stepped into the role of P.T. Barnum for a handful of shows before veteran actor Layne
Coleman could take over. Garratt performed on opening night just hours after the
announcement that his contract had been extended to 2025. (Denny Scott photo)
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By Denny Scott
The Citizen
Continued from page 16
Community Centre.
Bev. Riley, President of
Londesborough’s UCW, was in
charge of the morning service at
Londesborough United on Sunday,
June 16. Her message, “Wisdom for
the Road”, was based on Psalm 26.
Erica Baxter interacted with the
children who gathered at the front of
the sanctuary for their time. They
talked about the difference between
life suggestions and the wisdom that
one finds in the Bible.
Cousins Morgan Yantzi and Sadie
Baxter entertained congregants with
two action songs, “It’s the Power –
God’s Power” and “He is the Light
of the World”.
Service leaders for the rest of June
are Barb Hicks and Susan Barnett.
There will be no services during the
month of July.
Church off
for July