GORE BAY—In less than two weeks the curtain will rise on Gore Bay Theatre’s exciting summer season. The award winning group will be producing two shows, ‘Old Love,’ a comedy by Canada’s king of comedy and audience favourite Norm Foster, and a powerful drama, ‘Kindertransport’ by Diane Samuels, which received the most awards when it was performed by Gore Bay Theatre at the Northern Ontario Drama Festival in Sudbury this past spring.
‘Old Love’ is a romantic comedy about a man’s pursuit of a good woman who is newly widowed. At her husband’s funeral an old acquaintance emerges to pay his respects leading to a reawakening of forgotten emotions. It is a story of romance, courtship, and the complexities in modern relationships.
It features the husband and wife team of Dario and Theresa Laurenti, actors with over 30 years of experience each with numerous acting awards at the regional and provincial level.
Wherever it has been performed it has received stellar reviews. The Simcoe Reformer said it had “brilliant comedic moments.” The Detroit Free Press said, “few shows will leave an audience happier.” The Long Beach Telegram said “it is as funny as it is touching,” and Encore Michigan called it, “a love story for the ages.”
‘Kindertransport,’ the name given to the operation which transported Jewish children to England before the war, examines the life, during World War II and afterwards of a Kindertransport child, and through the historical context the relationships between mothers and daughters.
Michael Erskine of The Manitoulin Expositor called it “breathtaking drama” and Tom Sasvari of the Manitoulin West Recorder said it was a “deeply moving production with a stellar cast, a must see.”
It features a cast of six, Tara Bernatchez, Jack Clark, Lori Evans, Kayla Greenman, Shannon McMullan and Kyleen Robertson.
At the Northern Ontario Drama Festival the adjudicator said the audience was “spellbound for an hour and 45 minutes with brilliant acting, a stunning set and lighting design for a truly magical evening of theatre.”
The company received nine nominations and five awards for their production including the adjudicator’s awards for acting, the best supporting actor award, the best supporting actress award, best director award and the best visual presentation award. All six actors received accolades from the adjudicator and the appreciative audience, which gave them a standing ovation.
Co-directors Andrea Emmerton and Walter Maskel are very excited about the summer season. Ms. Emmerton said, “we have two wonderful productions with two terrific casts and we are certain that audiences will be amazed at the calibre of performances.”
Mr. Maskel added, “We hope that audiences will be able to see both productions because whether it is romantic comedy or powerful drama we know that people will be moved to laughter or tears.” Both agree that, “this is truly one of the strongest seasons of shows in Gore Bay Theatre’s history.”
Both productions will run in repertory so that audiences will be able to see the two productions on consecutive evenings. Ticket information and dates are in the advertisement in this paper.
