It’s that time of year again as the Westlock Rotary Club puts together its annual dinner theatre production as it has for decades, this year though, there will be a few noticeable changes.
Most notably, with last year’s departure of long-time organizers Dick and Bunnie Arth, the Westlock Drama Society has come on board and Matt Jemmett will be taking over the reigns as director of the production, which is slated for its opening night Oct. 18 at the Westlock and District Community Hall.
Canadian playwright David S. Scott’s Having Hope at Home will run Oct. 18-20 with a matinee showing, with no meal offered, starting at 2 p.m. on Oct. 20. From Oct. 24-27, there will be four shows including the Oct. 27 matinee, again starting at 2 p.m. with no meal.
The cast will then perform their final shows Nov. 1-2. Besides the Sunday matinees, all shows are scheduled for 7. p.m., with doors opening at 5 p.m. For the matinees, doors open at 1 p.m.
“We actually put this play on a couple of years ago with the drama society. It was well-received, people really liked the play, so we’re excited to have this large group of people that come out to see dinner theatre shows every year, to see this show because the timing is kind of perfect,” said Jemmett. “The show starts the week after Thanksgiving and the show takes place in Canada at Thanksgiving dinner.”
In the play, three generations of a family feud with each other as they await the arrival of a newborn child in the dead of winter in a drafty farmhouse.
Modern medicine and midwifery collide as the three generations work their way through their issues and come out better for it, with the new arrival acting as a catalyst. The play has been described as “a light comedy with serious intentions.”
“I guess you could call it a ‘dramedy,’” said Jemmett, adding there will be some live music to go along with the show, even though its not technically a musical. “One could call it a ‘dramedy’ in the fact that it’s a funny show, but there are also some heartfelt, emotional moments, but I think the big thing about the show is that it will connect with a lot of people with its themes of family and acceptance and love. There is going to be a lot of things for people to enjoy.”
As for taking over director duties from Bunnie Arth after she poured her heart and soul into 26 iterations of the dinner theatre event, Jemmett said it has been “nerve-wracking” at times.
“I had a number of talks with Bunnie and they did wonders for the community by doing a show for as long as they did and it’s great to be able to continue that because last year, everyone thought it would be the last show,” said Jemmett. “It goes to show that if we want these things we think are great for the community to continue, we need other people to continue to step up and do their part.”
“For me I love the arts and I love theatre and I didn’t want to see something like this, that has been a tradition for 25 years, go away.”
Tickets are available at Arth’s Fashion Centre from Monday to Friday between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. with the first three rows closest to the stage going for $65 dollars. Regular tickets are $60, while matinee seats are $30.
