ATHABASCA – It was a day of bad acting, in the best way possible.
The Big River Arts Society (BRASS) and the Rotary Club of Athabasca presented ‘Bad Auditions... Online’ in three virtual, pre-recorded performances at the Nancy Appleby Sept. 19 to limited audiences.
The play was adapted from a stage play and performed over video conferencing with director Gina Martel performing the role of casting agent for the popular fictitious TV show ‘Crime Court’ and Susan Galloway was her high-energy, less-than-prepared assistant.
Martel endured auditions ranging from a mom whose son was lighting fires in the background, interrupting the reading, a “professional” actress who kept mixing up her words, a man who kept moving out of the camera view, an arrogant stage actor, to a man who would perform the theme music to real TV show ‘Law & Order’ to highlight the important moments in the monologue.
Calgarians Kerri Schroeder and Kevin Krisa were visiting friends and family when they took in the second of the three showings. Schroeder not only won a set of tickets to the next dinner theatre, when allowed, put on by the Rotary and BRASS, but enjoyed the show.
“The assistant (Susan Galloway) was hilarious,” she said. “I loved her energy.”
When Martel couldn’t decide on which bad audition deserved the role a quick response, or QR, code was flashed on the screen and the audience were able to submit their choice.
BRASS also ran the play, with all alternate endings, on their website for 24 hours.
