Local theatre company Project X’s upcoming production, Suburban Motel, billed as “Six plays . . . One motel room,” will feature nine current TRU students and six TRU alumni among the 21-member cast.
“We’re pretty lucky to have the TRU theatre program to draw talent from,” said co-artistic producer Derek Rein, a TRU theatre graduate himself.
His remarks were echoed by co-producer Samantha MacDonald, who was one of the university’s early theatre students, involved in the first production staged in the university’s Clock Tower theatre.
“We’re lucky the students are here and have such great training,” she said. “Our mandate is to essentially enrich the creative development of emerging artists in our community. The students are already getting a great education, and Project X gives them an opportunity to enrich their education and allow another step of experience.”
Featuring six one-act plays by acclaimed Canadian playwright George F. Walker, the production will stage two one-act plays per day from January 23rd to January 29th, and a “Motel Marathon” with all six on January 29th.
The plays, set in “a seedy, cheap motel room out on the edge of things,” feature “some of the most desperate people you’ll ever meet,” including a dirty cop, a kidnapped chef, a serial killer, a greedy widow, and a grandmother-gone-bad.
TRU actors and alumni direct all of the plays. Current students Dusan Magdolen and Adrian Mancini direct “Featuring Loretta” and “Risk Everything,” while the others are directed by TRU alumni Derek Rein (“Problem Child”), Melissa Thomas (“Adult Entertainment”) and Stewart Cawood (“Criminal Genius” & “The End of Civilization”).
“With this production, Project X is giving four new directors a chance to spread their wings and practice their directing skills,” explained Rein.
The directors also act in each other’s plays, along with current students Kaitlynn Dewhirst, Chris Cooley, Jessica Pattinson, Alexander Ross, Gisella Guzzo, Tara Zanella and Chris Fofonoff, and alumni Harmony Maher, Claire Covington and Brendan Methot.
Peter Evans, Gayle Heinrich, Desiree Maher-Schley, Lindsay Galbraith, Kim Bennett and Andrew Foster round out the 21-member cast.
All performances will be presented in the Pavilion Theatre beginning at 8:00 pm, with the exception of the marathon, which starts at 3:00 pm. Tickets, available at Kamloops Live! Box Office, are $12 for each performance, or all six plays for $30, which includes any three evening performances or the marathon.
For information, please contact: Derek Rein 250-377-7277 Samantha MacDonald 250-377-8818 Kaitlynn Dewhirst 250-574-3472
