Author: kaytroth

Boy, Do I Have Some Catching Up to Do!

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What can I say? Between 2022 and 2023, I was so busy that I really didn’t have a chance to keep posting here. (As a writer, you’d think I’d be better at this.) So let’s catch you up on what’s been going on.

My Blue Heaven, Continued (Pivot Theatre – 2022)

Continuing on from my last post, Pivot did indeed win the wildcard slot at TheatreBC’s Mainstage Festival in Vernon. We were awarded Best Ensemble and the Backstage Cooperation Award, along with a certificate recognizing us as the “New Kids on the Block”. First road trip to Vernon, and recognition that we’re doing good work felt fantastic. And it also was an extra chance to work with these lovely folks again. (Plus snuck in a little camping trip afterwards.)

Twist (North Vancouver Community Players – 2022)

Bodies popping out where they’re not supposed to! (Credit: North Vancouver Community Players

Twist was another show that was sidelined by the pandemic, and originally assigned to a different director. But the fates handed it to me, and it was nice to be directing at the theatre that’s close to home for a change! This was a logistical challenge, with people hiding in chests and dumb waiters, not to mention an actor who ended up having to do almost the entire run on crutches.

Rumors (Vagabond Players – 2023)

These guys had way too much here (Credit: Vagabond Players)

Rumors is a Neil Simon classic, and due to a scheduling issue, we had to turn it around in four weeks (which is about six less than I like). Thank god for great actors, and an even better stage manager. Working with friends old and new was therapeutic, and I loved every second of it.

Perfect Arrangement (Pivot Theatre – 2023)

A masterpiece in every way. The Canadian premiere of a script to die for, and actors who made my job incredibly easy. We won the Fraser Valley Zone Festival, and got to go to Mainstage for the second year in a row. Didn’t win there, but won Best Ensemble (again, second year in a row). I miss working with these ones, because the work was so rewarding.

Doin’ Time at the Alamo (North Vancouver Community Players – 2023)

Checking out the surprise prison boyfriend (Credit: North Vancouver Community Players)

Finally, a trip down to Texas with this play by Mary Hanes. This show is one of my favourites, primarily due to the people I got to work with on it. My second at NVCP, I’m really proud of how this cast bonded together, and that we had so much fun together.

And Finally, a Break! (Sort of…)

The way that the current season shook out has given me a break from directing for a few months, which I’m really enjoying. But I also have been learning how to build sets, and have done two so far. They certainly aren’t masterpieces, but I’m definitely a member of the ‘how hard could it be?’ club, and they didn’t fall down during the runs, so I’d call that a win.

And that brings us up to date. Hopefully I’ll get better at keeping up. But I wouldn’t bet the farm on it…

My Blue Heaven

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The cast of My Blue Heaven (L-R: Kevin Ibbotson, Beck-Marie, Leaminn Ma)
(Photo: Pivot Theatre)

This spring, I had the honour of directing Pivot Theatre’s first production, My Blue Heaven. Written by Jane Chambers in 1981, it’s the story of Josie and Molly, a long-term lesbian couple who pick up stakes from New York City in 1975 and move to a decrepit old farm upstate. Josie is the eternal optimist, eager to create her own Green Acres, while Molly is miserable after losing her teaching job because she wrote a book called ‘Living the Good Gay Life’.

My Blue Heaven was the little show that could. We started out with a simple eight-show run at the Newton Cultural Centre in Surrey, and that was going to be it. But then to our surprise, the Fraser Valley Zone Festival came back to life after two years off, and they invited us to come play. We didn’t want to pass up the opportunity to let our peers know about Pivot, so My Blue Heaven went to Festival. We even walked away with a couple of awards: Best Costumes for Margaret Shearman, and Best Sound Design for our actor Kevin Ibbotson, who personally provided all the animal and car sound effects while on stage. The adjudicator, Kathryn Shaw, also gave Pivot a certificate of recognition for our first outing.

With small shows, the producer and
director double as lighting and sound techs! (Photo: TheatreBC)

But it doesn’t end there. After discussing it amongst cast and crew, Pivot decided to put My Blue Heaven forward for the draw that would send one additional show to the TheatreBC Mainstage festival in Vernon. To our shock, we won the wildcard slot, and we were off to the Okanagan for one last show. It was a unique experience, and for a few days we could completely be artists (temporarily putting aside our day jobs) and immerse ourselves in the experience. The show went off without a hitch – my couple of slightly-delayed calls aside – and we came home with another couple of awards: the Backstage Cooperation Award (for our incredibly efficient use of time during move in and tech), and the Best Ensemble Award.

My thanks go out to Kevin Ibbotson, Leaminn Ma, Beck-Marie, and Maddy Stenstrom for their incredible hard work and dedication to bringing this relatively unknown show to life not once, but three times. And especially to our producer and visionary, Margaret Shearman. I hope we did you proud!

Haven’t Done This in a While…

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I really need to get better at this blogging thing!

It’s blatantly apparent that I’m really bad at posting here on a regular basis. But a bout of COVID has sidelined me this week, and I’ve also had a pretty good excuse – I’ve been BUSY. Since restrictions started lifting last year, theatre returned with a vengeance. All of the shows that were previously cancelled and postponed came back to life, and having done nothing artistic for the better part of a year and a half, it was time to take hold of the reigns again. So let me catch you up on the goings on.

Happy Birthday

The cast and crew of ‘Happy Birthday’ (Photo: Metro Theatre)

First, Happy Birthday by Marc Camoletti (adapted by Beverly Cross). My fifth show at Metro Theatre. Luckily we only needed to recast one role, and we were able to start up relatively quickly. This one was an established British comedy filled with people behaving badly, but the same could not be said of the cast. A lovelier bunch of people you’ll never meet.

My Blue Heaven

The cast of ‘My Blue Heaven’ (Photo: Pivot Theatre)

The next show was Jane Chambers’ My Blue Heaven, the first show mounted by Surrey’s newest community theatre. While written 40 years ago, it still speaks to many of the issues that the LGBTQIA2S+ community today. Not only did it run in March, but it was invited to the Fraser Valley Zone Festival in May, and then won the wildcard slot at the TheatreBC Mainstage festival in July.

Moon Over Buffalo

The cast and crew of ‘Moon Over Buffalo’ (Photo: Deep Cove Stage Society)

Finally, Moon Over Buffalo by Ken Ludwig. Carol Burnett led this show’s Broadway debut in 1995, and it’s farce at its best, complete with slamming doors, drunken antics, affairs, and time crunches. It was my first show with Deep Cove Stage Society, and my return to North Vancouver after my last show there in 2018. This cast and crew were troopers, filling in for one another as we dealt with various COVID diagnoses. And they brought the funny every single night.

Now, you would think I’d take a break after all that, right? Not a chance. Twist opens October 20th at Hendry Hall in North Vancouver. Tickets soon go on sale at https://northvanplayers.ca/tickets/.

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Yes, That’s Me.

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©Netflix

So last November, I got to spend a few days in Victoria to shoot a small role on Maid. (That’s me – the cranky grocery clerk with Alex in Episode 4.) This was shot in a fabulous little independent store that had been in Victoria for 48 years, the kind of small-town store that’s cluttered and cramped and just has a life and history to it that large chain stores don’t. Sadly, it’s since been announced that they’ve closed as the owners have decided to retire.

I’ve got to say…”Cleanup on Aisle Poor” may be my most memorable line to date. It fits what this show is portraying so well, and demonstrates the biases that we carry against those just trying to make it through life.

Trailer is below, and you can watch it on Netflix here.