The Lethbridge Shakespeare Performance Society is revisiting Shakespeare’s comedy “Twelfth Night” this summer.
A talented cast of University of Lethbridge students, recent graduate and community members open this summer’s run of Shakespeare’s gender bending comedy, on July 4 in Galt Gardens.
The local Shakespeare troupe, who are entering their thirteenth year performing Shakespeare in and Around Lethbridge will be in Galt Gardens most Thursdays at 7 p.m. and outside casa most Fridays., They will also be doing their usual road trips to the Empress Theatre on Friday, July 5, plus visits to the Coutts Arts centre outside of Nanton, July 21, The Venue in High River , Saturday, July 27 and will be performing one show at Nikka Yuko Japanese Gardens , Friday, Aug. 2 and in Legacy Park on Thursday, Aug. 1.
Sharon Peat, who is co-directing the show with Cole Fetting is excited to bring the comedy to the stage.
“I’ve been in the audience for years and thought their productions were wonderful. So when I retired, we had Covid, and then I got the itch to direct again,” Peat said, noting she is excited to work with Cole Fetting as co-director.
While Shakespeare in the Park has reinterpreted previous Shakespeare productions into more modern eras, like the western version of a A Comedy of Errors or setting the Tempest in space or Taming of the Shrew in the ’60s, Peat wanted to set “Twelfth Night” in a traditional Shakespeare setting.
“I love traditional Shakespeare. There’s no cowboys or aliens in this show. And I love that we have traditional costumes,” she said.
“It’s about a young woman who dresses as a man to get close to the Duke, the man she loves. And the gender confusion opens the door for shenanigans,” Peat summarized. Further comedy ensues when Maria, Dame Toby Blech, Fabian and timid Sir Andrew Agucheek played by Shakespeare in the Park veteran Jeff Graham. aided and abetted by Feste the Fool played by Jessica Ng, play a trick on the pompous puritan Malvolio played by U of L professor John Poulsen.
The cast includes some familiar faces as well as some new ones.
Emily Laidlaw is excited to explore her comedic side after playing some eclectic roles in her past two Shakespeare Performance Society shows. Her role in last year’s production of Taming of the Shrew was comedic, but Viola is the most comedic role she has played with the troupe.
“I always wanted to do Shakespeare and this was an excellent opportunity to do community theatre,” said Laidlaw, who plays Viola in “ A Twelfth Night.”
“Viola is in a shipwreck where she thinks her brother dies. She dresses up as a man to get close to Duke Orsino. She goes through a lot of internal processes in order to survive,” she said adding this role is a contrast to her first role with The Lethbridge Shakespeare Performance Society as Queen Gertrude— Hamlet’s mother.
“Gertrude has a lot of very serious qualities. She’s more sinister. Viola is a more comedic character. So it’s been great to play with that comedy,” Laidlaw said, adding she hopes audience will respond to Viola’s positivity.
“She’s a perfect character that embodies hope. And everybody needs hope,” she said.
Producer Kate Connolly noted it is a happy coincidence that the troupe is revisiting A Twelfth Night 10 years after they performed the comedy the first time, so she was ecstatic when Sharon Peat and Cole Fetting brought the play to the board.
“ We put out a call for directors and the board made a short list of five to examine,” she said.
“We had a lot of talented young directors. I hope they will apply again in 2025,” she said adding a bonus was giving talented costuming duo Amanda Epp and her sister Megan free reign to design the elaborate period costumes for the show on a shoestring budget, made all the more difficult by having funding from the city reduced.
“And one of the major private companies who sponsored us got taken over by another corporation,” she said adding community businesses have stepped up to cover some of the shortfall.
Connolly praised stage manager Amanda Fields.
“She’s also been amazing at creating props,” Connelly said, noting the cast consists of university students, grads and community members.
“We‘re very locally based,” Connelly said.
Rachel Robinson is embracing her first role with the Shakespeare Performance Society as Olivia. She joined the troupe through stage manager Amanda Fields.
“I was a nun in the Sound of Music and Amanda was the stage manager for that show. So she encouraged me to audition for A Twelfth Night,” Robinson enthused, adding she is enjoying playing Olivia, who falls in love with Duke Orsino’s servant Viola, mistaking her for a man.
“Olivia is a very wealthy and powerful person. She is used to getting what she wants, so she’s completely confused when she can’t have Viola,” Robinson described.
She hasn’t acted for a few years, so is excited to be back on stage.
“I acted a lot when I was a student at Winston Churchill and did a couple of shows at UBC. But I haven’t really acted in 10 years. So I’m really excited to get back on stage,” she said.
Robinson is excited to work with the cast.
“They are such a nice group of people. Everybody is so kind and generous. I love working with them,” she enthused adding she is impressed with how a hard everybody is working to make the show a success.
“I’m excited the audience will get to play with us. This is a Shakespeare farce,” she enthused.
All shows at casa and Galt Gardens begin at 7 p.m. Admission is free though donations are taken to pay the cast and crew honorariums. Opening night is July 4 in Galt Gardens.
— by Richard Amery, L.A. Beat Editor
