Our next session of Reading Theatre on May 28 will focus on John Murrell’s Waiting For The Parade. Reading begins at 2pm so please show up by 1:45pm if you wish to have a chance to read.
For this session of Reading Theatre, we have obtained the play reading set from the Vancouver Public Library which comes with 5 scripts. We encourage you to bring your own copy if you have it or borrow it from your local library. We won’t be making paper copies to reduce waste.
ABOUT WAITING FOR THE PARADE
Waiting for the Parade takes place on the Home Front, World War II, Calgary. Through a series of 24 slice-of-life vignettes, war time songs and presentational monologues, we are shown the war time experience through the perspective of five very different women, brought together by their collective desire to assist with the war effort. Together these woman struggle, argue, sing, drink and dance, and they find a way to survive a defining moment in Canadian history, when a national identity based on working together and accepting difference was born. Originally created at Alberta Projects in 1977; this charming, funny, and touching drama that is one of our country’s best-loved plays.
ABOUT JOHN MURRELL
John Murrell is one of the most frequently produced Canadian playwrights. His plays have been translated into fifteen different languages and performed internationally. His work for the stage includes Waiting for the Parade, a Canadian classic; Memoir, which has been produced world-wide; Chalmers Best Canadian Play Award winners Farther West and The Faraway Nearby; and the libretto for the acclaimed opera Filumena. As a translator, he has created frequently revived versions of Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya, The Seagull, and The Cherry Orchard; Ibsen’s The Doll House; Rostand’s Cyrano de Bergerac; and The Four Lives of Marie, Elisa’s Skin, and Seven Days in the Life of Simon Labrosse, all by Carole Fréchette.
Reading Theatre is created for those with a passion for live theatre. A live play reading of iconic plays over the ages. All are welcome and encouraged — from the seasoned professional to the inquisitive amateur and everyone in between.
Show up and read, or listen to others read these incredible shows. A short discussion may take place…or not. This is an event led by the cast and audience.
Readers will be chosen just before the play reading begins and will be cast by those who show up and express an interest in being involved. Some roles may be double cast.
This event is being led by Allan Morgan, Senior Artist in Residence and Vancouver theatre scene stalwart. We’d love to see you there!
ABOUT ALLAN MORGAN
Allan has been a stage actor for more than thirty years. Some highlights include appearing in London, GB, Adelaide Australia, Wellington NZ and San Francisco, all with The Overcoat. He appeared for several seasons at Bard on the Beach, notably in The Tempest as Prospero, as well as King John, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Much Ado About Nothing.
He has toured across Canada with the Electric Company in Studies in Motion. He has appeared at The Belfry, notably in The Drawer Boy, Dirty Blonde, and I am My Own Wife for which he received the Victoria Critic’s Award for best performance. Other favourites include Red, Thinking of Yu, and Abraham Lincoln Goes to the Theatre for ATP in Calgary.
Allan has two solo plays: I Walked the Line; and PRIDE: For the Young Gay, the Un-Gay and the Jaded Queen in All of Us.
