Foothills entertainers are giving hope to those impacted by one of the worst disasters in Alberta’s history.
Dewdney Players Group Theatre and Foothills Philharmonic Chorus are joining forces to host the inaugural Harvest of Hope variety concert Oct. 28 at 7 p.m. at the Okotoks Alliance Church.
The event will raise money to support the Wood Buffalo Food Bank in Fort McMurray.
Fort McMurray was devastated last spring when wildfires ravaged several hectares of land. The food bank lost tens of thousands of dollars worth of food items due to smoke damage and no electricity for almost a week. In August, a fire damaged the food bank’s warehouse in downtown Fort McMurray and $200,000 in food was lost.
“With everything that happened at Fort McMurray, I thought it would be nice to be able to do this and help them at the same time,” said Sue Gothard, one of the Harvest of Hope organizers. “I thought how lovely it would be if the local groups could get together and do something just for the fun of it.”
Gothard, a member of the chorus and Dewdney, said she’d been thinking about getting the two organizations together for months. She was approached by members of the chorus with the same thought and they began working together to plan a benefit concert.
Harvest of Hope will feature more than 15 performances, which include skits, readings, a jazz ensemble, harp player, opera singer and chamber choir, among others.
“We began with a small concert get-together to raise some funds and it grew from there,” said Gothard. “This is the first ever collaboration. There is so much individual talent. We have soloists and duets from the musical group and the Dewdney stuff has humour in it, which is lovely. They are interspersed nicely with the musical pieces and expertly put together. The whole thing is going to be so much fun for people.”
Cindy MacDonald, a founding members of the chorus who’s helping to organize the benefit concert, said there will be something for everyone.
“It’s a complete variety because it’s not just classical and not just theatre stage, there is dramatic readings and stuff like that, too,” she said. “We will come together for a big number at the end.”
MacDonald will perform in a couple of duets with other members of the chorus, including a performance of The Flower Duet.
“It’s going to be so much fun,” she said. “We have so many incredible musicians who do things that aren’t necessarily just singing in the choir. Our accompanist is an accomplished harpist and is bringing two of her original pieces to the concert.”
MacDonald is also excited about what Dewdney’s performances, which include a satire of the Twelve Days of Christmas and the one-act play Post-its that Dewdney performed during Alberta Culture Days last month.
The 15-minute performance tells the story of a couple’s relationship read entirely from a stack of Post-it notes.
“The Dewdney Players have really put together some fun stuff,” MacDonald said. “It’s going to be so much fun. People will really be moved by Post-its. It’s funny, but it’s also really touching.”
MacDonald said she’s excited to see the two groups together on stage in one performance.
“We thought it’s wonderful to come together,” she said. “Everybody gets to know each other and it becomes a collaboration. We want to fill the whole place because we want to make a difference for the Wood Buffalo Food Bank. It’s something we would like to continue doing either yearly or biannually.”
In addition to raising money from ticket sales, which cost $20 for adults and children and $15 for seniors, money will also be raised from a silent auction, 50/50 ticket sales and a donation box. Refreshments will be provided.
Tickets can be purchased at the Okotoks Alliance Church or by calling 403-938-2614.
