St. Patrick's Day is a good time to throw a party, but it might be pushing it when you're holding a wake — unless you're Dewdney Players.
St. Patrick's Day is a good time to throw a party, but it might be pushing it when you're holding a wake — unless you're Dewdney Players.
The Okotoks theatre group is inviting people to raise their glasses in memory of the late Charlie Lafferty in the Irish musical comedy Lafferty's Wake. Performances take place March 10, 11, 16-18 and 23-25 at 7:30 p.m. in the Royal Duke Eatery and Pub.
“It's definitely not your standard stage play,” said Daniel Rose, who plays a Catholic priest. “I can only hope the audience will have at least as much fun as we are. It's been a great experience so far.”
The audience becomes part of Lafferty's life celebration, joining his widow, daughter, son-in-law, priest and innkeeper as they commemorate the rambling, gambling life of Lafferty with plenty of jokes, jigs, games, stories and Irish songs.
“It's definitely been an interesting experience,” said Rose. “I'm not too familiar with improv, but we put a lot of work into developing the characters – how they would react to situations. For the most part a lot of the stuff when we're interacting with the audience, it's mostly just us talking one sidedly at them, not giving them an opportunity to respond.”
The actors are preparing themselves for anything the audience with throw at them.
“We've got contingencies in place so if they say something ridiculous we just carry on,” he said. “It's not something that I've done before and I'm not comfortable with so I wanted to push my boundaries a bit and try something different.”
Another challenge for the cast is the venue.
Rehearsals take place at the Aldersyde Community Hall and performances will take place at the Royal Duke.
“Our rehearsal space is a fraction of the size of the actual venue,” he said. “It's trying to get in our heads around where we are going to actually want to be. Some of the cast have never been in the building.”
Jo-Anne Giffen, who plays Lafferty's best friend's wife, has never acted before and is nervous about putting the hours of practice into action.
“I decided to be brave and try something new,” she said. “I thought why not try out for the hardest thing you possibly can – an Irish accent, singing, comedy and improv. It's not traditional, that's for sure. It's probably going to be just a rush of adrenaline.”
Giffen gets into character outside of rehearsals, walking around public speaking with an Irish dialect.
“Everybody is very annoyed that I'm speaking in an Irish accent,” she said. “Someone from Ireland asked what part of Ireland I'm from so I must be doing it right.”
Although she's getting in lots of practice, the new Okotokian admits she has butterflies.
“It's been nerve-racking,” she said. “Everybody has at least a couple years of experience.”
Producer Jane Platt admits Lafferty's Wake presents its challenges, but it's the second time Dewdney has performed the Irish comedy.
“It was so popular they sold out every night,” she said. “We thought we would do it again, this time with a different director, different producers and different cast.”
There is a lot of pressure on the actors to be prepared for anything, said Platt.
“It's audience participation from start to finish,” she said. “The cast will be on the stage, they will be mingling with the audience. The cast has to think on their feet.”
Adding to a cast of seven actors will be a four-member choir responsible for encouraging the audience to join in the singing.
“They have to put their heart and soul into it and keep the beat going,” she said. “You've got to keep the feeling in the atmosphere going. It's a wake, obviously, but the Irish like to drink at wakes.”
Musical director Elly Platt said a seven-piece band will support the choir with instruments ranging from a penny whistle to a fiddle.
The performance boasts 11 songs, plus a pre-show intermission and post-show set list, she said.
“The songs are easy and catchy,” she said. “You'll very quickly get them in your head, tap your feet and clap your hands.”
While not every actor has a musical background, Elly said they were selected based on their vocal competency.
“The songs aren't hard, but we're making them our own,” she said. “Each character is slightly different so what they bring to each solo will be different. We are playing on that.”
Having the audience participate can make things a challenge for those with little to no musical experience, said Elly.
“We've said to them the audience will be clapping and not necessarily will clap in time,” she said. “There's a challenge in making sure the songs are cemented in the cast so they know when to come in. During practices a few of us pretend to be audience members.”
Tickets cost $20 for adults and $15 for seniors, students and children and can be purchased at dewdneyplayers.com
