Months spent engrossed in dysfunction has prepared an experienced cast of seven actors and actresses for a performance riddled with adultery and inner conflicts.
The Dewdney Players Group Theatre has spent the past few months rehearsing the historical period drama The Lion in Winter, which is riddled with scandals, schemes and sibling rivalry. Performances take place May 11-12, 17-19 and 24-26 at 7:30 p.m. with matinees May 19 and 26 at 2 p.m. at the Rotary Performing Arts Centre.
The modern-day classic written by James Goldman that’s appeared on both Broadway and the big screen, tells the story of a family competing to inherit a kingdom during the Christmas of 1183. King Henry wants to see his youngest son inherit the throne and his estranged and imprisoned wife Eleanor, temporarily released from prison for the holidays, favours their oldest son as the successor.
Scott Fea, a Calgary actor who’s performed for Dewdney before, as well as various theatre companies in Calgary, both on stage and behind the stage, plays the charismatic King Henry II.
"He’s larger than life and always doing weird things,” he said. "He keeps everybody on their toes. It’s a very dysfunctional family.”
It was Henry who put Eleanor in prison for 10 years, said Fea. On top of that, his mistress is the daughter of the late King of France who was betrothed to his son.
"Just that whole relation that she’s almost his adopted daughter, that’s scandalous off the bat,” he said. "The characters are all a little larger than life but they bring a little humour and charm. There’s a lot of wit that’s laced with sarcasm and shock.”
Fea said he was invited to audition by director Brad Snowden, who he worked with in 2012 in the play I’ll be Back Before Midnight. He had also performed in Robin Hood in the Park in 2014 with Dewdney.
"That was a great experience,” he said. "He was a lot of fun to work with. The idea of working with Brad again was really inviting and after the auditions when he was offering me the role of Henry, I was quite honoured.”
Fea admits that he didn’t know the play well. He said he knew there was a movie that was fairly well regarded starring Peter O’Toole and Katharine Hepburn. After reading the script, he said he found the subject matter pretty cool, although also outlandish.
"I think if people are ready for things like Game of Thrones that are soap operas with kings and princesses, this is a bit more of a historically-based drama of that league, but it’s got a nice blend of drama and humour. There are a couple of things some people might find a little shocking.”
Fea said both Snowden and producer Jane Platt have done a bang-up job in preparing The Lion in Winter for Okotoks’ stage.
"We are really working to make sure wherever they are sitting in that theatre you can see it well and have a great time.”
Platt said The Lion in Winter is a big show that seems long at first, but once the show gets going the audience will be engrossed in the storyline and the range of characters and personalities.
"When we first started it seemed quite a task,” she said. "We’ve got a director and assistant director. The director went to Austria for a month because his son is getting married and the assistant director worked mainly on the characters and bringing out the colours of the characters.”
Platt added that the play has a great cast of experienced actors. She calls Fea a veteran who has done a great job of portraying King Henry with his desire to appease everyone by keeping on their good side – except maybe his wife Eleanor.
The Lion in Winter differs from some of Dewdney’s more recent plays like Calendar Girls and The 39 Steps as it’s on the side of a dark comedy, she said.
"We’ve not done a historical one for a while,” she said. "This is a little more serious than we’ve had for a while but it’s still good just to see if Eleanor is going to outwit Henry and who is going to be the king.”
Tickets to see The Lion in Winter cost $20 for adults and $15 for seniors and students. Tickets cost $5 more at the door.
To purchase tickets go to www.okotoksculture.ca
