Several\u00a0Winnipeg\u00a0theatre companies have joined forces this month\u00a0to celebrate the power of\u00a0the local theatre\u00a0scene\u00a0and the one-act play.<\/p>\n
This short-form theatre form was what\u00a0first sparked the idea that became the Little Theatre Festival last year.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe did a double header together with another theatre company\u00a0with another theatre company last January… and people were really excited about the idea,\u201d explains Siobhan Keely, one of the directors of the Little Theatre Festival and the artistic director of\u00a0the An Seancha\u00ed theatre company.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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Another catalyst for the formation of the Little Theatre Festival was a\u00a0smaller amount of theatre offerings in the city of Winnipeg over the last few years. \u201cThere\u2019s definitely been a void since COVID,\u201d says festival board member Steph Blanchette. \u201cIt\u2019s\u00a0just really scratched an itch that people have had to create more theatre.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Over the course of February, the festival has presented multiple one-act plays at the Irish Association of Manitoba in the West End. By\u00a0the time the festival concludes at the end of the month, a dozen local theatre companies will have shared not just a production, but also the resources\u00a0so that all the participating groups can share the best show possible.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe response was overwhelming,\u201d says Blanchette. \u201cPeople were all too happy to sign up and be part of it, figure out ways to collaborate and work together.\u00a0They\u2019re\u00a0sharing sets and props, sharing actors, sharing directors.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0just really been\u00a0a beautiful\u00a0collaboration.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the reasons why we decided to do this festival was because a community theatre company doesn\u2019t have the funding, the backing, the financial support, the access to this, that and the other,\u201d adds Keely,\u00a0sharing that on multiple occasions, performers from one theatre company will jump into another company\u2019s production to cover for performer illness or other unexpected circumstance.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
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With this spirit of collaboration, Keely and Blanchette are already dreaming about what the Little Theatre Festival could look like in future years. \u201cThere are constant daily texts between the three of us going, \u2018OK, next year, OK, next year,\u2019\u201d smiles Keely,\u00a0hinting at plans to add more groups to the festival and extending the weekend runs to include more productions. \u201cWe\u2019re\u00a0looking at a lot of things, but we really feel that this year has been successful in the way\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0happened. There\u2019s always room to make things better.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Little Theatre Festival\u2019s third weekend gets underway at 7:30 p.m. on February 20 at the Irish Association of Manitoba on Erin Street with\u00a0additional\u00a0performances at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on February 21. The festival\u2019s final weekend features performances on February 27 and 28. More information\u00a0on the productions being shared and links to tickets can be found at the festival\u2019s website<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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