ATHABASCA — Lovers of live theatre and folklore of yore, unite: Theatre Athabasca is bringing a unique production of a beloved fairy tale to town this month, and kids, adults, and anyone with appreciation for a well-told story won’t want to miss out.
A retelling of Snow White, written by Greg Banks, will hit the stage at the Nancy Appleby Theatre Oct. 25 for two showings: one free performance during the day for local school kids and youth groups, and another rendition in the evening for the wider community.
“It’s part of our mandate at Theatre Athabasca to provide inclusive theatre performances, whether they be ‘pay what you will’ or free performances,” said Cheryl Andrews, co-founder of the company alongside her husband, Frazer Andrews.
The Andrews' company is bringing another crew to put on the fairytale show. Quest Theatre has its home base in Calgary but puts on shows across the province for Alberta’s youth.
“Most people have a version of Snow White in their minds; a lot of us have the Disney version in our minds,” said Nikki Loach, artistic director at Quest Theatre. “It’s a folktale, a fairytale, and the charm of those stories is that everybody gets to tell their own version.”
Loach cautioned Quest Theatre’s retelling will differ from the animated and live-action Disney iterations of the tale, but the expected themes of good versus evil and the definition of true beauty will be entwined throughout the story along with new motifs.
She noted in the original publication of Snow White by The Brothers Grimm, the main character’s association with snow isn’t related to her skin colour, but rather the pureness of her heart.
“It opens up that possibility of that actress being played by a person of colour,” said Loach. “Every kid can see themselves in this story, and you don’t have to be white.”
Other aspects of Quest Theatre’s retelling will bring novelty to the well-known story, too. The many characters in Snow White will be played by only two actors, who will convey the story using items like pool noodles and more as props.
“It requires the audience to come along with us with their imagination in our creativity and see the story in a whole new way. But it is that classic story; it’s got the apple that’s poisoned, it’s got the magic mirror, it’s got the evil stepmother,” said Loach.
Along with their stop in Athabasca, Loach and the Quest Theatre team will be heading all across the province, with stops from Grande Prairie all the way south to Taber.
The crew will be performing for school groups as large as 700 and as small as 70, and one particular spot will bring the show to one school where many students use mobility aids.
Tickets for the Oct. 25, 5:30 p.m. show are on sale online at Theatre Athabasca’s website and at Value Drug Mart. Admission for kids 12 and under is $10, and $15 for adults.
“I think people are getting excited, it’s kind of special,” said Andrews. “We don’t get a professional theatre company from Calgary come to town that often, so we’re lucky.”
