While the weather outside may be cold and frightful, the talented folks of Innisfail Town Theater are preparing to heat things up at the Ol' Moose Hall this season with their fall production, Bedtime Stories by Norm Foster.
The show will be the company's final production for its historic 35th anniversary year.
In keeping with the long-standing tradition of fun and entertaining fare for the holiday season, Bedtime Stories promises to be a delightfully hilarious romp.
The adult themed play is a series of six separate vignettes approximately 20 minutes each, all set in the bedroom. It features an eclectic group of characters ranging from the buttoned-down parents of a college-aged daughter to an aging rock god, with almost everything in between.
A common thread running through the stories loosely unites them all, and everything comes together neatly in the end during an entertaining climax.
Mary Stenhouse, who is co-directing the play with fellow ITT alumni Janis Bell and Christine Chalaturnyk, says the audience can expect to be thoroughly entertained.
"Norm Foster is wonderful in the sense that his plays are always funny and poignant at the same time," she said.
The cast is a large one in terms of dinner theatre standards, with 15 actors gracing the stage at different times during the series of stories. The actors, a nice mixture of newcomers and veterans, range from their late teens to their mid-50s and hail from all over Central Alberta.
This of course poses its own challenges, especially in a volunteer theatre setting where everyone has jobs, school or family commitments.
"It is always interesting with so many people trying to arrange rehearsal schedules," said Stenhouse, "But it seems to be working out well. People have been quite flexible."
It has also been a great benefit that all three of the directors have similar ideas as to how they want the play to unfold. "It has really been wonderful working with Janis and Christine. It sounds like a cliché, but honestly, I really couldn't have done this without them," said Stenhouse. "We are all on the same page as far as our vision for the play goes, and that makes it a whole lot easier, especially if one of us is unable to attend a rehearsal."
The play opens at the Ol' Moose Hall in Innisfail on Nov. 20, and runs Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays through Dec. 6. There will be one general, or "show-only", performance, which will take place opening night, and the rest of the shows will be dinner theatre performances.
Tickets are on sale now at The Leg Man, located at 5036 - 50 St. in Innisfail, or can be attained by calling 403-227-5966. Prices are $25 for the Nov. 20 show and $45 for the dinner theatre performances. Seating is limited and shows are selling fast, so Stenhouse encourages everyone to get their tickets soon.
"We do ask that people keep in mind this is a show geared towards adults with adult themes and language," said Stenhouse. "However it is extremely funny and all the performances are terrific."
Doors open at 6 p.m., with the Nov. 20 show starting at 7 p.m. For the rest of the performances, dinner will be served shortly after the doors open, and the show starts at 8 p.m.
