Cow Patti Theatre Company is bringing another Norm Foster play to Lacombe.
Running from March 12 to April 5, Lunenberg is set in the maritimes — a common locale for one of Canada’s greatest playwrights.
Returning director Donnie Bowes, who recently shepherded The Great Khooshog Lake Hollis McCauley Fishing Derby, said the play brings the Nova Scotia town of Lunenberg to life, and any audience member with connections to rural Canada will see the parallels.
“In Lunenberg, he has written a very funny play that is layered with a great storyline that is full of surprises. The action in this play is all the revelations that the character of Iris finds out when she travels from Maine to Nova Scotia to see a house her husband of nine years owned,” Bowes said.
Iris, who is being played by Cow Patti owner AnnaMarie Lea, is the main character who travels to Lunenberg after her husband passes away.
“I spent quite a bit of time with my script, and it is so full,” Lea said. “It is almost overwhelming, and I am really challenged to justify my work with his words. I think it is quite brilliant.
“Iris is a simple gal who owns a lunch truck-catering business and she found the love of her life. He is killed and she finds out he owned this home she knew nothing about, so she asks her best friend to come up to Lunenberg. She finds out all kinds of things and things about herself.”
Iris is joined by her best friend Natalie, played by Ontario actor Debra Hale, who is is searching for answers herself.
“The character of Natalie comes as support for her friend and both of these women are middle-aged. The audience we will be performing to will identify with these women,” Hale said.
Natalie and Iris come upon the character of Charlie Butler in Lunenberg — played by Cow Patti veteran Jamie Williams.
“He is a lovable rogue and is described as a scamp — which he agrees to be,” Williams said.
“He wanders over when he sees two women at the house. He used to own the house and his original intention is to meet these ladies and have some fun.
“He gets drawn into their lives and develops a thing for one of the ladies.”
The whole play is brought together by stage manager Jackie McCormick, who is a longtime friend of Lea’s.
“There is a lot of heart in Norm Foster shows, and certainly in this one, it gives you as many laughs as any Norm Foster show I have ever worked on. It gives you warm feelings to walk away with,” she said.
Williams said the audience will walk away with a sense of hope after a series of revelations.
“All these characters meet in Lunenberg and it is a launching point to a new stage of their lives,” he said.
todd.vaughan@lacombeexpress.com
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