Skip to content

Drama society takes centre stage

The Westlock and District Drama Society is inviting local theatre fans, and their imaginary friends, to its production of the Pulitzer Prize winning play Harvey.
The cast of Harvey is diligently rehearsing for the play’s opening March 11. Dr. Sanderson, played by Matthew Char-rois (left), converses with protagonist Elwood P.
The cast of Harvey is diligently rehearsing for the play’s opening March 11. Dr. Sanderson, played by Matthew Char-rois (left), converses with protagonist Elwood P. Dowd (Ron Lechelt).

The Westlock and District Drama Society is inviting local theatre fans, and their imaginary friends, to its production of the Pulitzer Prize winning play Harvey.

Written in 1944 by American playwright Mary Chase, Harvey is the comedic tale of Elwood P. Dowd who claims to have an invisible friend — a six-foot tall, rabbit-looking creature called a Pooka, from Celtic folklore.

Dowd introduces Harvey to everyone he meets, until his sister decides to have him committed to a sanitarium.

The production, directed by Matthew Jemmett, will open at the CATS Theatre March 11 at 2 p.m., with more shows scheduled for March 15-17, and another matinee at 2 p.m. March 18. Tickets are available online, at the Real Country 97.7 studio, or at Windsor Plywood.

“It’s a timeless classic and yet so relevant in this day and age,” said Jemmett.

“It appeals to so many different people on so many different levels. Kids are able to come and enjoy it because there’s this nice, funny man who has an imaginary friend, but at the same time it speaks to those people that are a little bit different in our lives.”

Harvey tackles the idea of the stigma of mental illness and explores themes around family dynamics.

Jemmett said there has been a lot more interest in the drama society as of late. Ever since last year’s production of Having Hope at Home he has fielded more inquiries.

“It’s nice to see we’re having a resurgence and we’re continuing to take that momentum and use it to move forward with it,” he said. “We’re always interested in having more members because, of course, more hands makes light work.”

The drama society isn’t just for actors either as there is a lot of behind-the-scenes work that goes into staging each and every production. Set builders, costume designers and make-up artists, among others, are all required for the success of any show, he said.

“There’s a lot of people that might be interested in theatre but don’t want to get up on stage.

“If you want to get up on stage that’s cool, but if you’re a seamstress and you want to be involved in the drama society, we’d love to have you.”

push icon
Be the first to read breaking stories. Enable push notifications on your device. Disable anytime.
No thanks