The Battlefords hosted some top-notch talent from community theatres from around the province during TheatreFest 2013.
The 79th edition of the event, presented by Theatre Saskatchewan Inc. and the host Battlefords Community Players, was held for the first time at the Dekker Centre for the Performing Arts.
TheatreFest chair Donna Challis said the event was one that saw "community theatre coming together to showcase some of the best in the province."
The festival began March 31 with a Battlefords Community Players presentation of Transit of Venus by Maureen Hunter, and wrapped up April 6 with Regina Little Theatre's presentation of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Jeffrey Hatcher, a new take on the horror classic by Robert Louis Stevenson.
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde won the Cameron Mcintosh Memorial Cup as the winning entry in the festival. The runner-up trophy went to Old Love from the Swift Current Little Theatre, performed April 3.
Other performances included You've Got Hate Mail by Billy Van Zandt and Jane Milmore, from Kerrobert's Prairieland Players; Romantic Fools, a comic vaudeville, by Rich Orloff, from Saskatoon Ageless Players; Roses in November by Neville J. Bryant from Moose Jaw Community Players; and Jenny's House of Joy by Norm Foster, from Cochin Community Players.
Battlefords Community Players received some recognition during the awards presentation Saturday night. Transit of Venus received the William Hubbard Memorial Plaque for Excellence or Meritorious Enterprise. As well, Jordan Boone, who played Celeste in that production, won the Margaret Corbett Aspirant Award offered to a novice participant who has shown "remarkable progress as a performing, production team member or crew member."
Geordie and Liz Smith of Battlefords Community Players were awarded the SaskEnergy Volunteer Award for their tireless contributions behind the scenes.
Challis said the two stood out among the volunteers they had at Battlefords Community Players this year. "They're always very involved but this year particularly they were involved in every show we had," said Challis.
Overall, Challis was proud of the awards for Battlefords Community Players, but also was not surprised that Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde won.
The festival was a major undertaking for Battlefords Community Players and all its volunteers. Challis credits the good volunteer support as well as strong support from the community in terms of sponsorships, silent auction items and those who attended the festival through the week.
The Dekker Centre for the Performing Arts was a centre for most of the activity during the week. Not surprisingly, participants gave rave reviews to the new facility that hosted TheatreFest for the first time.
"The groups were just amazed with this facility," said Challis. "It really is state of the art and we had a lot of fun performing here this week."
Another major venue throughout the week was the Tropical Inn, which hosted the Green Room after parties as well as the daily two-hour adjudication sessions. Those were conducted by Dr. David Garfinkle, the TheatreFest 2013 adjudicator for this year.
"He was very knowledgeable, wasn't afraid to share it, gave us all sorts of good ideas, and he dealt with each play differently," said Challis. "It was such a learning opportunity."
She said TheatreFest Battlefords Community Players picked up some ideas and new techniques they could use in their productions.
"It's always a good way to find and see a new play and you think 'oh gosh, I think we can do that,'" said Challis.
