Plus...

Panic Squad & Friends

September 30, 2011

Welcome to the 2011/2012 Theatre Season...

Theatre has the mysterious ability to explore complex issues through good story-telling. It's difficult to explain the theatre experience in words, but when those house lights go down, we're transported to an imaginary world populated by imaginary people who deal with issues and concerns that strangely mirror our own experience. Somehow, we are entertained by the dialogue and action, and we are engaged in an emotional and intellectual experience that challenges us, encourages us and inspires us. There's nothing quite like live theatre!

This season, we will explore community in all its complexity, diversity and uniqueness, from both macro and micro perspectives. What makes a community tick? How do the actions of one affect the equilibrium of the whole? How does a community influence the individual? With the incredible onslaught of online social networking, exploring community couldn't come at a more crucial time.

We begin our season with S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders, a powerful story about youth caught in a reality not entirely of their own choosing, and who struggle to find meaning, belonging and hope. In January, we explore faith, entitlement and friendship in Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, and in March we present Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, a hilarious and biting social satire about love and mistaken identity. We wrap the season up in June with a production of the longest running musical in history, The Fantasticks, a story about innocence, love, temptation and contentment.

Of course, no season would be complete without the insane comedy of Panic Squad & Friends in Fall, plus the return of workshops and our Theatre Side Chat Series. We're also delighted to see that our recent production of Tuesdays with Morrie will be revived for a two-week run at Pacific Theatre in Vancouver this September. And finally, our fourth annual "Imagine" Fundraising Gala happens May 5, 2012.

As our valued community, I invite you to join us for another entertaining and compelling theatre season here at Gallery 7. Purchase your season passes and get ready for a series of stories that matter. Live. Breathe. Experience.

Ken Hildebrandt
Executive/Artistic Director