Arts Club Theatre to Reopen Next Month

June 9, 2021

The Arts Club Theatre Company announced that it will reopen its venues for live, on-site theatrical productions this summer, beginning next month. This special programming features two riveting solo shows, along with a powerful new audio play. Tickets for these shows will go on sale Wednesday, June 16, online.

Artistic Director Ashlie Corcoran, who revealed the Art Club’s summer lineup, said, “Once the province announced the plans to lift restrictions, which included allowing limited indoor gatherings, we celebrated the news. Then we got busy doing what we do best—creating live theatre! And all this will be done in the most stable, safe way possible.”

The summer will kick off with I, Claudia at the Newmont Stage at the BMO Theatre Centre. Lili Beaudoin will star in Kristen Thomson’s acclaimed play of a young girl coming into her own.

Performed with costume masks to signal character change, this show’s uncommon form will offer audiences a surprising, engaging experience. I, Claudia, published by Playwrights Canada Press, has been adapted into a film that was featured on the CBC and at the Toronto International Film Festival.

The second in-person show, Beneath Springhill: The Maurice Ruddick Story, will be performed at the Granville Island Stage. Beau Dixon’s work is a celebration of the real-life miner Maurice Ruddick’s hopefulness, joyful spirit and strength.

His positivity and courage, to be embodied by actor and singer Jeremiah Sparks, were a lifeline for himself and his colleagues during the 1958 mining disaster. This piece (and the music integral to it) invites audiences to experience what it would take to live through an unimaginable event and shines with the resiliency of the human spirit.

The third offering of the summer is an audio version of the award-winning Mala by Melinda Lopez. Making this work available in an intimate manner through digital means ensures that a wide audience can experience Carmen Aguirre’s commanding, funny performance as a woman who faces competing demands on her time and emotional resources. The audio play will be available from Wednesday, September 1.

I, Claudia

Dates: July 22 to August 15
Venue: Newmont Stage at the BMO Theatre Centre, 162 West 1st Avenue, Vancouver

Beneath Springhill: The Maurice Ruddick Story

Dates: August 5 to 29 
Venue: Granville Island Stage, 1585 Johnston Street, Vancouver

Mala

Audio play available September 1 to 28

“As we resume live shows, we feel incredibly grateful for the unwavering commitment and patience that our patrons have shown,” said Executive Director Peter Cathie White. “We look forward to gathering with them to see and hear the stories that are essential to all of us.”

All shows will be staged and produced in adherence to safety guidelines established by the B.C. government, including a current indoor audience capacity of 50 people. The health and safety of all patrons, staff, and artists is the Arts Club’s top priority.

Visit Arts Club Theatre online for more info and to order tickets.