Great Stories Alive !
"Performance with Passion & Purpose"
PO Box 11045 - Portland, OR
97211 - (503) 335-3876 - GreatStoriesAlive.com
NEWS RELEASE
FOR RELEASE ON: Monday, December 1, 2008
Media Contacts:
Al LePage, Performer, Great Stories Alive! / 503-335-3876
Nette Plant, Performer, 604-327-266, netteplant@hotmail.com
A Christmas Carol "Duet"
British Columbia 1858!
Time travel with two
characters from the past, an "Englishman" and a "Learned Lady of Fort
Langley,"
for a very dramatic reading of this
holiday classic in the year British
Columbia became a Crown Colony
A dramatic reading of Charles Dickens "A
Christmas Carol" will be presented in the style of the Victorian era to
benefit local area food banks and heritage organizations. Travel back in time with Nette
Plant as “Learned Lady of Fort Langley Emmeline Newton” and Al LePage as "Englishman Thomas
Hutchinson, Amateur Thespian" as they perform complete with accents,
clothing of the Victorian period and other accoutrements.
They will begin their passionate and dramatic performance by sharing
their personal thoughts and feelings about
the recent establishment of British Columbia -- and what "the future"
might hold -- for the new crown colony. Their performance
includes the word-by-word script used by Dickens himself
for his public readings, and is sprinkled with period music, singing
and a few
surprises, too! This unique
BC 150 event will take place on Friday, December 19th at 7PM in Fort
Langley Community Hall, 9167 Glover Road in Fort Langley,
BC. Doors open at 6:30 PM and admission is $10 per person
with all funds equally benefiting Friends in Need Food Bank, Langley
Food Bank, Friends of Fort
Langley and Fort Langley Community Hall. The performance is 2 hours
in length and best appreciated by adults and mature children age ten
and older. Tickets may be reserved in advance by calling
604-888-3943
or purchased at the door, and seating will be on a first-come,
first-served basis.
This is also the official annual CBC Radio "A Christmas Carol" reading
event for the local area.
"Bringing great stories to life in
the character of someone from the past," begins LePage, "is a very
powerful way to engage people, and connect them with the history not
only of a certain time period, but also where they actually live or
visit. And great stories can make people more aware of the reality that
surrounds them, and connect them with others and within themselves for
greater understanding and compassion. Live drama can bring these great
stories to life in a way that provides both entertainment and insight.
So, given all this and the themes of personal transformation and
charity in Dickens 'A Christmas Carol,' it simply makes a lot of sense
to donate my time and talents to benefit others through dramatic
readings of this particular story."
Plant and LePage both share a mission of
playing to and with audience
members to bring history and great stories
alive! This will quickly become evident when you first encounter them
before the performance. Their love of improvisation combined with a
highly interactive approach means there's sure to be lots of drama and
fun combined with fast action and probably some real surprises!
Yes, since they're playful, like to experiment and believe in seizing
the moment, even they don't always know what's going to happen.
As Shakespeare wrote, ". . .
one man in his time plays many parts . .
." and their creative use of voice should shine through as they create
all 26 characters – with an interesting twist here and there -- all
within the span of about two hours.
"Lady Emmeline Newton
is the perfect historic figure for me to portray," notes performer
Nette Plant," because besides
actually being the Chief Clerk's wife of nearby Fort Langley itself,
she also adored the writings of Charles Dickens. We can all play a part
in fact, both the audience and myself, by fighting hunger and
preserving history in our community."
According to Food Banks Canada's just released
annual HungerCount 2008 report, Canada's only national survey of food
banks and emergency food
programs,
more people assisted by food banks are working. The problem is,
many
jobs just don’t payenough to heat their homes, cover the rent, clothe
their families, and provide three square meals every day.
Employed
food bank clients have grown from a low of 11.9% in 2002 to 14.5% of
those assisted this year. And children represented 37% of the
total 704, 414 people assisted by food banks nationally during March
2008. The rate for British Columbia is 31.2%, or nearly one in
every three children of the 78,101 individuals assisted during the same
month.
"It is with no joy that we have to report that food bank usage in B.C.
is on the increase once again," notes HungerCount 2008 BC
Provincial Coordinator Dave Murray, director of Abbotsford Community
Services Food Bank. "Although the increase is minimal (2.1%) it
is still staggering to know that 78,101 people visit a food bank at
least once a month in British Columbia. What is most disturbing
is that 24,368 B.C. children find themselves caught in the fallout of
families trying to provide enough food to feed themselves on a daily
basis. These figures parallel the fact that B.C. has the dubious
distinction of leading the nation in children living below the poverty
line for the fifth year in a row, at 21.9%. Canada’s most
unacceptable problem is that we have far too many poor children – by
any measure."
"All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely
players,”
notes LePage. “So come and play along with us! Yes, join us for lots of
laughter, and hopefully some tears, during our dramatic reading duet of
Charles Dickens classic 'A Christmas Carol'.
The Friends In Need Food Bank is a
private, non-profit organization whose mission is to provide for the
hungry in Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows, to inform and refer when needed
and to raise awareness concerning hunger issues. Founded in 1989, it
has grown from a basement operation to a 3200sq ft warehouse in Maple
Ridge with a secondary distribution depot in Pitt Meadows. It distributes to over 600
families and singles each month and assists 7 community agencies to
provide food and nourishment to those who are hungry. They depend
solely on the generosity of the community and its members, receiving
over 105,000 kilograms of donated food each year from local groceries,
bakeries, retailers and community members. The food bank is also a member of
the Canadian Association of Food Banks (CAFB) and abides by its Code of
Ethics. For futher information, assitance, to make donations or
volunteer visit their website at www.friendsneedfood.com or phone 604-466-3663.
The Langley Food Bank is a program of Langley District Help Network, an
incorporated society, registered with Revenue Canada as a non-profit
organization. In keeping with its slogan of "Neighbors Helping
Neighbors it is entirely funded through the support of local churches,
organizations and individuals, and does not receive any support from
any government bodies. It was first opened in Sept 1989 and has
always had many enthusiastic
volunteers who help in a variety of tasks including distribution,
cleaning, food packaging, paperwork, and sorting. Besides
providing food, objectives include developing relational bridges with
clients both to discover and find a way to their needs, whether
physical, social, or spiritual in nature. There are currently
about 400 client families registered at the Langley Food
Bank. Including dependents, we are helping over 700 people
with their food requirements each week. In 2007, over 11,000
hampers were provided. For further information visit
www.langleyfoodbank.com or phone 604-533-0671.
The Friends of Fort Langley
is a
non-profit society whose purpose is to stimulate appreciation and
enjoyment of Fort Langley National Historic Site through encouraging
research, restoration and recreation of the site and activities
consistent with the Sites themes and objectives. Their Gift Shop,
open daily from 11AM to 4:30PM, is located in the Visitor's Centre of
Parks Canada's Fort Langley
National Historic Site, and is
the perfect place to pick up
something to remember your day at the fort, or come on by to pick up
locally made, locally themed gifts for your friends and family around
the world. For further information email fotf@uniserve.com
or phone 604-888-3943.
Fort Langley Community Hall, completed in 1931, is a designated
Municipal Heritage Site maintained and supported by a volunteer board
of directors. This large, gracious, 2 storey building has a grand
ballroom upstairs which boasts an horsehair sprung dance floor, a stage
with lighting, sound and balcony plus a kitchen, and serves the
community as both the focal and social center of Fort Langley.
Downstairs there is a meeting room, an office and the Fort Langley
Branch of the Fraser Valley Regional Library. The hall is popular
for parties, meetings, movies and weddings, and can accomodate up to
250 people. It's charming outdoor gardens make the hall the
perfect setting for special occasions. In spring, there are
cherry blossoms and colorful shrubs, geraniums and annuals; and in the
winter, beautiful lights and decorations. For further information
or to make reservations to rent the facility phone 604-888-1759.
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"Englishman Thomas Hutchinson, Amateur
Thespian" as portrayed by Al LePage, is sure to bring you laughter,
hopefully some tears, and a dance! (Photo credit: David Krapes)
"Lady Emmeline Newton" as portrayed by
Nette Plant will not only perform but also entertain you with music, a
song and a surprise! (Photo credit: Parks Canada)