Watermark Theatre’s 2021 Summer Season Announced!
Watermark Theatre’s Artistic Director Robert Tsonos is thrilled to announce the 2021 Summer Season. “We are very excited to be able to produce theatre again after having to cancel last summer’s season”, says Tsonos, “we are anxious to get back to work and start entertaining our Island audiences once again.”
The season will launch with an outdoor performance of Mi’kmaq Legends performed by the Mi’kmaq Heritage Actors. The two plays in the season will be the bittersweet comedy The Gin Game by D.L. Coburn and the lighthearted but powerful Cottagers and Indiansby Drew Hayden Taylor. The Watermark Music Series returns once again to delight audiences with local artists interpreting classic songwriters.
Drama, storytelling, music, dance and the visual arts combine to create Mi’kmaq Legends, an “electrifying” experience that brings authentic Mi’kmaq lore to life onstage. This free performance will be held outside our theatre on July 10th at 1PM (Rain day July 11th,).
The Gin Game, winner of the 1978 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, which originally starred Jessica Tandy and Hume Cronyn, uses a card game as a metaphor for life. Weller Martin is playing solitaire on the porch of a seedy nursing home. Enter Fonsia Dorsey, a prim, self-righteous lady. They discover they both dislike the home and enjoy gin rummy, so they begin to play and to reveal intimate details of their lives. The Gin Game will be performed from July 13th to 31st.
Drew Hayden Taylor is one of Canada’s leading Native writers and humorists. His unique style of Native commentary and storytelling has struck a chord with audiences not only at home but abroad, leading to his considerable success as playwright, author and screenwriter. Taylor’s plays have garnered numerous awards, including being a finalist for the Governor General’s Award for Drama for his play In A World Created by A Drunken God. His plays have been produced throughout Canada and the U.S.
In Cottagers and Indians, wild rice sparks a battle royal between a native farmer and a white cottager, whose increasingly bitter dispute becomes a microcosm for reconciliation. Told with warmth and humour, and encompassing issues of community, respect and ownership, Cottagers and Indians is a tale for our times. Cottagers and Indians will be performed from August 10th to 28th.
After the Watermark performances of Cottagers and Indians are completed in North Rustico, the production will tour to Ship’s Company Theatre in Parrsboro, Nova Scotia for performances Sept 2nd to 5th.
The Watermark Music Series returns, curated once again by Rob Oakie. As always, Island musical artists interpret classic composers in a way that you have never heard before. The dates are:
Sunday July 25th at 7:30pm – The Music of John Prine
Featuring songs from the catalogue of a great American songwriter.
Sunday Aug 8th at 7:30pm – Songs For A Small Planet
Featuring music and words to inspire a brighter future.
Sunday Aug 22nd at 7:30pm – Swing Time USA
Featuring jazz and swing of the 30s and 40s. The music of Cab Calloway, Count Basie, Billie Holiday and more.
All Covid-19 provincial rules and regulations will be in place, including physical distancing, mask wearing, hand sanitizing, etc.
Tickets are now on sale at http://www.ticketwizard.ca
Or call the box office at 902-963-3963
Watermark Theatre’s Mandate
Located in North Rustico, PEI, on land that is the traditional unceded territory of the Mi’Kmaq, the Watermark Theatre is a professional theatre company that produces time-honoured plays, as well as contemporary plays that resonate with our times.
As a company we are led by the principles of inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility and commit to incorporating these core values in everything we do.
We prioritize environmental stewardship and sustainability.
The Watermark Theatre is dedicated to the development of the next generation of theatre artists and arts administrators through mentorship and professional training.
In all of our programming we strive for artistic excellence while endeavouring to inform, affect, and engage our audience and our community.
For more information please contact Beth Elliot at 902-963-3963 or admin@watermarktheatre.com
Watermark Theatre
57 Church Hill Ave
North Rustico, PE
C0A 1X0
(902) 963-3963
http://www.watermarktheatre.com
Theatre PEI
Theatre PEI 