THE SOOKE FESTIVAL OF THE PERFORMING ARTS

PRODUCED BY THE SOOKE PERFORMING ARTS GROUP
Stage West Players Year 2003 Schedule

Stage West Players is a performing arts theatre group in the seaside town of Sooke, British Columbia, Canada. Sooke is a very arts-minded community, a scenic half hour drive from BC's capital city of Victoria, on Vancouver Island. Our mandate is to provide quality theatre performances for local and visiting audiences, and we aim to achieve this with two annual productions: one in spring and one in fall. Auditions are open to the public and new members are always welcome!

The Sooke Performing Arts Group has been formed under the auspices of the Edward Mime Community School Society to organize an annual summer performing arts event. The founding members represent the Sooke Philharmonic Society, Stage West Players, the Sooke Community Choir, and the Folk Music Society.

The first annual "Sooke Festival Of the Performing Arts" will mark the beginning of a new century and celebrate the incorporation of our community. It will be held over two weeks from July 28, - Aug.13, 2000. with a total of eighteen performances over that time.

The Festival will feature three musical productions:
- The musical play "Oliver"
- A review or variety show, narrated around Sooke's past and future, that will showcase novice and seasoned local performing artists.
- A concert by the Sooke Philharmonic Orchestra and the Choir featuring Marion Newman and Jennifer Such.

The project is guided by the Sooke Performing Arts Group steering committee. Members are:

Co-chairs - Betty Nesselbeck (642 6560)
- Rob Gordy
Artistic Directors- Sam Pasta (Stage West Players)
- Norman Nelson (Sooke Philharmonic)
- Rob Gordy (Sooke Community Choir)
Secretary - Carol McGinty
Treasurer - Lorraine Sinclair
EMCS Coordinator - Lori Messer
Lynda Rose, Margaret Steven, Christine McGuinness, Jim Warner

Goals:

To provide youth with opportunities to participate in the performing arts with professional guidance.
~ To develop and showcase local talent
~ To compliment existing arts and community events
~ To use our beautiful Community Theatre in the summer to provide economic stimulation through enhanced tourism

Your support will help make this celebration of our past and future a success!

As a founding member of the Sooke Community Arts Council, EMCSS provides a professional and user-friendly venue for local performing artists. Last season, the theatre was booked by the community for 44 live performances in addition to the nine outside artists that we presented. Our budget for the year was $25,000 augmented with gaming funds. The key community presenters are Stagewest Players, the Sooke Community Choir, Sooke Folk Music Society and the Sooke Philharmonic Orchestra.

The most seasoned of these four groups, Sooke Community Choir was formed in 1974 under the name of Musicke of Sundrie Kindes. Under the guidance and encouragement of choir director Rob Gordy, they perform an average of 15 concerts annually, both locally and abroad, traveling to Hong Kong to perform in 1994 and to Holland in April, 2000. Their repertoire ranges from classical to popular, from historical to modern and represents a broad multicultural milieu.

Stagewest Players formed in 1982 as an amateur theatre company. Since that time they have produced an average of two plays a year including drama, humour and musical theatre. As the Sooke Community Theatre's resident theatre company, they work in partnership with teachers and students from the theatre department, reflecting the vision of a "teaching theatre". Their last production, "Fiddler on the Roof' played to full houses and represented their first collaboration with the Sooke Community Choir and the newly formed Sooke Philharmonic Orchestra.

Founded in 1996 Sooke Folk Music Society provides an inexpensive and informal venue for local entertainers and musicians. Audiences have grown to an average of 60 in 1999. Using a coffeehouse format, shows feature an 'open mike' first half with a featured artist in the second half. Many local musicians have gotten their start through the efforts of this group. All ages are encouraged to perform including school choirs and young people. Fall '99 will begin with a family dance.

The newest presenter, Sooke Philharmonic Orchestra was formed in the fall of 1997 by Norman Nelson and a few local musicians drawing from the strong but previously informal local music community. Since then the orchestra has grown to more than 40 musicians coming from Sooke, Victoria, Cobble Hill, and the Gulf Islands. First and foremost, it is a community orchestra open to local musicians who have an acceptable performance ability on their chosen instrument and the dedication necessary to be a committed member of the orchestra. The orchestra's goal is to provide a high standard of musical performance while maintaining a relaxed and mutually supportive atmosphere in order to foster musical arts for amateur musicians.

These four groups have come together the under the sponsorship of the EMCS Society to form the SOOKE PERFORMING ARTS GROUP (SPAG). The group is co-chaired by Betty Nesselbeck and Rob Gordy and includes representation from all of the performing arts groups in Sooke. Its funds are managed by the EMCS Society and held in their Special Projects fund. SPAG's main goal is to encourage local participation in the performing arts by developing and showcasing local talent in a professional performing arts environment and by providing youth with opportunities to experience and participate in all aspects of the performing arts.

 

The above webpage content © Sooke Perfoming Arts Group, 1999

Sooke, Canada

Community Resources:

  • Performing Arts in Sooke
  • Parks & Recreation in Sooke Region
  • Sooke Royal Canadian Legion, Br 54
  • Associations, Schools & Non Profit Societies in Sooke


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