Steinbeck finds home at Steinbach’s MHV
Advertisement
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 28/09/2015 (3132 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
John Steinbeck’s classic tale, Of Mice and Men, will take to the stage this week as Real Live Entertainment delivers an ambitious take on the well-known work against the backdrop of the Mennonite Heritage Village.
Director and producer Alan Fehr says he chose the tale of farmhands George and Lennie for a couple reasons.
“One, because it’s so heart-breaking and beautiful,” he said. “Steinbeck does a pitch-perfect job of juxtaposing hope and loneliness against each other. These are emotions that everyone is familiar with, and he’s able to convey them both in very stirring ways.”
The combination makes the tragedy of the story even more heartfelt.
“A well wrought tragedy is a thing of beauty and we don’t get to experience that very often,” he says.
Fehr said he’s proud of his team of actors who have tackled the script with gusto.
“They were unafraid to dig into it and discover their understanding of what it’s all about. I’ve never been a part of that before and it was invigorating,” he said.
Fehr, who hammed it up as the despicable Mr. Phillips in the Steinbach Arts Council production of Anne of Green Gables earlier this year, acknowledges that tragedies aren’t often staged here but says “all involved have approached the ideas and themes with a balance of zeal and levity.”
Fehr said that mounting a show at the museum fulfills a dream of his that has been ten years in the making.
“The vision of the show didn’t come into focus until I found the script for this much-loved story. Once the ideas met up in my head, it was like wildfire. The pairing was so perfect, I knew that I had to attempt it.”
He said the museum setting meshes perfectly with the play’s Depression Era ranch setting.
“Not only are the sets dripping with authenticity, but the audience gets to travel through those sets with the actors. This will be visceral theatre like Steinbach has never seen before, and I’m so excited to be able to bring it to them.”
Performances run from Sept. 30 to Oct. 3 in the evenings at 6:30 p.m. A matinee performance will also be performed on Oct. 1 at 1 p.m. Tickets, available through the Steinbach Arts Council and www.reallive.ca, are $20 in advance and $25 at the door.