A Beautiful View November 20, 2009

Writer/Director Daniel MacIvor tells us why we should see

A Beautiful View

Written and Directed by: Daniel MacIvor

Starring: Colleen Wheeler and Diane Brown

Presented by: Ruby Slippers (link)

A Beautiful View is a seriocomic trek across the intangibles of love, and about our affinity for re-writing history in its name. Two women, both camping aficionados, meet while shopping for tents. Their connection informs their choices for the next two decades, culminating in a quiet note of tragicomedy.

“I wrote the play as a response to how we have become so comfortable with labeling ourselves and our relationships, even when those labels are restricting,” says MacIvor. “The star of the play really is the friendship between the two women, that means that beyond everything else, it’s all about what the actors bring to the play.  I’m very excited about working with Diane and Colleen – I’ve been a fan of them both for some time.”

“And I’m also excited about working in Vancouver again – the city has been an inspirational place for me both in terms of my work and my life. I’m always happy to have the chance to breathe in some of that west coast air, it’s like a shot of espresso for the spirit.”

Multi award-winning Ruby Slippers Theatre, who are celebrating their twenty-first year, have earned a reputation for smart social satire that is infectiously entertaining by producing critically heralded productions like The Cat Who Ate Her Husband, The Winners, The Leisure Society, Trout Stanley and most recently Life Savers.

The Western Canadian premiere production of A Beautiful View previews Friday December 4, 2009, opens December 5 at 8 pm, then runs nightly through until December 13 (dark Mondays).

All performances are at Performance Works, 1218 Cartwright St, Granville Island.

Tickets are $20/24, except for the preview, which is pay-what-you-can. There will be $15 shows on December 8th at 8pm, and December 13, at 2 pm.

Tickets are available through VancouverTix.com or by calling 604-629-VTIX.

The Burnaby production runs December 16-19, at the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts, 6450 Deer Lake Ave, Burnaby. Tickets are available at www.shadboltcentre.com, or by calling 604-205-3000.

On Sunday, December 6 at 2pm, Jerry Wasserman hosts Coffee and Conversation with Daniel MacIvor, at Performance Works. This intimate interview is free.

Life Savers March 18, 2009

Director Diane Brown on why you should go see

Life Savers

Written by: Serge Boucher

Directed by: Diane Brown

Starring: Patti Allan, Kevin McNulty, Mike Wasko, Colleen Wheeler, Deborah Williams, Naomi Wright, Wendy Morrow Donaldson, and Maria Oldeen

Presented by: Ruby Slippers (link)

Ruby Slippers Theatre is pleased to present the English Language World premiere of Serge Boucher’s Life Savers, April 4-19 at Performance Works. Family dynamics, spoken and unspoken, real and perceived, are the focus of this hilarious and poignant play that asks, what is the value of a human life?

Directed by Ruby Slipper’s Artistic Director Diane Brown, Life Savers features eight of Vancouver’s most respected performers: Patti Allan, Kevin McNulty, Mike Wasko, Colleen Wheeler, Deborah Williams, Naomi Wright, Wendy Morrow Donaldson, and Maria Oldeen. Life Savers tells the story of a family whose lives are turned upside down by a tragic event. France, the black sheep of the family, winds up in prison for a murder she doesn’t remember committing. Her estranged family comes out of the woodwork to try and support her. Heartfelt and hilarious, Life Savers is smart social satire at its best.

Opens Saturday, April 4, 2009 at Performance Works, 1218 Cartwright St., Granville Island.

It runs Tuesday to Sunday at 8 pm until April 18. There will be Sunday matinees at 2 pm, including April 19, and a free preview on Friday, April 3.

No shows Easter Sunday.

Tickets are $24/22, except for Tuesday evenings and Sunday matinees, which are $15. Tickets are available through Tickets Tonight: 604-684-2787, or www.ticketstonight.ca

Life Savers then runs April 22-25, at The Shadbolt Centre for the Arts, 6450 Deer Lake Avenue, Burnaby. Tickets are available at: 604.205.3000, or www.shadboltcentre.com.