The Asker Church near the Mecca Glen School was full last Friday and Saturday, July 10-11 with live theatre enthusiasts who squeezed into seats in tight formation to watch Craig Sodaro’s play “A Pirate’s Life for Me” as staged by the Thespians group as their first act of the summer season.
The play revolves around the efforts by Roger, a rich but boring young man, to adopt the skills and manners of a pirate in order to have his love for Sarah requited. Sarah is the daughter of a rich ship owner and believes life should be exciting as a “pirate queen.” In his efforts to impress Sarah in the most possibly realistic fashion, Roger hires notorious pirate Long John Sliver as his tutor and events begin to take a colourful turn as the story becomes one of a real treasure hunt.
With a 24-member cast, many communities were represented in the play, with a few actors coming from Ponoka, Clive and Rocky Mountain House and some from even as far away as southern Alberta.
There were only three performances of the play, two on Friday and one on Saturday. “This is primarily an educational activity,” said director of the play Debbie Zepick when asked about the limited number of performances after a long preparation period.
“We are producing actors here,” she continued. “There are some who went on to join Rosebud and others who have gone to (study) theatre at Red Deer College.”
And those who didn’t join professional troupes are still acting in amateur productions, according to Zepick.