Gazette The Lake Cowichan
WEDNESDAY, JULY 15, 2015
Stage three water restrictions in effect: Lawn watering banned in Lake Cowichan and all other Valley communities
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VOL. 19, NO. 28 | $1 + GST
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Goose Chase: RCMP seeking info on reckless boating and animal cruelty on lake PAGE 2
Honeymoon Bay: Al Quarnby recognized as this year’s Citizen of Merit PAGE 11
Photo Drew McLachlan
Kaatza Lakeside Players artistic director Dena McPhee will be returning to the community theatre group for their next production. She’s currently reading through Aladdin and Annie to prepare her recommendation for the Players’ next production.
Kaatza Lakeside Players prepare to take back the stage
Drew McLachlan
LAKE COWICHAN GAZETTE
After having spent a season in hiatus and facing an uncertain future, the Kaatza Lakeside Players are preparing to take the stage again. Along with a new production, the Players are planning to bring a slew of changes to the company itself. Part of that change will actually be a return to form for the
community theatre group. Board president Brandon De Pol said that the Players will be trying to recapture some of the magic of their May 2014 production of The Wizard of Oz after their latest production of A Dickens Christmas Carol: A Traveling Travesty in Two Tumultuous Acts saw a smaller turnout than expected. Getting back on the yellow brick track means that the Players will be looking for
a larger, more age-diverse cast and crew for the next production, which De Pol said will be either Aladdin or Annie. “The Wizard of Oz did really well, it brought in a lot of community support,” De Pol said. “It was a really large production; it involved a lot of children and brought in support from their families. It was one of our most successful productions.” The Players will also be
bringing back director Dena McPhee. As a founding member of the Kaatza Lakeside Players, McPhee has been involved with the group since 1985. McPhee said that A Dickens Christmas Carol was the first production she had no involvement with, though her brief departure was unrelated to any problems within the group. “I just needed a break, I’ve been doing this for 30-odd years, I’m 65,” McPhee said.
While the community theatre group has always been popular with the youth of Lake Cowichan, the next production will mark the first time that Lake Cowichan School students will actually receive credits for their involvement in the production. McPhee noted that the credits will actually be “work experience” credits rather than art credits. >KAATZA Page three