Season Tickets at Chemainus Theatre Festival

Season tickets for Chemainus Theatre Festival have never been a better idea! With a subscription or Flex Pass, you can fill your year with theatre in the best way to suit your busy lifestyle. With so many people looking to create simpler lifestyles and choosing experiences over material purchases theatre will allow you to laugh, love and learn with people you love. With shows like Once, Little Women, Grease and Kim’s Convenience it will be hard to pick just one person to bring along – additional tickets can be purchased on top of your season ticket package with a 15% discount.

If a whole season package isn’t feasible for you this year, smaller packages of tickets offer a lot of flexibility and you can choose your ideal times, shows that inspire you, and dates that fit around your yearly calendar. Try out a 4 or 5 season package; you will have the first opportunity to purchase a package next year. Select your show to suit your tastes – Chemainus Theatre Festival always tries to appeal to a variety of audiences. If you are a musical buff or can’t resist a tear-jerker we encourage you to try one new show in your package you might not have bought tickets for before. Silent Sky was a lesser-known show last year and we heard more than once that it was the best thing Chemainus Theatre Festival has ever done – try something new!

However you like to purchase your tickets, we work hard to meet you your needs. New this year, patrons can order season tickets by filling out the online form on our website and pay their balance online. Our team is here to support you as needed. Our

Box Office Manager, Andrea, has a few tips for you:

With a season subscription, patrons don’t have to book their dates and seats when they buy their package. They can book throughout the year if they wish, keeping in mind that seating choice is based on availability. We always recommend booking early to get the best seats.
If they DO want to book all of their dates, then having your first choice and alternative choices for dates and seats is helpful and will speed up the booking process.
If they are not familiar with the seating plan in our theatre, the box office staff are happy to assist with selecting seats for them as we know the theatre very well.

Chemainus Theatre is a fully professional theatre. Your patronage ensures the continuation of live theatre on Vancouver Island for future generations. You support not only the production team, actors, musicians and all the talented people who provide the quality you’ve come to expect but great incentives like our education program which fosters the love of theatre for young people. However you come to see us, we hope you are inspired and entertained by the great line of plays we have for you to come enjoy at Chemainus Theatre Festival!

By Editor M|January 24th, 2018|Categories: 2018 Season|0 Comments

Opening Soon: Once

Winner of 8 Tony Awards, Including Best Musical!

When a singing Irishman, with little faith left in love and music, meets a beautiful Czech woman in a Dublin bar, they are drawn together by their shared love of music. From flirtation to friendship to an uncommon romance, the unlikely pair connects in search of long-forgotten dreams – a passionate pursuit that may just tear them apart.

Mild language advisory, click for details
Once is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI)

By Editor NW|January 9th, 2018|Categories: 2018 Season|0 Comments

Introducing Executive Chef Nick Caulford

Thank you to Nick Caulford for taking some time to answer our questions and share a recipe!

Q: Can you tell us about your background and training?

A: I moved to Vancouver from Toronto when I was 20 to attend Culinary Arts/Hotel & Restaurant Management school at Dubrulle Culinary Institute. I worked in restaurants in Vancouver and Toronto before moving to London England where I worked for a restauranteur group travelling from location to location throughout Europe training staff and performing Quality Assurance programs and initiatives. When I returned to Canada I moved to Banff where I began working for Brewster Hospitality, managing Food & Beverage Operations in their hotels.

Q: What led you to Chemainus Theatre Festival’s Playbill Dining Room?

A: My wife and I had always wanted to raise our children on the Island as the majority of her family lives in the Cowichan Valley, and I was always interested in getting back to my culinary roots where my initial training was, in Pacific Northwest cuisine. We moved to Chemainus in 2016. I have to admit that I was quite fortunate to become the executive chef at The Chemainus Theatre Festival, the timing just seemed right as our previous executive chef Steve Hewson was set for retirement. I had started as the part time evening sous chef of the theatre in March of 2017 working just 2 evenings a week. The theatre had such an impressive reputation amongst the locals and through word of mouth, I was excited to apply for employment.

Q: Farm to Table is important to you. Can you tell us about some of the partnerships you have formed with local farmers?

A: To me, Farm to Table is a wonderful concept. I have had the luxury of working for a Resort in Ontario on the shores of Rice Lake that had its own farm on location (Elmhirst’s Resort) that was doing a wonderful job with the Farm to Table concept. The farm would produce annual yields of vegetables from their own gardens of around 2 tonnes. They raised ducks and chickens for egg production as well as their own Beef Cattle on property. These items produced on the farm were exclusively used in supplying our dining rooms. It’s a special accomplishment not many can say they have the ability of bringing to market. To me, I am more focused on and passionate about fresh and local ingredients from the Island and the Lower Mainland. There are so many independent and micro farms, wineries, breweries and fisheries in our community. It’s really quite an exciting place to be. The Cowichan Valley is especially growing more of a food & wine culture. I have been reaching out to many of these local businesses to begin forging relationships hopefully for many years to come. We are all part of this community and supporting our neighbours will help showcase to locals and tourists what our region can do.

Q: Audiences love to see how the show is highlighted in the menu. Any shows for 2018 inspired you in particular?

A: They all have in some way. It is really fun creating menus that theme with a particular show or region of the world. I think I am most excited for Million Dollar Quartet and Glorious! Grease should be really fun as well. It’s difficult to not get carried away and want to over-theme every dish. We always try to have a good balance of dishes available to please everyone.

Q: Fridays in the Playbill Dining Room will have a new feature, the Table D’hôte. Can you tell us what Friday night audiences can expect with this wonderful new service?

A: The New Friday Night Table D’hôte experience will be a hybrid of a buffet and a plated dinner service. The Soup and Salad Buffet will still be in existence as well as the Dessert Buffet. The concept of the Table D’hôte portion of Friday nights will be a 3 choice plated main course menu that will feature and showcase items never before offered in the Playbill Dining Room. Offerings from Prime Rib to Lobster Tails depending on which shows you attend.

Q: The Scalloped Potatoes in the ‘Cornwalls’ All-Inclusive Cancun Christmas are like something out of a dream. Could you please share your recipe if there are any patrons who would like to impress their dinner guests this season?

Thank you for the kind words. It would be my pleasure.

Potatoes Au Gratin (Scalloped Potatoes) Serves 4-6

2lbs Russet Potatoes

3 Cups Whipping Cream

1 tsp Kosher Salt

1/8 tsp Fresh Ground Pepper

Pinch of Nutmeg

2 Cloves of Garlic, Peeled & Smashed

¾ Cup Gruyere Cheese Finely Grated

½ Boursin Herb & Garlic Cheese

Heat the oven to 400°F. Using a very sharp knife or a mandolin, carefully cut the potatoes into 1/8-inch slices (no thicker).
Put the potatoes in a large heavy-based saucepan and add the cream, salt, pepper, nutmeg, and garlic. Cook the mixture over medium-high heat until the cream is boiling, stirring occasionally (very gently with a rubber spatula so you don’t break up the slices).
When the cream boils, pour the mixture into a 2-1/2- or 3-qt. baking dish. Shake the dish a bit to let the slices settle and then sprinkle the surface with the cheese.
Bake in the hot oven until the top is deep golden brown, the cream has thickened, and the potatoes are extremely tender when pierced with a knife, about 40 minutes. Don’t worry if the dish looks too liquidy at this point; it will set up as it cools a bit. Before serving, let the potatoes cool until they’re very warm but not hot (at least 15 minutes) or serve them at room temperature.
Garnish with Fresh Parsley & Chives.

By Editor M|December 14th, 2017|Categories: Playbill Dining Room, Theatre News|0 Comments

Come Together with the Cornwall Family

Christmas is a time for people to come together and Chemainus Theatre Festival is proud to be a part of this tradition for the past 25 years. It is the talented directors, musicians, actors, and designers who come together to create the shows that bring friends and families coming back, again and again, to settle in a darkened audience and share a special story. Theatre can bridge gaps between people from different places, cultures, generations, and backgrounds. The ‘Cornwalls’ All-Inclusive Cancun Christmas’ is a sweet way to mark the end of a great year for Chemainus Theatre Festival – a joyous tale of a family coming together, sharing traditions, starting something new, and making friends along the way.

Come spend an evening (or afternoon) at Chemainus Theatre Festival and enjoy the ‘Cornwalls’ All-Inclusive Cancun Christmas’. Time, budget, work, family won’t allow everyone to get away to Mexico this Christmas (it took Harry and Judy Cornwall 25 years to get there) but allow us to take you away on a musical journey to the mid-1980s with some of your favourite Christmas and retro tunes along with a whimsical story of a family doing their very best to create a memorable Christmas holiday vacation.

‘Cornwalls’ All-Inclusive Cancun Christmas’ Director Barbara Tomasic has this message for audiences: “My wish for you is that our show offers you a good laugh and a reminder of what I think are the good parts of the Holiday season; joy, music, peace, and love. And may you embrace change as exuberantly as the Cornwalls!”

Come to laugh and leave with a song in your heart. ‘Cornwalls’ All-Inclusive Cancun Christmas’ runs until New Year’s Eve with a fabulous buffet to rival any Mexican all-inclusive resort. Tickets go fast for our Christmas shows so book yours today.

By Editor M|December 5th, 2017|Categories: 2017 Season, About the Shows, Christmas|0 Comments

2018 Season at the Chemainus Theatre Festival

2017 was a banner year for the Chemainus Theatre Festival. After all, it was our 25^th Anniversary and we had a wonderful community celebration with music, tours, dress-up, ice cream and more! Our summer show, ‘Rock Legends’ broke a 9-year box office record and we explored classic love stories, children’s adventures, distant galaxies, and tales full of love and laughter.

It is hard to not get excited about the 2018 season; it’s easy to imagine yourself in your favourite seat of the theatre for any of these shows. To kick off our season perhaps you will enjoy a special escape to watch a young couple find love in a Dublin bar in ‘Once’, or share cross-cultural family challenges in ‘Kim’s Convenience’, or laugh with/at the delightful ‘Glorious!’ Florence Foster Jenkins. 2018 will mark the 40^th anniversary of the movie ‘Grease’ and many of us have a happy memory of bopping along with the tunes, whether it was during the original movie theatre release or perhaps at a pajama-clad sleepover in high school. Theatre can take you away and we invite you to come along for the whole 2018 season – maybe back to Ireland, in a rural county this time, in ‘Outside Mullingar’ or to a familiar but distant time with ‘Little Women’. There will even be a bonus show this year – we are re-launching our hit show ‘ Million Dollar Quartet’. Are you inspired yet? Don’t forget about the little ones – the summer run of our Kidzplay ‘The Little Prince’ will plant a seed for the lifelong love of theatre for many children this summer.

We welcomed a new Executive Chef in our kitchen, Nick Caulford, in late 2017 and if you have dined in the Playbill Dining Room recently we are sure you will agree that his dishes are inspired. For our 2018 season, we are trying something new, on Friday nights only we will have a new service, Table d’Hôte. For this special service, you will enjoy a multi-course dinner with your choice of four special plated entrees inspired by the season and the show. The salad and dessert buffet will remain the same and we promise not to judge if you go back for a second piece of cake!

With tickets starting at $25 and an option to get 4, 5 or 6 show packages you can customize your season to suit your tastes, budget, and calendar. Call soon to get your choice of seats and dates and best of all, if you purchase a season ticket subscription by December 8 and you be entered to win a Theatre Extravaganza Trip for 2 to New York.

By Editor M|November 24th, 2017|Categories: About the Shows|0 Comments

Remembering Kenneth O. Smith

The Chemainus Theatre Festival is saddened to announce that its founder, Kenneth O. Smith, passed away peacefully on November 14th, 2017 at the age of 90.

Ken was the driving force behind the founding and development of the Chemainus Theatre in 1993 and, with his wife Ruth, stood faithfully behind it, seeing it through to present-day maturity.

He was passionate about theatre and inspirational to artists and staff, while serving many years as Board Chair. Ken played a lead role in all of the Theatre’s campaigns and capital projects over the first 25 seasons – including the construction of the Theatre’s Production Centre and the development of the Chemainus Best Western Hotel.

Ken was the ultimate theatre angel; unwavering in his support and constantly brimming with vision and enthusiasm. He was gracious and kind, quick to offer his thanks and words of encouragement, and would always encourage Theatre management to “dream big.”

Ken’s substantial impact on the arts and artists in BC carries on through the creative and artistic role Chemainus Theatre Festival plays in the arts and culture sector. The Theatre has grown to become the third largest producing theatre in British Columbia, drawing 75,000 theatre goers per year. Over its first 25 seasons, over 4,000 artists, actors and directors have worked at Chemainus Theatre while creating theatre for over 1.3 million attendees.

Ken’s legacy stretches beyond Chemainus Theatre to include instrumental roles in the founding of Regent College at UBC, Pioneer Camps (Thetis Island and Chehalis), Honeymoon Bay Retreat Centre (Honeymoon Bay) and the Calling Foundation in Vancouver.

His last public outing was attending the Theatre’s 25^th season celebration on June 23^rd 2017 and we will forever cherish the long and enthusiastic standing ovation that the packed house gave Ken when his enormous contributions were recognized.

Rest peacefully, Ken. We will miss you and always be thankful for the impact you’ve had on our lives and the great opportunities that your faith and generosity have afforded us.

By Editor M|November 22nd, 2017|Categories: Theatre News|0 Comments

December 2017 Artists in the Theatre

A Vancouver Island expressionist oil painter, a former NHL goalie, and a talented husband and wife duo will be featured in the Chemainus Theatre lobby and Gallery Gift Shop during the run of ‘Cornwalls’ All-Inclusive Cancun Christmas’.

The Cornwall Family are true Canadians and the art you can explore throughout the theatre will be too. Richard Brodeur played for seven seasons as a goalie for the Vancouver Canucks and is now exploring his greater Canuck identity through his art. By utilizing oils, acrylics, and watercolours to create abstract paintings as well as images of ‘Canadiana’– fishing villages in Haida Gwaii, lakes and orchards of the Okanagan, and ports and coves of Nova Scotia.

Brian Scott has a well-recognized style on Vancouver Island and beyond. His use of colour is well-known – wild and wonderful mixes of fanciful, fun and exciting hues that bring the west coast fishing boats, architecture and tumbledown buildings of our beloved coastal British Columbia into a new perspective.

Garry and Bly Kaye are a husband and wife set of talented artists living on Saltspring Island. Garry is a third-generation Islander and Bly hails from the countryside of Quebec. Garry prefers painting and works twists the often overlooked mass of impenetrable underbrush to focus on the intricate detail yet subtle beauty the island has revealed to him. Bly is currently immersed in an exploration of the effects of layering hand painted archival tissue papers fairly painstakingly onto canvas to form landscape images.

Come see this impressive display at the Chemainus Theatre beginning on Opening Night, November 17^th.

By Editor M|November 12th, 2017|Categories: The Gallery Gift Shop|0 Comments

The Gallery Gift Shop

If you have ever perused through the ‘Gallery Gift Shop’ in the lobby of the Chemainus Theatre before a show or during intermission you know there is no shortage of selection. You have probably even been tempted to buy something. It’s easy to see why.

For many of our patrons the high number of local artists who are featured is what makes the Gallery such a unique gift shop. Jewelry, pottery, woodwork, and toys are just a few of the items that support the talented artisans of the Cowichan Valley. The Gallery is owned and operated by the Chemainus Theatre Festival Society and all proceeds from Gallery sales support the work of the society. It’s a great way to have your shopping dollars make a positive impact in your community.

It’s no secret the Holiday season is just around the corner and there are a lot of great gift ideas to fit any budget at the Gallery. For children, we have something for all ages – from locally made baby-booties up to puzzles that feature Canadian artists. For the fashionista on your shopping list, there are jewelry, scarfs, clothing, and accessories for every style sensibility. There really is something for all tastes from steam-punk to rustic. A detail of a stained glass box may catch your eye or perhaps you find a treasure for that person on your shopping list who is impossible to buy for, woodworking, prints, clocks, or a mug to hold their favourite tea. The Gallery is a beautiful shop for a joyous shopping experience.

The best part is that you don’t have to wait until Intermission the next time you are here for a show. Come by anytime, our hours are listed below. Take your time, notice the details of the handcrafted items, and never hesitate to treat yourself too.

Monday 9:30 – 4:30
Tuesday 9:30 – 4:30
Wednesday 9:30 – 7:30
Thursday 9:30 – 7:30
Friday 9:30 – 8:00
Saturday 9:30 – 8:00
Sunday 11:00 – 4:30

By Editor M|November 4th, 2017|Categories: The Gallery Gift Shop|0 Comments

Get Away with the Cornwall Family this Christmas

The final show for the 25^th Season of the Chemainus Theatre Festival will be opening to audiences on November 17th. Rehearsals started this week and the energy was high as the cast read through the script for the first time. Everyone in attendance was bopping along to familiar tunes of the mid-1980s and, of course, a few Christmas classics.

You may have met the Cornwall family in 2011 when they spent Christmas in the Country at the Chemainus Theatre. They are back on stage again thanks to popular demand. This year the Cornwalls are on their way to Cancun on an all-inclusive holiday. Whether or not you saw the first Cornwalls’ Christmas show, you will enjoy these vibrant characters, a hilarious storyline, and given the retro setting, there is plenty of big hair, jelly shoes and neon prints to behold. One of the co-writers Nicolle Nattrass tells us that this was a special play for her to write, “Christmas is such a special time of the year and we wanted to create an original Christmas show that depicted a well-rounded, quirky family that goes through what so many of us try to create at Christmas – the perfect family Christmas”.

The community of Chemainus is full of local artistic talent and the Chemainus Theatre Festival capitalizes on this talent whenever we can. For this show, our in-house writers Nicolle Nattrass and Chemainus Theatre Festival Artistic Director Mark DuMez weave for you a tale of a loving family doing their best with challenging (and hysterical) circumstances. Thank you to Nicolle and Mark for having a conversation with our own Michelle Vogelgesang about how audience members will relate to this story if they have ever experienced the highs and lows of Christmas, an all-inclusive getaway, or, you know, family!

What are three words you would use to describe their family dynamic?

Nicolle: Funny, Quirky and perfectly imperfect.

Mark: Challenging, loving, all-in.

Are the family members modeled after people you have met (not naming names)?

Nicolle: Not specific people but with the spirit of capturing everyday family dynamics through family members- strengths, faults and quirks.

Mark: Agreed – they are created from a composite of imagination, other people and my own personal quirks.

Do the Cornwalls have a lesson for the audience, or are we enjoying their antics for pure entertainment?

Nicolle: Both. Entertaining, funny and moving. Love is the lesson, love within families, for each other through the good times, unfortunate times and in this case, an All Inclusive Family VACATION at Christmas which has plenty of ups and downs but in the end the Cornwalls will have created new family traditions.

Mark: Any family comedy, even a wacky one, hopefully reflects a bit of our own life to us. Through the piece, we learn to love our imperfections and turn our challenges into personal and relational triumphs – even through a goofy lens.

Will the family ever want to vacation together again?

Nicolle: YES! The Family that travels on an All-Inclusive together, stays together!

Mark: Probably?

What do you enjoy most about writing original theatre? What is the biggest challenge?

Nicolle: I enjoy seeing ideas, characters and dynamics come alive on stage and seeing how what I have created affects an audience. I write to carry a message or an experience to the audience, to connect (in this case) to connect the audience to the ups and downs of Christmas with family. Only this time, they are traveling to a foreign country. The biggest challenge about writing original theatre is having it produced- being given an opportunity to develop a new play. I feel very fortunate that Mark & Chemainus Theatre festival have given me the opportunity to write three original plays. Wilde Holidays Shorts, Countryside Christmas and Cornwalls’ All-Inclusive Cancun Christmas.

Mark: I enjoy it when others are moved by something that does the same for me. It’s a wonderful sense of connection – in the writing team, in the creative team and finally with the audience. I enjoy it best when we laugh together. The biggest challenge is drilling down to specifics that do all these things.

Is there any person or practice that is particularly beneficial to your writing/directing process?

Nicolle: There are many people whom I have studied & worked with that have helped my writing process. I think it is very beneficial to approach writing using different processes and that is one thing that I have really appreciated about co-writing with Mark DuMez is that we are open to different writing processes. It was really neat for both of us ( at times in development) to say ok we are both going to go away and write this scene and then come together and talk about choices, what is strongest and build on each other’s ideas. Then, letting that writer take the next scene and trusting each other. I really value trying different processes when co-writing.

Mark: I like to take a walk to ruminate over ideas before a writing day or session – but then get down to just writing. I find I have to throw something down on the page – usually to throw out or revise – but it gets things moving. I agree co-writing creates energy and trust in the process (which at other times can feel quite isolated) and it’s been fun to write two shows with Nicolle.

Christmas at the Chemainus Theatre Festival is always a popular experience so make sure you get your tickets soon. Don’t forget to add on the Playbill Dining Room for the all-inclusive buffet dinner. You may not be able to travel to the tropics over the holidays but this will be a getaway to highlight your holiday season!

By Editor M|October 28th, 2017|Categories: 2017 Season|0 Comments

Current Exhibition: October 13 to November 4

Philip Mix

October 13 – November 4

About Philip

Philip Mix was born in Edmonton Alberta in 1955. He received his Bachelor of Arts in painting from the Alberta College of Art, Calgary in1980. His paintings have shown in several Canadian galleries and abroad including London, Israel and Cyprus. He operated a conservation studio, Fine Art Restoration, in Victoria B.C. from 1986 to 2011. During that time he was a member of the Pacific Conservation Group, and Canadian Conservation Associates. Now retired from paintings conservation, he lives in a small community on Vancouver Island and devotes all his energy to his family, his studio, and an uncooperative garden.

My paintings are intentionally spare and dispassionate. They are a study in reduction:in economy of line,confined design,select chords of colour and minimized depth of field. My desire is to produce an artwork that is beautiful for its singleness of purity and purpose: the elegance of simplicity. I choose subjects whose form or function lends itself to the discovery of some intrinsic beauty; a beauty that becomes intriguing once the inherent grace of its form has been recognized and captured.