 The Evil Queen, played by Candice Dyck, left, offers the poisoned apple to Snow White, played by Alexa Cable, in the play The Rockin' Tale of Snow White, put on by Theatre Kelowna Society. |
Making those dreams a reality has come true for Alexa Cable, who snagged the plum role of Snow White in the upcoming Theatre Kelowna Society production with comes with a twist.
The Rockin' Tale of Snow White takes the popular children's story, stays on track by following the original Grimm's fairytale, but adds a lot more fun.
"It's a dream come true for me," Cable said. "I get to be a princess for once, and she's a very nice princess.
"Snow White is a sugary-sweet and innocent character, and having the opportunity to play her in a big production like this is a perk."
The show is the annual winter pantomime production which has been staged by Theatre Kelowna for decades, and is anticipated by families throughout the Okanagan.
All the productions are family-oriented fun and this season the stage will be populated with colourful dwarfs, dancing townspeople, wacky new characters and lots of upbeat music.
"This is the big production for the year," noted director Jeff Samin, who has staged a number of TKS productions in past years.
"The Christmas show is bigger than our other productions, and is completely geared to families," he said.
"For the past 63 years, TKS has been a big part of the holiday season, and presenting the show at the community theatre, which just marked 50 years, is perfect."
Rockin' Snow White has all the charm of the original story and adds some whimsical threads into the tale with a magical Mirror who "raps his answer to the Evil Queen's question," a huntsman with a heart and a song, bouncy dwarfs, and rhyme-happy ladies-in-waiting.
"The songs come in a variety of genres, from hip-hop to rock and doo-wop, and everything in between," Samin added.
"There aren't any that are familiar, but the songs really are catchy, and can get your toes tapping," he said, adding that his Snow White and her father Gary, collaborated on creating two original songs for the show.
Cable is a multi-talented young actress who not only takes on a big lead role, she also stepped up and took on the task of choreographing the whole production.
"It was a big step, I had to learn all of the dances, all of the songs and deal with my lines too," she said. "My lines were a bit challenging because a lot of them are 'limerick-like' and getting them out quickly takes some concentration."
Her on-stage arch rival, the Evil Queen, a.k.a. Candace Dyck, is stepping in front of the audience for the first time in a lead role.
"It has been a bit nerve-wracking, and little scary to step into such a big role, but there's a lot of support from everyone involved, so it's also a lot of fun.
"The songs are fun and upbeat, there's a little James Brown, some rap and hip-hop.
"The kids will really like it as they follow the Evil Queen, Snow White and dwarfs through the story."
As the Evil Queen is intent on getting rid of the more-beautiful-than-her Snow White, Dyck has the chance to "let the mean side of me out," she joked.
"I get to boss people around and plan nasty things to do to Snow White."
As part of the enchantment, the crew on stage frequently engages with the audience, asking the children to get involved, interacting with the make-believe.
"The kids are asked to warn Snow White when there's danger, because she's kind of oblivious to it," Dyck said.
"The costumes are amazing, very sparkly, big and heavy! The set is colourful and will really appeal to the kids. The whole show takes you back to your childhood, remembering what it's like to believe, to be amazed."
"The actors break through the fourth wall, speak to the audience and get them involved in the action," Samin added. "It totally brings them into the show."
He said that one of the reasons this particular production caught his attention was the "size of the cast, and I couldn't find any reference to it being done here before," Samin said.
"I was looking for something that would allow a lot of people to be on stage, and this brings a cast of 40 or so, which gives everyone an opportunity to be in the show.
"There are children from age four and five, and about 23 cast under the age of 20. It's a great mix."
It is also noteworthy that the majority of the actors are newcomers to TKS, and include two families who are involved in the show as well.
"Everyone is welcome at TKS," Samin added.
QUICKFACTS
What: The Rockin' Tale of Snow White, a winter pantomime for the whole family, presented by Theatre Kelowna Society.
Where: Kelowna Community Theatre
When: Friday to Sunday and also Nov. 23 - Dec. 2, with evening performances at
7:30 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2 p.m.
Tickets: Available at Select Your Tickets box office, Prospera Place, 250-762-5050, selectyourtickets.com
