Read more: http://www.calgaryherald.com/entertainment/Ballet+Breakout/3135657/story.html#ixzz0qqc7AAxB

Media Release
For Immediate Release – June 2, 2010

Calgary, AB – Ten new plays will be added to the Canadian canon this June as they each receive a public reading through the Suncor Energy Stage One Festival of New Work. The 22^nd annual festival, which runs on Fridays and Saturdays from June 5 to July 3, features readings of new one-act plays in development and in consideration for future programming at Lunchbox Theatre.

The Suncor Energy Stage One program for the development of new plays is one of the cornerstones of Lunchbox Theatre. The nascent works chosen for the program are given professional dramaturgical services, editing support, and workshop presentations to enable the playwrights to have public readings and advance to the next stage of development. Suncor Energy Stage One is recognized as the premiere one-act development process in Canada.

“The changes that we have made this year in the Suncor Energy Stage One Festival are very exciting,” says Pamela Halstead, Artistic Director of Lunchbox Theatre and the festival’s dramaturg. “We will be hosting ten playwrights from across the country with work in various stages of development, all potentially destined for future production at Lunchbox.”

For 2010, the Suncor Energy Stage One Festival features:

Saturday, June 5, 12:10pm - In Flanders Fields by Robert Gontier and Nicky Phillips, Toronto
A new musical based on the life of John MacRae, who wrote the famous poem of the same name.

Friday, June 11, 6:10pm - Cradle and All by Joanne Miller, Halifax
Carole and Mike have two beautiful boys. Mike thinks he might like another baby. Carole thinks she might like to have a life. Or someday get hers back. Her mother is still trying to baptize the last baby when not trying to set her gay brother up with a nice girl.

Saturday, June 12, 12:10pm - The Whimsy State or The Principality of Outer Baldonia by AJ Demers, Calgary
The year is 1948 and an eccentric Washington lawyer and two fishermen from Yarmouth declare a small island off the coast of Nova Scotia a sovereign nation. The ruse is up when they declare war on the Soviet Union. Based on a true story.

Friday, June 18, 12:10pm - Super 8 by Charles Netto and Mark Hopkins, Calgary
A Super 8 Motel inspector, a lonely woman who haunts the Super 8 lounge, the unveiling of a new Super 8 logo and the introduction of the $9 “Intimacy” kit ($7 with employee discount). A humourous look at love, loneliness and life on the road.

Friday, June 18, 6:10pm - Aviatrix: The Untold Story of Amelia Earhart by Matthew Heiti, Fredericton
An intimate look at the life and the last hours of the legendary aviatrix and her trusty (if somewhat belligerent and inebriated) navigator.

Saturday, June 19, 12:10pm - The Bob Shivery Show by David Sealy, Regina
Bob Shivery is the local postmaster. He loves a girl named Germaine who has a cat named Snowball. He has never told her. His world falls apart when she announces that she is getting married.

Friday, June 25, 12:10pm - Dad’s Piano by Dave Kelly, Calgary
A man struggles through the death of his father and their turbulent relationship through his own and other’s eyes and through the music that bound them as deeply as their blood.

Friday, June 25, 6:10pm - The Bus to Anna’s Apartment by Julie McKenzie, Edmonton
Life is funny. Do we ever really know anyone? Who they are? Where they have been? One woman’s surreal journey and the discovery of what was right under her nose. And the sweater…we are all linked…

Saturday, June 26, 12:10pm - Shopaholic Husband Hunt by Glenda Stirling, Calgary
Abby is back and searching for the perfect husband with the same determination that she previously shopped for the perfect pair of pants.

Saturday, July 3, 12:10pm - Peril in Paris by Ethan Cole, Calgary
A talented singer with stars in her eyes, a shyster who lures her to gay Paree, and a young prairie boy determined to rescue her no matter the danger.

“Spreading the festival out over a longer period of time allows us to maximize the value of the experience for the playwrights depending on the needs of their particular piece,” says Halstead, “while offering our audience a better experience by giving them five weekends of readings.”

The Suncor Energy Stage One Festival features a small army of theatre artists including ten playwrights, two composers, seven directors/dramaturges, and fourteen actors. The Suncor Energy Stage One Festival runs on Fridays and Saturdays from June 5 to July 3 at 12:10pm and 6:10pm, with each play receiving one public reading followed by an opportunity for audience feedback. All readings take place on the TransCanada Stage at Lunchbox Theatre. Additional support for the In Flanders Fields development workshop was provided by The Shooting Edge and the Rozsa Foundation.

The world’s longest running lunchtime theatre, Lunchbox Theatre is a professional company that caters to downtown office workers over the noon-hour by producing seven plays per year as well as the Suncor Energy Stage One Festival and an Emerging Director Program. Lunchbox Theatre recently relocated to a new theatre at the base of the Calgary Tower.

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www.lunchboxtheatre.com

For more information, to request an interview, or to visit a rehearsal:
DJ Kelly
Marketing and Communications
Lunchbox Theatre
403 265 4292 x 229
dj.kelly@lunchboxtheatre.com

Media Release
For Immediate Release – May 4, 2010

Calgary, AB – BD&P Emerging Director Kathryn Waters takes her first shot at directing on the TransCanada Stage at Lunchbox Theatre by taking audiences to the home of two sisters in 1948 Coat’s Cove, Newfoundland. The House Wife by Sherry White and Ruth Lawrence runs for three days only, May 13 to 15.

Catalina Keeping’s younger sister Constance Averly, whom she barely knows, has been sent away from home to live with her after she got herself into a “snarl” – having a child out of wedlock. Catalina’s husband has recently passed away turning her life upside down, and it appears Constance may destroy inadvertently Catalina’s last memories of her husband. Which sister is really the one whose life is in turmoil?

The BD&P Emerging Director Program caps the 2009/10 mainstage season of theatre at Lunchbox with a presentation directed by graduate Kathryn Waters. Waters was mentored by three professional directors and assistant directed Mr. Fix It (Kevin McKendrick), The Submarine (Pamela Halstead) and This Could Be Love (Glenda Stirling) – part of the Lunchbox Theatre season.

“When I first considered shifting my focus from acting to directing I was fortunate enough to find a number of mentors who helped me in my journey,” says Lunchbox Theatre Artistic Director Pamela Halstead of the BD&P Emerging Director Program. “It is a great gift to be invited into another person’s rehearsal hall and to witness and participate in their process. I thank Kat for her passion, intelligence and keen eye and am thrilled to have played a part in her journey to what I am sure will be a very successful directing career.”

The House Wife features Chantal Perron and Sadie Evans. Helping transport the audience to post-war Newfoundland are designers Becky Solly, Leslie Biles, Julia Wasilewski and Alec McCauley. The House Wife runs for three days only, May 13 to 15, Thursday to Saturday at 12:10pm with ‘Happy Hour’ performance Friday at 6:10pm.

The world’s longest running lunchtime theatre, Lunchbox Theatre is a professional company that caters to downtown office workers over the noon-hour by producing six plays per year as well as the Petro-Canada Stage One Festival and the BD&P Emerging Director Program. Lunchbox Theatre recently relocated to a new theatre at the base of the Calgary Tower.

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www.lunchboxtheatre.com

For more information, to request an interview, or to visit a rehearsal:
DJ Kelly
Marketing and Communications
Lunchbox Theatre
403 265 4292 x 229
dj.kelly@lunchboxtheatre.com

Media Release
For Immediate Release – March 25, 2010

Could you fall in love with a stranger?
This Could Be Love, a new musical comedy at Lunchbox Theatre

Calgary, AB – In the world premiere of This Could Be Love, running April 12 to May 8, 2010, writer and composer Brock Simpson asks: what would happen if two strangers skipped the messy dating part of romance and skipped straight to marriage?

That’s exactly what happens in This Could Be Love when two polar opposites, burned by modern romance, get married on a whim… and then must get to know each other. A full-length version of the musical comedy was an off-Broadway hit about jingle writing, undercover shopping, and marriage at first sight.

Why do people fall in love? What is ‘love’ exactly? This Could Be Love opens with two losers-at-love who, each spurned by a no-show date, compare their dating horror stories and decide that it is all random anyway and why not just “decide” to fall in love. If love can be defined and quantified, why not just move straight to that state? Is that even possible?

“I am kind of a sucker for love - the hope, the despair, even the hilarious awkwardness that always seems to accompany it,” says director Glenda Stirling. “We have all had moments where we seem to drag our romantic baggage behind us, nonetheless hoping to encounter another like-minded traveler on our journey. I hope audiences enjoy watching our flawed, funny and charming couple try to drop the baggage and make a connection.”

This Could Be Love features the musical talents of David Leyshon and Lynley Hall. Helping the love-lost couple find their way are director Glenda Stirling, musical director and pianist Brent Rock, assistant director Kathryn Waters, stage manager Kelly Lunn, and designers Terry Gunvordahl and Andrea Shanks-Sunderland. This Could Be Love runs April 12 to May 8, Monday to Saturday at 12:10pm with ‘Happy Hour’ performances Friday at 6:10pm.

The world’s longest running lunchtime theatre, Lunchbox Theatre is a professional company that caters to downtown office workers over the noon-hour by producing six plays per year as well as the Petro-Canada Stage One Festival and the BD&P Emerging Director Program. Lunchbox Theatre recently relocated to a new theatre at the base of the Calgary Tower.

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www.lunchboxtheatre.com

For more information, to request an interview, or to visit a rehearsal:
DJ Kelly
Marketing and Communications
Lunchbox Theatre
403 265 4292 x 229
dj.kelly@lunchboxtheatre.com

Media Release
For Immediate Release – March 31, 2010

Calgary, AB – Today Pamela Halstead, the new Artistic Director of Lunchbox Theatre, unveiled plans for the 2010/2011 Lunchbox Theatre Season, her first at its helm.

Halstead’s first season is comprised of several comedies including pieces by masters of the genre Noel Coward and Christopher Durang, a musical about the life of Major John MacRae who penned the famous poem In Flanders Fields, two award winning Canadian works, and three world premieres developed at Lunchbox Theatre. Directors announced are a who’s who of Calgary’s former artistic directors, Gail Hanrahan, Ian Prinsloo, Bob White and the return of former Lunchbox Theatre Artistic Director, Johanne Deleeuw. Lunchbox Theatre will add an additional seventh production on the Transcanada Stage for the 2010/2011 Season while closing with the Emerging Director Presentation and the Suncor Energy Stage One Festival.

“In 1975 when Lunchbox Theatre produced its first show for the lunchtime crowd in Calgary its biggest competition was the food court,” says Halstead. “Today, with people climbing the corporate ladder trying desperately to get ahead, even the idea of taking a lunch hour seems decadent. Yet statistics show that the people who take a break come back invigorated and out produce their workaholic neighbour. So, for this season we at Lunchbox Theatre are here to remind you to take a break and TAKE BACK YOUR LUNCH HOUR!”

Also announced by Halstead at the Season Launch event was the “Literature Comes Alive – Educating Tomorrow’s Audience” program – which will work with area schools to bring history and literature alive through the performances of In Flanders Fields and Lauchie, Liza and Rory, and the addition of a new 7:30pm Saturday evening performance in partnership with Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse for dinner before or after the show. Lunchbox will continue to offer Friday 6:10 pm ‘Happy Hour’ performances with a complimentary drink at the Auburn Saloon, as well as $10 lunches created by the World Delicatessen. Dirty Laundry will be back on Monday nights with their improvised soap opera and One Yellow Rabbit’s will again host performances at Lunchbox Theatre as part of their High Performance Rodeo. Another announcement was the new TransCanada Arts Partnership Program, which will help subsidize the use of the theatre and rehearsal hall by emerging and independent theatre groups.

Playpasses – seven flexible admissions in any combination throughout the season – are on sale now.

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www.lunchboxtheatre.com

For more information or to request an interview:
DJ Kelly
Marketing and Communications
Lunchbox Theatre
403 265 4292 x 229
dj.kelly@lunchboxtheatre.com

Performances: Monday to Saturday at 12:10pm, ‘Happy Hour’ Friday at 6:10pm, NEW Saturday at 7:30pm
Tickets: $18 Adults, $15 Seniors and Students
Playpass: Seven admissions in any combination, $110 Adults, $90 Seniors and Students
Contact: www.lunchboxtheatre.com, boxoffice@lunchboxtheatre.com or 403 265 4292 x 0

Ways and Means
A Classic Comedy by Noel Coward
Directed by Pamela Halstead

September 20 – October 9, 2010

When Stella and Toby Cartwright find themselves in an embarrassing financial bind, their search for an escape from social ruin reaps very entertaining results. This uproarious play, surrounding the penniless plight of the idle rich in 1930s Cote d’Azur, is classic Noel Coward. Scathing in its humour, its social commentary is as valid today as the day he penned it.

In Flanders Fields
A World Premiere Musical by Robert Gontier and Nicky Phillips
Directed by Gail Hanrahan

October 18 – November 13, 2010

Based on the life of John McCrae, the Canadian doctor who penned the famous poem of the same name, In Flanders Fields tells the story of the Great War events leading to the poem’s creation. With its touching story by Robert Gontier and beautiful music composed by Nicky Phillips, In Flanders Fields brings this important part of Canadian history alive ‘Lest We Forget’.

With Bells On
A World Premiere Comedy by Darrin Hagen
Directed by Ian Prinsloo

November 22 – December 18, 2010

An elevator. An uptight, recently divorced accountant. A drag queen dressed as a Christmas tree on her way to compete for the coveted ‘Christmas Queen’ title. When the elevator gets stuck her dream is in danger and an unlikely friendship is forged. This hysterical and heart-warming show reminds us that the spirit of Christmas can arrive in unexpected packages.

Lauchie, Liza and Rory
A Magical and Moving Play by Sheldon Currie
Directed by Mary-Colin Chisholm

February 7 – 26, 2011

With rave reviews from Whitehorse to New Zealand, Lauchie, Liza and Rory tells the very funny and at times heartbreaking tale of twin brothers who fall for the same girl. Written by the renowned Sheldon Currie, author of Margaret’s Museum, this play features Natasha MacLellan and a dynamic tour de force performance by Christian Murray as both Lauchie and Rory.

Wanda’s Visit
A Comedy by America’s Favourite One Act Playwright Christopher Durang
Directed by Bob White

March 7 – 26, 2011

The play is a hilarious account of what happens when an old flame shows up unexpectedly and turns a happy, if somewhat dull, marriage upside down. When Wanda refuses to leave, she becomes the houseguest from hell as she mixes up Jim and Marsha in her dysfunctional life. Insanity as only the crazy mind of Christopher Durang could imagine.

Tuesdays and Sundays
An Award Winning Drama by Daniel Arnold and Medina Hahn
Directed by Pamela Halstead

April 4 – 23, 2011

This beautiful play based on the true story of star crossed young lovers, Mary Tuplin and William Millman, at the turn of the twentieth century, has garnered accolades across the country and beyond. A hit wherever it has played, it features the incredible talents of real life couple Geoffery Ewert and Adrienne Smook in this charming but tragic tale.

Shopaholic Husband Hunt
A World Premiere Comedy by Glenda Striling
Directed by Johanne Deleeuw

May 2 – 21, 2011

Glenda Stirling’s Shopaholic charmed and with its lovable shopping-therapy-flawed protagonist. Abby is back and searching for the perfect husband with the same determination that she previously shopped for the perfect pair of pants. Featuring the original Shopaholic cast: Karen Johnson-Diamond, Ryan Luhning and Esther Purves-Smith as Abby.

Emerging Director Presentation

June 1 – 4, 2011

After assistant directing during our regular season, the Emerging Director has a chance to put their learning into action with a showcase production. The Emerging Director works with professional actors and designers and the show is given full production value. The Emerging Director Presentation is a spotlight on the talent that will grace Calgary’s stages in future.

Suncor Energy Stage One Festival of New Work

June 6 – 25, 2011

Six playwrights will have their new plays developed with the assistance of professional directors, actors and dramaturges. Each workshop culminates in a public reading where audiences give feedback on the script. Stage One is a great opportunity to get a sneak peek into future productions while playing an important role in the development of new Canadian plays.

Media Release
For Immediate Release – November 12, 2009

Calgary, AB – Pamela Halstead, Artistic Director of Lunchbox Theatre is please to announce the selection of Kathryn Waters as the 2009/2010 BD&P Emerging Director.

Kathryn, who has recently been named the Artistic Director Designate for Urban Curvz Theatre, was selected from close to twenty applications from across Alberta.

Kathryn graduated from York University’s Creative Ensemble program with her BA (Theatre) in 2004, and returned to her home province of Alberta the following year. Never satisfied with only one plate spinning, she has worked as an actor, director, dramaturg, producer, writer, and administrator since returning to Calgary. Kathryn is past Festival Coordinator of the Calgary Regional One-Act Play Festival, and managed the box office and education programming at the Pumphouse Theatre from 2007-2009.

Some of Kathryn’s favourite credits include The Shakespeare Company’s When That I Was (production dramaturg); Downstage’s The Piper (actor) and Queen Lear (producer/assistant director); Essay & The Russian Play (producer) and The Venus of Basin Street (producer/director) for Urban Curvz. She is currently directing Camera, Woman for Urban Curvz Theatre.

“Kathryn impressed me very much in the interview with her intelligence and passion,” says Artistic Director, Pamela Halstead. “I came to directing myself through apprenticeships, so the BD&P Emerging Director Program is one of the things that excites me most about Lunchbox Theatre. It is a great privilege to be invited into another director’s rehearsal hall and I am thrilled to welcome Kathryn into the process here.”

The BD&P Emerging Director Program, generously sponsored by Burnet, Duckworth & Palmer LLP, gives early career directors an apprenticeship under the tutelage of established professional theatre directors. Kathryn’s apprenticeship at Lunchbox Theatre will begin in the new year when she will assist three established directors: Kevin McKendrick on Mr. Fix It, Artistic Director, Pamela Halstead on The Submarine and Glenda Stirling on This Could Be Love. The final stage of her apprenticeship will be the direction of a one-act of her choosing, a project which she is already researching. The BD&P Emerging Director Presentation will run May 20-22, 2010.

Previous graduates of the program include Scott Roberts, Aaron Coates, Simon Mallett and Val Planche.

The world’s longest running lunchtime theatre, Lunchbox Theatre is a professional company that caters to downtown office workers over the noon-hour by producing six plays per year as well as the Petro-Canada Stage One Festival and the BD&P Emerging Director Program. Lunchbox Theatre recently relocated to a new theatre at the base of the Calgary Tower.

www.lunchboxtheatre.com

For more information, to request an interview, or to visit a rehearsal:
DJ Kelly
Marketing and Communications
Lunchbox Theatre
403 265 4292 x 229
dj.kelly@lunchboxtheatre.com

Media Release
For Immediate Release – November 16, 2009

Calgary, AB – With a prolonged economic slowdown, swine flu fears, and the coming holiday season, Lunchbox Theatre is pleased to give Calgary’s downtown workers a break: for 12 hours Lunchbox will make tickets to the first week of Dream Vacation available for just $12.

In an online box office only sale from 10am to 10pm on Friday, November 20 all tickets to the first week (Monday, November 23 – Saturday, November 28) of the world premiere musical Dream Vacation will be available for $12 each. This represents a 33% discount on the regular ticket price.

“We had tremendous success with this promotion last season during our last musical, Come Fly With Me when we had about 150 patrons take us up on the offer,” says artistic director Pamela Halstead. “The holiday season can be a stressful time to begin with and with the added stressors of H1N1 and the state of the economy we wanted to offer a mini-Dream Vacation to people. The business community – and downtown office workers in particular – are our audiences, our family. The $12 for 12 hours promotion is just one way we can give back to the community.”

Lunchbox Theatre offers theatre-goers and downtown office workers the opportunity to take a much deserved trip to Mexico during the holiday season as part of the world premiere of Dream Vacation, a new musical by Jonathan Monro, which runs November 23 to December 23.

In Dream Vacation, three people from the same advertising agency win dream vacations to sunny Mexico and are more than a little surprised as to how their holidays unfold when they are forced to share the same hotel room. Trying circumstances result in hilarity as the trio endure and come to grips with their expectations.

The world’s longest running lunchtime theatre, Lunchbox Theatre is a professional company that caters to downtown office workers over the noon-hour by producing six plays per year as well as the Petro-Canada Stage One Festival and the BD&P Emerging Director Program. Lunchbox Theatre recently relocated to a new theatre at the base of the Calgary Tower.

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www.lunchboxtheatre.com

For more information or to request an interview:
DJ Kelly
Marketing and Communications
Lunchbox Theatre
403 265 4292 x 229
dj.kelly@lunchboxtheatre.com