The Blyth Festival will celebrate Canada’s birthday with an opening night performance of Vimy, by Vern Thiessen.
The Royal Canadian Legion Branch 420 will open the 8pm performance on July 1 with a Colour Party, assisted by the 3144 Clinton Army Cadet Corp.
On April 9, 1917, 20,000 Canadian men led the first wave over the top to storm Vimy Ridge. Despite blinding sleet, snow, heavy enemy fire, and the endless quagmire of mud, Canadian troops took the ridge.
Many believe that Canada was truly born on this day. In Vimy, four soldiers reflect on their lives in a field hospital after the battle, as a young nurse from Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia tends to the aftermath of grief and fear.
Artistic Director Eric Coates said, “Every Canadian should see this play. It not only provides an overview of the size of WWI, but it puts names and faces to the people who made the ultimate sacrifice. It is an honour to present this work inside our own Memorial Hall.”
Familiar faces appearing in Vimy include Gil Garratt (Pearl Gidley, A Killing Snow, Against the Grain) and Tova Smith (Courting Johanna, Against the Grain, Innocence Lost).
The cast also includes Greg Gale, Mark Crawford, Meegwun Fairbrother, and Sébastien David, making their Blyth Festival debuts. Vimy is directed by Coates .
Preview performances run June 29 and 30, prior to the official opening. Vimy plays at the Blyth Festival in repertory until Aug. 6.
The festival’s 2011 season runs June 21 to Aug. 27 and also features Hometown by the Hometown Collective, Rope’s End by Douglas Bowie, and Early August by Kate Lynch.
For more information, visit www.blythfestival.com or call 1-877-862-5984.
