Authors, New Plays and The Book Queen
Date Posted: 02/05/2017
It’s a given that Dufferin County is sports crazy. The evidence is everywhere: in arenas, in gyms, on playing fields and on flat screens in family rooms, especially during playoff season. But we also love our books. There are numerous book clubs, multiple reading programs at our libraries, a county-wide One Book annual love-in and, of course, BookLore. We are blessed to have one of Canada’s most vibrant independent book stores in our backyard, under the leadership of the inimitable Nancy Frater (2013 Canadian Bookseller of the Year).
Nancy has been selling books for 25 years. It’s personal. The number of times I’ve walked in the door of her Orangeville store and said, “I heard Shelagh Rogers talking about a book on CBC. It’s about a woman from somewhere up north. I think the author’s first name began with an E” or something equally as vague. Nancy and her crackerjack staff either have the title on the tip of their tongues or find it in seconds.
Theatre Orangeville has been around almost as long as BookLore and it’s no surprise that Nancy and her silent partner husband have been theatre supporters since day one. Today that support goes directly to Theatre Orangeville’s New Play Development (NPD) Fund. This is a pot of money that is reserved exclusively for commissioning new plays from Canadian playwrights and funding their artistic development through actor workshops. Baco Noir, Ned Durango, Jonas & Barry In the Home, were all nurtured through this fund and went on to premiere on the Theatre Orangeville stage.
Two more plays in Theatre Orangeville’s brand new 2017-18 season are products of the NPD Fund. We launch our season with a charming love story with a country and western twang called Sugar Road, by Kristen Da Silva. Kristen is being hailed as the next Norm Foster…and that’s from Norm! Our second NPD beneficiary is sure to become a Canadian Christmas classic. Our own Dan Needles has teamed up with Creemore composer Clive VanderBurgh to create The Last Christmas Turkey – The Musical. Adult siblings reminiscing about childhood Christmases, farmyard animals that sing and a turkey who won’t stay put – irresistible!
We’re hoping that Nancy’s latest venture to support Theatre Orangeville will be equally irresistible to book lovers. A Literary Pairing, Part Two happens in the Opera House, Tuesday May 16th at 7 pm. And because it’s a Nancy event, there will be excellent authors – Claire Cameron (The Last Neanderthal) and Elan Mastai (All Our Wrong Todays) – great questions and free libations, all for the price of a ticket. Tickets are $25 and are available at BookLore and theatreorangeville.ca.
- Bernadette
87 Broadway, Orangeville ON, L9W 1K1