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Players club snags top prize at regional festival

Production of Fools set to compete at Theatre BC's provincials in Kamloops
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Ryan Mooney

For a third year in a row, White Rock Players Club has won best production at the Greater Vancouver Zone Festival.

This year, the club’s latest offering, Fools, written by Neil Simon, took home top prize at the annual province-wide festival, hosted April 28 to May 4 by the White Rock Players Club at Coast Capital Theatre.

Directed by Ryan Mooney, the comedy – based on Simon’s story of young schoolmaster Leon Tolchinsky – will now face off against nine other provincial zones at Theatre BC’s annual festival,  July 5-13, in Kamloops.

Mooney told Peace Arch News that even more valuable than the win was the critique he received from zone adjudicator Fran Gebhard.

“It was really a fantastic feeling to be honoured amongst, not only our group, but several other fantastic productions, and by someone like Fran, who is a fantastic performer,” he said. “Having her recognize us and give her feedback, that was really special for me. Now I’ve got to take a look at the notes Fran gave me and re-evaluate some of the choices I have made.”

Fools producer Marlet Magnusson said she had a feeling the play would be a top contender since it opened in April.

“Right when we cast the show, I knew it was going to be a really special production,” she said.

Now, the entire cast and crew will focus on the provincial competition. The nine-day festival will feature evening performances by each of the zone winners, with Fools playing July 7 at 8 p.m., followed by a critique the following morning. The club will begin fundraising to send the production to Kamloops in the coming weeks. Anyone interested in donating can contact Nicole at 604-536-7536, email wrpctix@uniserve.com or go online to www.whiterockplayers.ca