South Simcoe Theatre presents Four Play festival

Festival running June 2-5 will feature six original plays performed at old Cookstown Town Hall

The South Simcoe Theatre sign over the door at the old Cookstown Town Hall. | Rosaleen Egan for BradfordToday (file photo)

South Simcoe Theatre’s (SST) Four Play: A Festival of Play Readings is returning to the stage at the old Cookstown Town Hall, 1 Hamilton St., from Thursday, June 2 to Sunday, June 5.

The four-day festival will present six original plays written, directed and acted by local artists. Following tradition, SST will host a Tea Room as part of Cookstown’s Wing Ding event on Saturday June 4, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tea, coffee, SST’s famous strawberry shortcake and other goodies will be available for purchase. Tickets to the play readings are available at the door and patrons are invited to “pay-as-you wish.”

Play readings offer a unique experience for the audience. The focus is on the words of the play, without distraction from set design, movement, and costumes. The characters and story of the play are emphasized through rehearsed readings where the actors read from the script using inflection and timing to present the nuances and power of the dialogue of a play.

Play readings also offer both new and experienced actors a way to explore their craft, and directors the opportunity to really emphasize the spoken word.

Barrie playwright Trudee Romanek’s play, Half Baked, is one of two plays presented on Thursday night.

“A script isn’t really a play until its lines are delivered by actors to a room full of people. That’s what’s so great about Four Play. It gives playwrights a chance to hear their words spoken by others and see if they have the effect you’re hoping they’ll have on a live audience,” she says. “Handing that script over to a director and cast lets me see if the words I wrote actually say to others what I think they say.”

This then allows the audience to be part of a long creative process.

As many theatres did, SST struggled with the effect of the pandemic. Daniel Galea is a member of SST’s board of directors and has been involved in the theatre for more than 20 years. He found the closures a “shock to the system.” Still, the theatre found a way.

“The Four Play that was originally scheduled for June 2020 eventually became part of our online Four Play Friday series in the winter/spring of 2021. We still wanted to bring the plays to life and give the playwrights an opportunity to hear them read,” Galea says.

Four Play usually closes out SST’s season, but COVID-19 forced a schedule change and SST will be adding a production to the end of its season, The Last Resort by Norm Foster and Leslie Arden, June 16 to 26.

Having The Last Resort following closely caused rehearsal issues in terms of space, another COVID challenge, “but our community once again stepped up to help, whether it was the Innisfil Curling Club, who provided us rehearsal space, any of our sponsors in our program this year, during the online Four Play last year or those who are stepping up this year, the actors, volunteers and especially patrons that have returned or anyone else, because I know I am missing someone,” Galea says.

“SST has been around for more than 50 years and we wouldn’t be able to do it without the support of our community.”

On behalf of SST, Galea thanks patrons ahead of time for understanding the theatre is still asking people to wear masks and show proof of vaccination. This is in line with other major theatre companies such as Mirvish and Stratford, and some other community theatres. SST hopes those restrictions will be able to be lifted for next season.

Four Play runs June 2, 3 and 4 at 7:30 p.m. and June 5 at 2 p.m.