Is your neighbour into Something Rotten!??
Leonore Evans discovered community musical theatre through her daughter 10 years ago. Something Rotten! is her third play.
Photo: Carol Martin
Is your neighbour into Something Rotten!??
By Clare Davidson Rogers
Before anyone starts pointing fingers, we hasten to say that Something Rotten! is a musical and a rollicking comedy set in Shakespearean England. This latest production of the GNAG Theatre Group will be presented at the Glebe Community Centre in April, and with over 30 members in the cast, it’s quite possible that you’ll see a neighbour on stage there. In fact, a big part of the fun for the cast members is being able to share their performance with friends, family and neighbours in the audience.
So, what gets one of your neighbours out of the house for one or two evenings each week from September to April, rehearsing and preparing to sing, dance and act, and what keeps some of them coming back? Sometimes it’s just general interest. Jennifer Ford, a Centretown resident, saw the theatre course offering in the GNAG program guide and tried out for The Sound of Music in 2008; she has been involved in both performing and set design for many subsequent plays.
Sometimes the reason for joining is closer to home. Janine Brooks-Jean, a Glebe resident, remembers being one of the parents whose kids were in the cast of Fiddler on the Roof in 2016. “I would come with the other parents and pick up the kids, and I saw how much fun everyone was having, and I thought I would like to do something like that,” she says. This led to both mother and son trying out the next year, and Janine is now in her sixth production. She especially likes the music, and the pace of the rehearsal schedule allows her to fit it in, even with a busy lifestyle.
Sometimes the connection isn’t quite as immediate. Leonore Evans, another Glebite, got to know the theatre program a decade ago when her daughter was in several of the plays, but she only decided to try it herself in 2023 when The Drowsy Chaperone was being presented. Something Rotten! will be her third play. She finds the theatre “a great winter hobby.” She especially loves the dance element but is also in awe of the teaching skills and talent of music director/pianist Lauren Saindon. Leo’s enthusiasm is infectious; it was not long after she joined that her cottage neighbour David Chernushenko, an Old Ottawa South resident (and former city councillor) got a knock on the door and a personal invitation to add his tenor voice to Drowsy. He’d done some theatre and choir work in the past and had seen a number of past performances, so he needed little persuasion. A published author himself, he finds it interesting that even with a given script, there is still so much creative room for participants: “I guess what’s engaging the creative part of the brain is that it’s all three, it’s words, it’s dance, it’s music, and all at the same time,” says Chernushenko.
Experience is not required, as several participants can attest. When Jean-François Harbour and Helena Forbes saw a Facebook posting for Drowsy Chaperone, Helena (a self-confessed musical nerd) was immediately determined to try out for one of her favourites, but J-F was a bit shy. “I had never done theatre in my life, so it was all new, and I had no idea what to expect, but everyone was so welcoming,” he says. The family atmosphere impressed them so much that they now have both daughters joining them in the cast of Something Rotten!
Of course, not everyone in the play is from the local neighbourhood, and not everyone has been involved for multiple years. Alison Manning is in her first play at the community centre – she drives to and from her home in Barrhaven for every rehearsal, but she notes that she has work ties and friendships with cast members and has been thrilled by performances dating back to Oliver in 2015. Will Ball and daughter Zoe come in from Westboro. Both were enticed by Glebe friends, but the performing fun and the friendly company make them believe their second play is only the beginning.
Regardless of what neighbourhood they come from or how long they’ve been involved, one thing is certain – all these players are devoting hours of effort and preparation to bring hilarious musical entertainment to your doorstep. Something Rotten! is directed by Eleanor Crowder and will play at the Glebe Community Centre from April 14 to 19. Tickets will be available March 2 at GNAG.ca.
Clare Davidson Rogers is office manager at the Glebe Neighbourhood Activities Group (GNAG) and a community theatre enthusiast.