Par for the Corpse opening soon

By Greg Price
Vauxhall Advance
gprice@tabertimes.com

Theatre goers are sure to feel like they just got a hole-in-one if they take in the upcoming Par for the Corpse, a play production by St. Joseph’s Catholic Church.

Par for the Corpse takes place at an exclusive golf resort where everything is peaceful and relaxing, that is, until a bus load of singles on a match-making vacation arrive and one of the clients turns up dead. The fun begins as the staff of the resort and the other singles try to unravel the facts of the case, while all the time trying to keep themselves safe…and alive.

The murder-mystery/comedy is the seventh installment by the church, in which director Boyd Dunn fell in love with the script, all while offering a lot of variety from past productions.

“We’ve done one murder-mystery/comedy before and this playwright did a great job in making it all work. It’s not offensive, it’s tongue-in cheek and keeps people laughing and guessing,” said Boyd. “I try and pick something that is different and this is at a golf resort. I try and read a script five or six times before I even decide to see if it will work. The smaller cast, the interesting characters, the whole idea of a match-making group, they are all different from what we have done before.”

The cast of eight women and six men include many that have been involved in other St. Joseph’s comedies which include Cindy Kurek, Lien Van Hal, Kathleen Klemen, Dirk Geerligs, Alana Johnson, Sharon Dunn, Lauren Gouw, Lorry Vanden Dungen, Erwin Claassen, Shauna Wiest, Frank Sekura, and John Van Hal. Newcomers to the production group are Norm Elaschuk and Lauren Stiekema.

“Even with Norm, he has been involved with the church plays out in Enchant with Jeff Frostad. He’s done like nine shows,” said Boyd. “You could see it right from the start of rehearsals, you know he’s done this before.”

Rehearsals began back in January as the cast and crew prepare for opening night on March 16.

“This is a fundraiser for our church hall addition that was constructed several years ago and, as always, we very much appreciate the support we have gotten from not only Vauxhall, but also many other surrounding communities. We hope everyone will come out to St. Joseph’s Church Hall to enjoy an evening of laughs,” said Boyd. “This is just an excuse for us to have fun which is what it is. We get great support where there are some people that come every year. There was someone from Picture Butte that phoned me saying we’d like to bring a seniors group. I think since we’ve been around for awhile people are beginning to hear by word of mouth. We get people from Vauxhall, Hays, Enchant, Taber and that area north of the river in Scandia and Rolling Hills.”

Productions go March 16-18 with performances at 7 p.m. each day with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. The play also runs March 23-25 at 7 p.m. each day with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. There is also a special 1 p.m. matinee showing on Saturday, March 25 with doors opening at 12:30 p.m.

Tickets are $15 for adults and $10 for students and are available at Hometown Hardware and Gifts, 507 2 Ave. N. in Vauxhall. Phone number is 403-654-2924.

“This production is such a great group effort. There’s the people who do the work putting up the sets and all the behind-the-scenes work. It’s not just the cast members,” said Boyd. “Everyone comes together to make this happen.”

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