Front Row Centre would like to thank all of the people who came out to audition. With the talent we saw, you made it very hard for us to pare down the list.
Hey, we need some more men to sign up and audition! While it might look like there aren't that many roles for the guys, the Ensemble plays a huge part in the show and there are some choice and meaty parts that are scattered throughout the show. Don't pass up on this opportunity! See below:
Leads:
Warner Huntington III: A good looking but pompous guy who break's Elle's heart and leaves her for Harvard. (Tenor)
Emmett Forrest: A smart and sensitive law student who takes Elle under his wing. (Tenor)
Professor Callahan: A pompous and manipulative law professor at Harvard. (Baritone)
Character:
Elle's father: Rich golfer. Doesn't want his daughter wasting her time on Harvard.
Kyle, the UPS guy: A great looking, in-shape employee of the United Postal Service.
Carlos and Nikos: A gay couple. Nikos is a murder suspect. Carlos is his boyfriend.
Winthrop, Lowell and Pforzhiemer: The Harvard admissions board, who may or may not be swayed by more than just acedemic records.
An Appeal to the members and supporters of Community Theatre
Hello,
We are writing to you today to ask for your support in a very serious matter. A few years ago, one of our volunteers was injured when helping out with one of our shows. Subsequently a WCB claim was filed and paid out to this individual, without going through our insurance provider and despite the fact that we do not have a WCB account nor are required to have one. The consequence of this is that the Workers Compensation Board of Alberta is demanding that we now open a WCB account and pay several thousand dollars a year to them in order to cover all of our volunteers.
There are no volunteer run, non-profit charitable community based theatre groups that posses a WCB account, without voluntarily signing up for one in the province of Alberta. The impact of this is that it will set a precedent and jeopardize the operation of similarly run organizations in our province who might not be able to afford those fees.
We have attempted to appeal the decision, and have been denied on all fronts. We have one final appeal left that we must submit before the end of 2012. We are asking you, as a supporter of Front Row Centre and of community based arts programs, to lend your voice in outrage of this injustice. Your local theatre groups are at risk and may be forced to shut down if our appeal becomes denied for a final time.
Included below is a letter which we hope you forward on to the people and agencies listed below, or sign it and mail it in to them and to your MLA expressing your opinion on the matter.
Guy Kerr, President and CEO of WCB Alberta
guy.kerr@wcb.ab.ca
Office of Associate Minister Frank Oberle, MLA in charge of WCB
HS.AssociateMinister@gov.ab.ca
Office of Heather Klimchuk, Minister of Culture
jeremy.block@gov.ab.ca
Mayor Nenshi’s Office
themayor@calgary.ca
************************************************************
To Whom It May Concern,
This is an open letter to bring a serious matter to your attention. A situation has arisen which will threaten the continuation of arts and culture programs here in the province of Alberta. Front Row Centre Players Society, a community based, non-for-profit, 100% volunteer run and operated charitable institution, is being forced to pay WCB coverage, despite the organization having no employees or paid personnel.
The Workers Compensation Board of Alberta is demanding that the estimated tens of thousands of volunteer hours that go into the service of our arts and culture mandate are to be covered by WCB. This amounts to thousands of dollars to be paid to the WCB of Alberta every year, for coverage of a “hobby activity”, despite the WCB stating in its documentation that “if you are a non-profit employer who engages volunteers... you may apply to have them covered” (http://www.wcb.ab.ca/pdfs/employers/EFS_Who_do_i_have_to_cover.pdf) AND Safe Stages, a joint publication of Alberta Employment, Immigration and Industry and Theatre Alberta (http://www.theatrealberta.com/documents/SafeStages_Web.pdf).
There are currently more than 75 organizations listed on Theatre Alberta’s website, www.theatrealberta.com, operating as community theatres in Alberta, and of those, less than five are currently paying WCB, and none of them on their volunteers. If Front Row Centre accepts the ruling of the WCB, a precedent will be set: every volunteer run performing arts organization in Alberta could be subjected to hefty fees, several of whom might not be able to afford them, and subsequently will have to discontinue operations. This could also threaten many additional theatre organizations that aren’t currently members of Theatre Alberta, not to mention other volunteer performing arts organizations, such as dance troupes, music performance societies, or choral groups that exist in our province.
Community based, volunteer run organizations that are hobbyist societies should not be forced to pay the fees levied by the Workers Compensation Board of Alberta. They should be treated just the same as Amateur Sports organizations and other hobby groups and given the option to apply for WCB coverage. Charitable Institutions, Clubs, Artists and Entertainers, are all listed as being exempt from WCB coverage (https://my.wcb.ab.ca/rm/WCB.RateManual.WebServer/ExemptIndustries.aspx). We fall under all of those categories and yet are being denied the option to be covered solely by our insurance, and now must double pay. This is neither fair nor right.
Our last chance to appeal this decision is before January 2013, and we have run out of time. Please do whatever you can to make sure that our performing arts organizations here in Alberta are protected from this injustice.
Front Row Centre Players Orchestra Seeking Musicians
Front Row Centre Players is seeking musicians for our upcoming production of Monty Python’s Spamalot. Please prepare a piece on your chosen instrument, in any style, to perform.
Band rehearsals will be held at the Beddington Heights Community Centre (375 Bermuda Drive NW) once a week in Oct/Nov on Sunday evenings from 7-10pm. We may add a second weekly rehearsal in December if required.
Tech week begins January 7, 2013 continuing through to Opening Night on January 11th. The band may be called at any time during that week from 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. as needed; however, will definitely be required for dress rehearsal on Wednesday January 9th and Preview on Thursday, January 10th.
Performance dates are: January 11 through January 26, 2013 inclusive. Shows are daily, except Mondays, and there are both matinees and evenings on the second and third Saturday. Sunday performances are matinee only.
The following instrumentation is required (doubling will be considered where possible – please indicate if you can double during your audition):
1 - Flute/Piccolo
2 – Trumpet 1
3 – Violin
4 - Trombone
5 – Guitarist(s): We are searching for several styles/instruments
including acoustic, arch top, nylon and electric.
Please prepare a piece on your chosen instrument, in any style, to perform. You may also be asked to sight read something from the show during your audition. If you play multiple instruments, please prepare something on each instrument
If you are interested in auditioning please call Naomi Williams (the Musical Director) at 403-604-0575 or email her at operagirl@hotmail.com.
As part of our ongoing efforts to fairly recognize the contributions of all the participants in a show, FRC is no longer offering the flat-rate "fee" to musicians that may have been paid in the past, but will compensate for expenses incurred during the creation of the
show. We are continuing to examine the rewards that we provide for the unique contributions that everyone brings together to make our shows a success to create a collaborative and positive environment for everyone involved.
FRC is pleased to announce the cast of Monty Python’s Spamalot, a mix of familiar and new faces:
King Arthur – Mike Beattie Sir Lancelot – James McGowan Sir Galahad – Doug Keeling Lady of the Lake – Carlyn Miller Patsy – Colton Duane Sir Robin – Tenaj Williams Sir Bedevere – Colin Lowe Prince Herbert – Stuart MacLeod Mrs Galahad/Sentry – Hayley Feigs Mayor of Finland/French Taunter – Chris Willott Lead Minstrel/Brother Maynard – Steven Eastgaard-Ross Historian/Guard 2 – Murray Melnychuk Herbert’s Father/Sentry 2 – Brian Thiele Concorde – Katelyn Morishita Not Dead Fred/Ensemble – Cody Field Blakc Knight/Ensemble – Jeremy Verkley Guard 1/Ensemble – Jeff Wiseman Laker Girl/Head Knight of Ni – Ginette Simonot Laker Girl/Tim the Enchanter – Chelsea Millard Laker Girl – Crystal May Laker Girl – Sara Meilleur Laker Girl – Lindsay Harle Laker Girl – Emily Sunderland
Thank you to everyone who auditioned – see you at the show!
Monty Python’s Spamalot is presented through special arrangement with Theatrical Rights Worldwide, 570 Seventh Avenue, Suite 2100, New York, NY 10018, www.theatricalrights.com
Front Row Centre Players is thrilled to announce our nominees for the 2012 Calgary-ACTS CAT Awards. The Rocky Horror Show has tied for the most musical nominations with 10, and both Assassins and Gypsy were well represented with 3 and 4 nominations respectively. We are proud and thrilled to have had such wonderful and talented cast, crew and orchestra members involved in our fantastic season!
The recipients of the 2012 CAT Awards will be announced at the gala ceremony on Saturday, August 25th at 7:30 PM at the Rozsa Centre at the University of Calgary. For more information, please visit www.calgary-acts.com. The board of directors of Front Row Centre Players wishes all of the nominees the best of luck!
Top