Phil Wagner has a lot of ideas cooking up in that brain of his, so it’s not surprising that the local playwright, director and all-round theatre guy has dreamed a dream while concocting something rather tasty for this year’s Winter Carnival.
Wagner and his Tragically Comic Players are serving up the dinner theatre production, What’s Cooking? (George’s Last Dream), at the Schubert Centre during Vernon Winter Carnival.
This year’s theme, Cooking with Carnival, not only fits in with the play as audiences get to eat a satisfying meal before they are entertained, they will watch as a dinner theatre production unfolds on the stage.
“The play is staged within a dream, which takes place within a dinner theatre... We are playing with reality,” explained Wagner, adding there are some existential moments within.
This is about an older man’s last dream, after all.
A parody with numerous pop culture references and just as many zany dance numbers, What’s Cooking (George’s Last Dream) finds lead character, a shoe salesman named George (played by Wagner himself) wishing he could dream himself as a movie star gangster like George Raft.
“There is an interesting thing with George... There are two other characters that also play him,” said Wagner.
Again, this is his dream, after all. And George dreams up some interesting situations and characters.
“In his dream he has to protect what he values most, his wife and his child, who take many forms throughout his dream like Inspector Clouseau, the Pink Panther, Electra, a collectible doll, a southern belle and Cat Woman,” said Wagner.
A former drama teacher at Charles Bloom Secondary in Lumby, who now teaches English and social studies at W.L. Seaton Secondary, Wagner has enlisted a few other educators and some former and current students to assist him in the cast.
“It’s all just coincidental and just happened to work out that way,” he said, adding,“We’re having a lot of fun. This is a very comfortable cast and crew to work with. Some of my former students at Bloom, who are now 23 to 25, are in the show, which is wonderful.”
In George’s (make that Wagner’s) dream, Seaton students April Trigg and Kelsey Paulin take on the role of Brats(z) dolls, who want to take out a collectible doll because she is impinging on their market. They recruit a hit man Bob, played by Bob Oldfield (vice principal at Ellison Elementary School), and hit woman, Liette (Seaton teacher Regina Picco), to take out George and the doll.
Foreign and local accents abound.
Toni Rose (a teacher at Vernon Secondary School and conductor of the Mark Rose Big Band and the Second Wind Concert Band) also appears in a cameo and will dance up a storm.
“Our stage is larger than normal to accommodate the dancing. We’ll have at least 10 to 13 people dancing at the same time,” said Wagner, hinting audience interaction will help keep things moving, so to speak.
Although not a musical, like many of the past Carnival dinner theatre presentations, What’s Cooking? (George’s Last Dream) does have the aforementioned dance numbers (you’ll have to see ‘em to believe them, says Wagner), and musician Jackson Mace (a former teacher with the Vernon school district and leader of local classic rock band MACE) plays a minstrel who will sing some tunes and play his guitar to introduce the production and step in where needed throughout. Drummer Neil Morrison is also involved.
Others appearing in the comedy are Charles Bloom grads Amy Wagner, Levi Perigo, and Alex Corzo-Johnstone, along with Seaton grad Mary Dobslaff who bounces back and forth to do sound, with technical assistance by former Seaton teacher Dave Brotsky and lighting by Chris Carter.
And in a twist of reality vs. dream (actually a last-minute casting change) actual stage manager Rod Neufeld is now playing the assistant stage manager in the production, while former Bloom student Melanie Stokes plays the stage manager.
Confused? Don’t worry, it will all make sense once the curtain rises.
“Jack Gareb and his staff at the Schubert Centre have gone way out of their way to accommodate this nutty play and are getting set to serve up a marvellous dinner,” said Wagner. “Young children are welcome, but may not relate to the content.”
What’s Cooking? (George’s Last Dream) takes place during Winter Carnival at the Schubert Centre Feb. 9 to 12. Dinner is at 6:30 p.m. with the show following at 7:30. Tickets are $45, and groups of eight can reserve a table at the Vernon Winter Carnival office at 3401 35th Ave. Call 545-2236 or order online at www.vernonwintercarnival.com.
