Snow White is sick and tired of whistling while she works.
It’s been more than 30 years since she tore away from her evil stepmother, and escaped the huntsman tasked with cutting her heart out.
She hasn’t had to pick up after those messy little dudes, the Seven Dwarfs, for quite some time now, but now has to look after her own brood of urchins.
In fact, her life has changed so drastically, she now runs a candy shop, make that a “sweat” (the a is silent) shop, with a group of orphans.
And all was good with her Prince Charming until he met Cinderella.
So goes the new theatrical production by one of Canada’s most-produced playwrights, Norm Foster, with music by renowned composer-librettist David Warrack, which is making its western Canadian premiere at Powerhouse Theatre next week.
“This is Norm Foster’s 50th play, so it is a milestone for him,” said Jackson Mace, who is directing Foster’s comedy, musical, fairy-tale A Snow White Christmas for Vernon’s community theatre with an all-local cast and crew.
The Powerhouse presentation will, in fact, be the second time the play has ever been staged. It made its Canadian premiere in Orangeville, Ont. last December.
“You can almost predict that this will be looked on in 10 years as a Canadian Christmas classic,” said Mace, who last directed Death Trap and 2012’s big musical production of Annie for Powerhouse.
Although it is filled with running gags and lots of twists, A Snow White Christmas is also a story of redemption and has the same feel and spirit of other holiday classics such as It’s a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Carol and The Grinch Who Stole Christmas.
“There is a scene in this play reminiscent of Scrooge asking the boy to go fetch him the Christmas goose,” said Mace. “People need to know that this is not the Disney version with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. You will still enjoy it if you know that story, but this is the life of Snow White 30 years after she met Prince Charming. Let’s just say, life didn’t go as planned. She’s been through some hard times.”
The show features children in the cast and is family friendly, but also has humour geared towards adults.
“Kids will like it a lot. I think adults will love it. It is entertaining and funny and the music will stick with you,” said Mace.
Warrack, who has previously been in Vernon to accompany stage actor/director Jeff Hyslop, has composed 12 songs for the production.
“I was sent a file of someone singing the songs and you could tell right away that the music was catchy,” said Mace.
Local musician Jim Leonard has recorded the soundtrack on keyboards to accompany the cast in the Powerhouse production.
“At one of our rehearsals, Jim leaned over to me and said we have a wonderful cast,” said Mace.
Donning the red ribbon in her jet black hair and wearing the blue and yellow silk gown is none other than local jazz chanteuse Judy Rose, who last appeared at Powerhouse as Tzeitel in the 1996 production of Fiddler on the Roof.
“She is an extraordinary vocalist,” said Mace. “She’s powerful, but more than that she has a great sense of the music.”
Playing Snow’s romantic interest, “Vince” Charming, is Pawl Lawson, who has previously appeared in the Vernon Community Music School’s Glee club productions of Mamma Mia! and Across the Universe
“(Charming) has opened a shop across the street from Snow White’s called Charming Prints, which does art reproductions. He spots Snow White and introduces himself,” said Mace, adding, “Paul is terrific in the role.”
Then there are the bad guys, who for some reason have Cockney accents. Played by Powerhouse vet Bob Oldfield, who is originally from Liverpool, and Cliff Lattery, who appeared in Annie along with Oldfield, these two are out to make a quick buck, said Mace.
“They play off each other. Bob is the Hardy of Laurel and Hardy, and Cliff is the sidekick.”
Taking on the food deprived nanny of Snow White’s brood is 16-year-old Maxine, or “Max”, who is played by 22-year-old Mica Lemiski.
A former musical theatre student with the Vernon Community Music School’s Lights of Broadway, Lemiski has appeared in a number of local productions and recently returned to Vernon after studying at Western University in London, Ont.
“She sang Defying Gravity (from the musical Wicked) for me after I requested she sing me a song, and it was incredible,” said Mace, who had Lemiski as a student when he was a teacher at Okanagan Landing Elementary School.
New to the Powerhouse stage is Prince George transplant Roxanne Ricard, who takes on the role of the “Fairly” Good Mother, who is working to get her wings and has a faulty wand to boot.
“She is absolutely delightful and is a terrific singer with a classical background,” said Mace.
Powerhouse volunteer Cara Nunn has come on board to design and build the set.
As the production has been staged only once before, Nunn just had one photo of inside the sweat shop to go by, said Mace.
“She really went with her own vision and came up with two revolving sets that go from a street scene that is like a snow globe village to the sweat shop to Charming’s store. The audience will get lost in the set. Cara did an amazing job,” said Mace.
“When you take all those elements and add the writing, the music and the cast, it really gets you into the Christmas spirit. I encourage people to get their tickets early as word will spread.”
Powerhouse Theatre’s A Snow White Christmas opens Wednesday and runs to Dec. 13 at 7:30 (except Sunday and Monday.) Matinees are Dec. 7 and 13 at 2 p.m. All tickets are available at the Ticket Seller. Call 250-549-7469 or order online at www.ticketseller.ca.
