| September-October Vol. 4 No. 5 |
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Midsummer Night's Dream
at Bragg Creek Community Centre
This year's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream will
be the swan song for Mary McLellan. Like athletes, drama directors always
dream of just one more big hit, one more big run or one more big goal. For
Mary, it has been a good run with hits at such places as Bishop Grandin High
School in Calgary, Spalding High School in Saskatchewan, and Fr. Mercredi
High School in Ft. McMurray.By Chuck McLellan, Bragg Creek, AB A key to her teaching was to treat young people as persons. She was able to raise the bar so that the hidden talents of young people were revealed through experience of drama. Drama was used to give form and substance to the experience of young people. Often they would phone or write to say how it had helped them to mature as individuals. In her class, they did not just read Shakespeare; they acted it out. In one class, a student was asked to remove his shirt while Mary held a sword high in the air. He must have thought "This class is getting too serious!" He was relieved to find that although The Merchant of Venice would demand "a pound of flesh," not an ounce of it would be corporeal. A recurring theme of Mary's teaching was "Don't let education get in the way of life." She believed that the most important role or part a person can play in life is being their own person in life itself. The discipline of Drama, the laughter and sharing have helped many young people build self-image and confidence. Parents have often expressed appreciation for what Drama was able to do for a son or daughter. For the past few years, Mary has had a group of forty-five young people who meet once a week during the school year to discover the magic of Drama. The secret seems to be that it is play, not work, to discover the joy and skills of Drama. The youth theatre group is now making its presence felt in the live theatre group known as Bragg-Arts. Mary McLellan is a founding member of Bragg-Arts and has directed such plays as The Odd Couple and The Boiler Room Suite. Who can forget the production of The Secret Garden that Mary directed? She not only lost her musical director but also the venue- the Community Centre burned down! However the show did go on with the cast of fifty children and twenty adults. They touched large audiences with the secret of the garden. Another production, the story of Narnia, was a ticket for all ages to enter into the world of fantasy. It was the first time that the musical version was done in western Canada. Once again, the combination of adults and youth performing together was a winning ticket. Fourteen years ago, Mary Wheeler McLellan retired from teaching at Fr. Mercredi High School but her passion for the fine arts continued and her dedication and energy has been a gift to the people of Bragg Creek and area. This year, the cast is breaking a leg over this one, in part to say thanks to Mary for her gift that lasts. |
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