Theatre is back at Nipissing University.
This past fall, three Nipissing students led the way to create a new theatre club at the school. Megan Covell, Danielle Denault, and Quinn Staines formed the Nipissing University Lakers Theatre Club, and the group has hit the ground running – you can expect to see its first production this March, the much-loved Abba musical Momma Mia!
Covell recalled how soon after meeting Denault on campus, the two realized, “We both really missed being involved in theatre. We used to do it all the time in our hometowns, and we really missed it, so we decided to create an opportunity for ourselves to get involved here.”
Covell and Denault got the ball rolling on becoming an official group within the university, and soon Staines joined the team, adding to the charge. This was last fall, and once the school granted permission, the team went to work putting together the club’s first production.
Auditions took place last September – Denault oversaw those – and by the next month rehearsals were in full swing. The group chose a musical because the genre usually has larger casts, which allows more of Nipissing’s actors to take part. They settled on Mama Mia because it’s such a well-known musical, it should attract a good crowd to the show come March.
“We wanted to do something everyone would know for our first show,” Covell noted. “Something everyone would be looking forward to coming out to see.”
Denault, who is directing the upcoming show, emphasized, “Theatre has always been very important to me. I was an anxious and shy kid, and the first time I did theatre I was in the fifth grade when I had this amazing teacher who started a theatre club at the school. And this gave me an outlet to do things that I never thought I could do before.”
Now, the three are bringing a similar experience to Nipissing students and adding to North Bay’s theatre heritage. Denault emphasized that anyone is welcome to become involved with the Nipissing Lakers Theatre Club, and each year the plan is to stage one big production.
Staines also noted that the club is looking for sponsorships from the community. So, if you’d like to help with that, and have your business or organization immortalized in the show’s programme, you can reach out at [email protected]. She mentioned you can donate any amount to have your name included.
The club launches its first show, Mamma Mia! on March 14 to 16, and again on March 21 and 22. All shows are at 7 p.m., although the March 16 show is a 1:30 matinee. Tickets are $12 and can be purchase through Eventbrite. Everyone is welcome to come out, this isn’t just for students, this is for all the Abba fans far and wide.
David Briggs is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of BayToday, a publication of Village Media. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.