That's Life hits stage at Chalmers Church tonight
Catherine O'Hara
Published on
May 02, 2008
The Company of Saints has been rocking the set at Chalmers Presbyterian Church on Mountain Park Avenue preparing to put on That's Life, a medieval morality play set as a rock musical, which tells the story of the passage from life to death.
When Afterlife's lead guitarist Joe's amp explodes, Death comes calling. Joe is left gathering all the things that were of great importance in her life, including beauty, strength, and her senses.
Each of Joe's important items is personified in the musical.
According to That's Life director, Reverend Susan Kerr, Joe goes on a journey escorted by Death as she looks for somebody to speak for her after she has crossed over.
With its 10 cast members, the Company of Saints is largely composed of Mountain and Burlington residents, but some are from the Toronto and Niagara region, Rev. Kerr said.
Written in 2003 by Peter McKinnon, a professor at York University, That's Life was first discovered at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
"It kind of took over the festival," noted Rev. Kerr, adding that to the best of her knowledge, the musical hasn't been performed in Canada since 2003.
Rev. Kerr had set her sights on the play four years ago, but was waiting for the right time to put it together. While acting as the supply minister at Chalmers Presbyterian Church, she had the opportunity to meet individuals who she thought would enjoy working on the musical.
"We had enough people to do a good job and had a lot of fun doing it," she said.
When speaking with Mr. McKinnon about putting together the musical, Rev. Kerr noted that it was Mr. McKinnon who suggested the cast and crew donate the funds to local and international organizations.
"The theme of the play is doing good things and making a difference and it seemed to go with the message of the play" she explained.
Locally, Company of Saints will be donating half the proceeds from That's Life to City Kidz, an inner city Hamilton organization.
On an international level, World Without AIDS will benefit from the performance, as half of the production's revenue will be directed to the organization.
In the past, Company of Saints has held in-church events and performances, but producing That's Life is one of the first big community outreach events for the group, said Rev. Kerr, adding that it is also the first production mainly comprised of individuals in their late teens to their early 40s.
The group hopes to sell 300 tickets for the performance, which would mean a larger donation to both organizations.
That's Life is slated to run tonight and tomorrow (May 2-3) at 8 p.m. and on Sunday (May 4) at 4 p.m. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased at the door.