ONstage Tonight at Festival: Theatre Kent

Theatre Ontario Festival 2014 opens tonight at the Imperial Theatre in Sarnia, as Theatre Kent takes the stage to perform John Patrick Shanley’s Doubt, A Parable, representing the Western Ontario Drama League (WODL).

This is Theatre Kent’s debut at Theatre Ontario Festival.  Founded in 1978, Theatre Kent is located in Chatham-Kent and is the youngest of this year’s four participating companies.  Each year, they produce a minimum of three productions ranging from musicals and comedies to mysteries and drama.

Doubt, A Parable
Theatre Kent
Neil Wood
Photo by Cheshire Media

Doubt, A Parable, which won the 2005 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, is a battle of wills between a Catholic school principal and a priest. A charismatic priest, Father Flynn, is trying to upend the school’s strict customs, which have long been fiercely guarded by Sister Aloysius, who believes in the power of fear and discipline. Her suspicion of him leads her on a personal crusade to unearth the truth and rid Flynn from the school.

At the 2014 WODL Festival in Windsor, Theatre Kent won the D. Park Jamieson Memorial Award for Outstanding Production, Outstanding Direction (Norm McLeod), Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Major Role (Neil Wood as Father Flynn) and Best Visual Production, with nominations for Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Major Role (Audrey Hummelen as Sister Aloysius), Outstanding Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role (Tracy Schillemore-Morton as Sister James), Outstanding Technical Achievement (Gregg Oliver, Lighting), and Outstanding Ensemble Work.  They also won In or Out of Festival Awards for Best Newcomer (Neil Wood), Best Visually Co-ordinated Costumes of a Non-Rental Nature (Barb Masse and Dava Robichaud), and Outstanding Lighting Design and Execution (Gregg Oliver), with a nomination for Best Sound Design (Eric Bristow).

Read more about Theatre Ontario Festival 2014 on our website