Liverpool International Theatre Festival looks for local hosts to open homes to delegates

Deborah Raddall and Jean Robinson are part of the team organizing this year’s Liverpool International Theatre Festival. (Rick Conrad)

It happens every two years, it’s less than two months away and the organizers of the Liverpool International Theatre Festival want you to be part of it.

The festival is looking for local residents to open their homes and help welcome the almost 90 people coming to Liverpool from 10 different countries for the four-day event.

The volunteer-driven festival is celebrating its 16th edition from Oct. 17 to 20 at the Astor Theatre.

This year, amateur theatre troupes from Morocco, Egypt, the country of Georgia, Mexico, Italy, Switzerland, Wales and the U.S. will be putting on one-act plays in an event that celebrates theatre and international friendship. Winds of Change from Liverpool will also be putting on a play at the festival.

“For those that haven’t been to the festival in the past,” says festival chairwoman Jean Robinson, “they are one-act plays and they have to be between 25 minutes long and 50 or 55 minutes long. And so, it’s a great introduction to theatre and different types of theatre.”

Deborah Raddall is in charge of LITF’s marketing and promotions. 

“LITF is a celebration of culture and theatre and community. And it’s a chance for us, meaning Liverpool, to experience the world.”

The festival relies on 40 to 60 volunteers from the community to make it happen.

Members of the theatre troupes are billeted at homes around Queens County. This year, organizers are putting an urgent call out for people to open their homes to the actors and crews coming to Liverpool.

LITF asks hosts to provide a bed and some breakfast for festival participants. The festival looks after everything else, including other meals and transportation. Hosts also get two free tickets to the play involving their guests.

Raddall and her husband Blair have hosted troupes in their home for many previous festivals.

“It’s a wonderful experience, my experience has been really great with that. We’ve been hosting almost every year and we’ve made wonderful friendships and connections. It’s quite unique for a theatre festival.”

“All you need to do is have a bed. It’s a bed and breakfast situation. What we ask of our hosts at a minimum is to provide a bed, provide a breakfast for them in the mornings and to pick them up when they arrive, if it’s a reasonable time. … At a minimum interaction, make them welcome in your home, give them something to eat in the mornings and our festival is designed to pick up all the rest of the stuff. … We’re really looking for a welcoming space and a little bit of breakfast.”

Robinson said hosts and guests have made lasting connections.

“Hosts can be as engaged in the festival as they want to be. We know that these have become lifelong friendships and also new experiences. People have gotten to go skating for the first time with their host, even being taken to the ocean to see a beach for the first time, going out on a lobster boat or things like that that have really cemented those relationships.”

Raddall says they’re still looking for space for about 40 troupe members. Troupes and potential hosts fill out questionnaires so that organizers can help make sure the experience is as positive as possible for everybody.

“It’s a process that’s not just we’re just going to chuck somebody on your doorstep without having a conversation about what works best for you and what works best for them.”

If you’re interested in becoming a host for the Liverpool International Theatre Festival, you can contact info@litf.ca , check out their website at litf.ca or message them at their Facebook page.

Email: rickconradqccr@gmail.com

Listen to the audio version of this story below

Astor Theatre Ukraine fundraiser delayed, other efforts ongoing

Astor Theatre, Liverpool, Nova Scotia.

Astor Theatre, Liverpool, Nova Scotia. Photo Credit: Ed Halverson

An all-day concert to support people fleeing the Russian invasion of Ukraine will go ahead.

The event, Queens Care Day for Ukraine, was scheduled at Liverpool’s Astor Theatre April 30 but was postponed after several performers became ill.

Astor Theatre General Manager Jean Robinson-Dexter says a new date for the event will be announced shortly.

Robinson-Dexter says after hearing the stories about the suffering in Ukraine she and a group of volunteers decided they had to do something.

“I guess it’s over a month ago now when they said that a theatre, a children’s theatre was bombed in a city in Ukraine,” Robinson-Dexter. “And that just kind of hit me to the core that places that people come together because they love theatre and they love the arts, and for that to happen…”

While Robinson Dexter and fellow organizer Ashley Goodwyn work to find a new date for the performances, Deborah Raddall, Melanie Inglis and Charmaine Stevens are spearheading efforts to raise money through a hybrid online and live auction.

The silent auction is already accepting bids through the Queens Care Day for Ukraine Silent Auction Facebook page.

Bidding will remain open until noon on May 12.

The auction will then go live, in person at the Liverpool Town Arts and Cultural Centre from 5:00pm to 8:00pm and the winners can claim their prizes that night.

Local artist Roger Savage will be painting portraits on-site that day and donating all the proceeds to the fundraiser.

Savage has agreed to take sittings this Saturday as well which must be scheduled in advance by calling the Astor Theatre box office.

Robinson-Dexter says the group has set a goal of donating $10,000 to the Red Cross Ukraine Appeal.

She says the effort is the result of many people bringing their talents together for a good cause.

“What can we do? Well let’s do what we can do best and have performers on our stage and bring our community together to do what we can,’ said Robinson-Dexter. “So often we feel helpless when these things happen in other parts of the world.”

For more information visit the Queens Cares – A Day For Ukraine Facebook page or call the Astor Theatre box office at 902-354-5250.

Reported by Ed Halverson 
E-mail: edhalversonnews@gmail.com
Twitter: @edwardhalverson

To listen to the broadcast of this story, press play below.

Liverpool turns out to celebrate LRHS class of 2021

LRHS Grad drive-thru parade

LRHS Grad drive-thru parade. Photo Ed Halverson

A jubilant mood outside Queens Place as proud parents, grandparents and members of the community gathered to celebrate the 2021 Liverpool Regional High School graduates.

For the second year in a row, the LRHS community had to find another way to acknowledge graduates as pandemic restrictions have forced the cancellation of traditional proms, safe grads and public graduation ceremonies.

Deborah Raddall says she and her fellow organizers simply followed the plan parents laid out last year.

Students were permitted to be seated six feet apart in front of Queens Place while their loved ones drove past to acknowledge their accomplishments.

Deborah Raddall looks on as the community rolls by in a drive-thru graduation celebration. Photo Ed Halverson

Raddall says after her group bombed public health with letters asking for permission to hold the event, Nova Scotia’s chief medical officer of health Dr. Robert Strang not only endorsed the plan during one of his COVID updates, he encouraged other schools to ‘steal’ it and adapt it for their own graduations.

“It’s a simple concept,” said Raddall. “We didn’t ask for more than they were prepared to give and I think that’s really why we got the okay. It was a reasonable, well, thought-out plan, safety was the primary thing.”

Graduate Jamie Dunn is one of many students who appreciates the efforts so many put in to give them a public celebration.

LRHS Graduate Jamie Dunn

LRHS Graduate Jamie Dunn. Photo Ed Halverson

“It’s really nice that we have classmates with really caring parents that could organize this for us,” said Dunn. “I’m really grateful that everyone is here tonight, together.”

Parent Todd Wilms was on hand to cheer on his daughter Piper. He was glad to see so many people come out to celebrate the graduates.

“This is the epitome of a small community getting together, despite the circumstances here now with the pandemic. Wonderful,” said Wilms.

The excitement of the evening was tempered for some. Graduate Chris Bowers says he appreciates the effort but is a bit disappointed the pandemic has prevented students celebrating the end of their time together in a more traditional way.

“It’s not as exciting as I thought it would be but it’s better than nothing,” said Bowers.

LRHS Graduate Chris Bowers

LRHS Graduate Chris Bowers. Photo Ed Halverson

When asked what he was hoping for, Bowers responded, “More together, more than just an hour with everyone. Safe grad is what I’m going to miss the most, not having that.”

Volunteers from Queens County Search and Rescue directed traffic as car after car, loaded with supporters, circled Queens Place several times, honking horns, waving signs and blowing bubbles.

Raddall’s daughter Ellen is among the 2021 graduating class. She was impressed with the turnout from the community and the resilience shown by her fellow graduates.

LRHS Graduate Ellen Raddall

LRHS Graduate Ellen Raddall. Photo Ed Halverson

“It’s so incredible to see so many people out here today and seeing people who have driven from Bridgewater, like our teachers, just to come and celebrate us. It kind of makes up for the lack of grad we get because of COVID. It really didn’t crack our spirit at all,” said Raddall.

Ellen’s mom Deborah says the support from the community and the turnout really made all the effort worthwhile.

“It’s more than I envisioned. It’s so exciting. I’m trying to hold myself together from having lots of tears, you know, momma tears but it’s excellent,” said Raddall. “The kids are all excited. We’re across the parking lot and you can see them grinning from ear-to ear.”

Reported by Ed Halverson 
E-mail: edhalversonnews@gmail.com
Twitter: @edwardhalverson

To listen to the broadcast of this story, press play below.

Dr. Strang encourages schools to steal LRHS grad celebration model

Liverpool Regional High School.

Liverpool Regional High School. Photo Ed Halverson

A local group is working to recognize Liverpool Regional High School graduates.

Because of COVID-19 restrictions, large gatherings are prohibited across Nova Scotia, including graduation ceremonies.

Deborah Raddall is one of a group of volunteers who are working to find a way to allow graduates to gather together without breaking the public health orders.

“We thought, we have to do this so that, in the end we can say we did whatever we could to try and give our kids something,” said Raddall.

Schools have adjusted to allow students to receive their diplomas and awards at individually scheduled times.

The students can be accompanied by up to four guests for the ten-minute ceremony.

Raddall and her group are proposing to follow in the steps of last year’s graduating class and hold a drive-by graduation celebration.

She says using Queens Place Emera Centre again would allow the students to set up six feet apart while the community drives by and shows their support.

Raddall says a letter submitted to public health through the department’s website outlining their plan was met with a form-letter type rejection.

But Friday morning, Raddall awoke to an e-mail from Nova Scotia’s chief medical officer of health Dr. Robert Strang.

Nova Scotia chief medical officer of health Dr. Robert Strang

Dr Robert Strang discusses what safe graduation celebrations could look like in the second phase of COVID reopening. Photo Nova Scotia Government

In it, he says under the current restrictions the gathering is not permitted.

But once the province moves into Phase II of the COVID reopening plan, which could be as soon as Wednesday June 16, the ceremony can go ahead.

In fact during Friday’s COVID briefing Dr. Strang pointed to the LRHS drive-by model as one other schools should consider.

“Communities will need to be creative and innovative again in celebrating their graduates. One example I’ve heard is a drive-past celebration. Graduates can be sitting outside, properly distanced, while family and community members in their vehicles drive-by to honour the graduate’s accomplishments. It’s a great idea and I’m sure the people who thought of it would be happy if you stole their idea,” said Strang.

Raddall is excited the drive-by idea has received the blessing of Nova Scotia’s top doctor.

She’s optimistic provincial officials will announce phase II of the recovery will begin Wednesday and their group can go ahead with their plans but regardless, they’re determined to provide some ceremony for the LRHS class of 2021.

“Really where we’re at is, we just have to move on and say, ok, if that doesn’t work, let’s go to plan B,” said Raddall. “There’s 26 letters in the alphabet and we’re not the give-y up kind of people.”

Reported by Ed Halverson 
E-mail: edhalversonnews@gmail.com
Twitter: @edwardhalverson

To listen to the broadcast of this story, press play below.