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Saviour Play as JPMF Fundraiser in Oct 2014

 

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 Saviour Play as JPMF Fundraiser in Oct 2014

 

Fiction must stick to the facts and the truer the facts the better the fiction – so we are told.

— Virginia Woolf, A Room of One’s Own

It only took me a decade but at long last my full-length dramatic play script, Saviour, is ready to stage as a play! And the John Petropoulos Memorial Fund (JPMF) is going to do just that in October 2014: hold 6 special fundraising performances of Saviour. Hooray!!

Here’s a snapshot of Saviour:

Sam, a police officer, steps through a false ceiling while searching a warehouse and hits his head. As he succumbs to his injuries, it is the soul of the dead writer, Virginia Woolf, who takes him to the moment of his pending brain-death. Meanwhile, on the other side of the stage, Sam’s wife, Adri, wakes up to her new life as a young widow, as Sam’s Sergeant, Tom, guides her through the first three months of grief.

Saviour is a powerful and engaging story about the basic human need to live and die with peace of mind – and just how incredibly difficult that is to achieve. Saviour promises the audience a fast-paced, imaginative and compelling theatrical journey that has strong links to real-life events.

Saviour is a love story that challenges the notion of romantic love and suggests instead the staying power of tough love.

John & Maryanne on beach
John & Maryanne, Summer 2000

The play offers audiences hope that peace and positive change can come from tragedy. And the ties to the factual aspects of John’s death and the workplace safety initiatives of the John Petropoulos Memorial Fund add another layer of authenticity. Saviour is an excellent play for the JPMF to use as a fundraiser because it is a powerful testament about the importance of people making their workplaces safe for everyone, including emergency responders.

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Providing the JPMF gets the necessary funding in place, here are the Alberta 2014 performance dates, so be sure to mark your calendar:

Calgary: Wed Oct 1st, Thur Oct 2nd and Fri Oct 33rd

Edmonton: Wed Oct 8th, Thur Oct 9th and Fri Oct 10th

As you may know, staging a full-scale theatrical production is not exactly a simple nor inexpensive endeavour…me & my big ideas!

As such, here are links to some of the Saviour project details:

Saviour Project Proposal (4 pages) for 6 JPMF Fundraising Alberta Performances

Saviour Sponsorships Package (Yes – we are seeking sponsors!)

Here is a sneak peek at the Saviour poster (all Saviour graphics designed by Bryce Beresh of Yeti Creative)

In addition, the Saviour play script is also being shopped to theatres across Canada & the US to be considered for regular production – with much help from Trevor Rueger, Executive Director of Alberta Playwright’s Network. I have worked closely with the Alberta Playwright’s Network over the years developing the script. Trevor will also be the Director of the 6 Alberta JPMF fundraising performances!

“The play is a very strong, passionate, humorous and dramatic journey of a young widow coming to grips with her new reality while the spirit of her husband struggles to unsay some of the things that were said. Maryanne and I are in the process of shopping the script to producers across the country. As the Executive Director of Alberta Playwrights’ Network I am very cognizant of the work that we are sending to potential producers. I am selective about the work I send out, as we need to send out work of a certain quality or at a certain level of development in order for our recommendations to have any weight within a national context. All that to say that we are shopping this play to producers because it is ready; production ready, performance ready and ready for an audience to receive it.”

– Trevor Rueger, Alberta Playwright’s Network

That’s it for now on the Saviour front…but I’ll keep you posted 🙂

Maryanne Pope is the author of A Widow’s Awakeningthe upcoming book, Barrier Removed; A Tough Love Guide to Achieving Your Dreams. Maryanne is the Board Chair of the John Petropoulos Memorial Fund and the CEO of Pink Gazelle Productions Inc.

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1 thought on “Saviour Play as JPMF Fundraiser in Oct 2014”

  1. This comment came in through e-mail:

    “It’s so good to hear from you again on your website and articles!

    To refresh, we corresponded years ago after I read your book. I have been reading your articles and blog since. I am very excited about your new play “Savior” coming to Calgary in October. I definitely want to see it! Good for you…what a project!!

    Anyways, just wanted to touch base with you and let you know how pleased I am to read your blog and articles again!!”
    CS, Calgary, AB

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