Hop on the Timeswozzler 8000™ and watch as Captain Future saves the world on April 9 at the Chilliwack Cultural Centre.
The future has finally arrived, but it’s not all flying cars and hover boards like we expected — instead, it’s a world where reading has been banned, thanks to the evil Dr. Samgoogapplesoftsungmart and his app The Game of Life.
Fortunately, with a little help from kids and folks in Chilliwack, Captain Future is able to save the day.
“Captain Future has come back to save reading and the imagination, and he does this by going through the history of reading with his time machine, which looks like a big old-fashioned radio,” actor and playwright Lucas Myers told Black Press.
Although Myers has an impressive repertoire of plays he’s written and produced, Captain Future Saves the World is his first children’s production — but the comedy that makes his regular work so successful is evident. Captain Future takes his young audience on a journey through history, making stops in Egypt to study hieroglyphs, in England to meet Shakespeare, and a whole lot of places in between.
“The show basically is a history of reading and writing, from cave painting, through cuneiform to modern language,” says Myers. “Each time he goes back, he becomes a character from that time.”
Rather than sticking strictly to education or purely entertainment, Myers makes sure he includes the kids in the performance, but keeps the parents interested as well. “It’s not dumbed down, and adults will get a kick out of it too,” he said. “But part of this was me wanting to do something my kids could come and see and enjoy.”
“I ask the kids, what’s your favourite food, favourite clothing? What’s one of the craziest things that happened to you?” he said. Myers then incorporates the responses into the show. “They come up to me afterwards and just can’t believe something they wrote down was suddenly instrumental in the actual show. It gives them an incredible sense of ownership. They are so jazzed.”
Although the story is about the importance of reading, that doesn’t mean Captain Future forgets to bring the fun along as well.
“Instead of being an instructor, Captain Future is more like one of the kids,” Myers explained. “I realized that he doesn’t read because he’s from the future. So instead of teaching, it starts with him asking ‘What’s so important about reading and writing? What do you use it for?’”
Captain Future Saves the World is at the Chilliwack Cultural Centre April 9 at 2 p.m. Tickets $10 and can be purchased at the Centre Box Office, online at www.chilliwackculturalcentre.ca, or by calling 604-391-SHOW(7469).
