Cast and crew of ‘All Rights Reserved’ on Friday, May 21, 2021, during a dress rehearsal at the Village Theatre in Qualicum Beach. From left, back row: Jack Duce, Rowan O’Callaghan, Sabrina Blaase, George Perkins and Ben Rosnau. From left, front row: Lyra Sales, Allaina Moore, Max Hannah, Dekaiah Haupt and Noah Rosnau. ‘All Rights Reserved’ will be available for online viewing June 5 and June 6. (Ashlee Sales photo)

ECHO Players Youth Theatre to present 2 online performances in June

One act comedies 'The Neighbour' and 'All Rights Reserved' to show June 5 and June 6

ECHO Players continues the success of its digital offerings with the ECHO Youth Spring Spectacular!

The youth-produced productions will stream online Saturday, June 5 and Sunday, June 6.

The Spring Spectacular includes The Neighbour, a one-act comedy by local youth playwright Ayanna Anderson, and the staging of All Rights Reserved, a comedy by Michael Ragozzino directed by Grade 12 Ballenas Secondary School student Allaina Moore.

The Neighbour, the winning submission of the youth group’s playwriting festival, examines the interesting and unusual characters that make up any neighbourhood, and the lengths one person will go, just to “make the sale.”

While All Rights Reserved holds up a mirror to one of the most absurd practices of modern society, the marketing of prescription drugs. This timely play will not only make audiences laugh, it will inspire them to think about a world in which any problem can be solved by a pill.

ECHO Youth was formed in 2018, out the desire from younger ECHO Players members to be more involved in all aspects of the group – from acting and directing, to stage management, lighting and sound design, costuming and set decor.

Even choosing their own plays to produce has allowed the group’s members to feel more invested in the production as a whole.

“We relate more to the content of shows we can choose ourselves,” said ECHO Youth member Ben Rosnau. “These plays may not be written specifically for younger audiences, but it allows us to look at them and interpret them from a more youthful perspective.”

After more than a year’s hiatus, the Parksville Qualicum Beach community theatre troupe is proud to be back and presenting online shows for theatre-hungry audiences.

Tickets for ECHO Youth’s Spring Spectacular are available online at www.echoplayers.ca .

ECHO Players thanks its generous media sponsors, the Parksville Qualicum Beach News, The Lounge 99.9 and 88.5 The Beach.

ECHO Players is a not-for-profit community theatre group which has been presenting live community theatre on the Village Theatre stage for more than 45 years.

— NEWS Staff, submitted

Parksville Qualicum Beach News