SHAUNAVON — Darkhorse Theatre’s production of “Squirrel Lake” by Brian Mitchell came to a nutty conclusion following four nights of dinner theatre Dec. 11-14 which was preceded by an afternoon matinee on Dec, 8. A total of 400 tickets were sold for the entire run.
Local actors took to the stage in what proved to be a hilarious, action-packed, three-act play centring around the Olsen siblings who have gathered at the family cabin to hear the reading of their late mother’s will. Family dynamics, misunderstandings and mishaps are prominent storylines throughout. Another pair of siblings played by Angie Illerbrun (Sister Mary Elizabeth Catherine Theresa Hardy) and Roderick Thienes (Detective Lance Hardy) get caught up in the Olsen family antics along with newcomer performer Aria Davies in the role of Joy.
Illerbrun has appeared in several performances and says, “It’s always a treat to perform! Every night is something different!!” The opening matinee even included a couple of real-life injuries.
Veteran actor Vince Goulet played Bob King, husband of Sally, one of the Olsen siblings. He carried on through all productions despite suffering a toe injury during the opening matinee. The broken toe seemed to be the least of his problems as his character was riddled with bad fortune throughout this physical comedy. Roderick Thienes brought not just one but two characters to life in his hilarious portrayals. The Olsen siblings were played by Amy Leslie as Sally Olsen and Phillip and Patrick Olsen were played by newcomers Jordan Abbott and Chris Burgess (Chris has made appearances in Darkhorse sponsorship commercials and this fall’s youth production).
Emcee Darren Johnston welcomed the crowd each night and Shaunavon High School students served the catered meal prepared by Harvest Eatery. The Sunday afternoon matinee baking was provided by Lindsey and Brook Phillips. More than 50 volunteers for House, Bar and Kitchen were listed in the programme. Long-time Darkhorse member Cathy Smith took on Stage Manager duties with help from Katelyn Phillips and Carsten Davies.
Andrew Burch made his Directorial debut after performing in many previous productions. Burch says he was happy with the response. "We received standing ovations every night. The actors have definitely earned it." He adds, "At first we were nervous about dinner service in the new hall. We were concerned the stairs would be an issue (the kitchen facility is in the basement) but it has been great so far. The high school kids are fantastic and helped a ton. We have some big plans for the building and can't wait to share them in the near future."
Each evening performance included a raffle draw for a meat basket generously donated by the Earview Colony and by Jaret & Ricki-Lee Girodat of Townview Farms, with all proceeds going toward adding a furnace and air conditioning to Darkhorse Hall. Since last year’s production, new padded chairs were purchased for audience seating and capacity was slightly reduced to offer a more comfortable atmosphere for patrons. This was the second dinner theatre performance in Darkhorse Theatre’s new venue since purchasing the Centre Street United Church building and converting it to Darkhorse Hall in 2023.
