The Drowning GirlsBy BETH GRAHAM, CHARLIE TOMLINSON and DANIELA VLASKALIC

September 19 to 28, 2019 | PAVILION THEATRE

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GOVERNMENT FUNDERS

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THE DROWNING GIRLS SHOW SPONSOR

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GUEST SERVICESFor Assistance and Accessibility: We’re here to help. If you require assistance, please ask the House Manager or one of the ushers.

The Sagebrush Theatre now has hearing assist listening systems. And both the Pavilion and Sagebrush theatres are wheelchair accessible and equipped with wheelchair-seating locations. Please see the House Manager for details.

In consideration of your fellow audience members’ comfort and enjoyment, we ask the following:

Electronic Devices: Please turn off all cellular phones and watch alarms prior to the show. Due to copyright regulations, the use of cameras and other video or audio recording of this performance by any means is strictly prohibited.

Late Arrival and Re-admission: If you arrive after a performance has begun or leave the auditorium during the performance, we will make every effort to seat you at an appropriate interval in the program. Please be advised that this may not be the seat you are ticketed for, depending on its location in the theatre.

Scent-free Facilities: Please arrive perfume/cologne-free and do not bring flowers into the lobby or theatre.

Children: WCT productions, unless they are identified as family friendly, are not suitable for children or babes in arms. Every patron, regardless of age, requires a ticket. For more information, please visit the FAQs on wctlive.ca.

WELCOME! I first met The Drowning Girls in a workshop production in Edmonton almost 20 years ago. The creators were emerging playwright/actors who went on to refine and develop the play, which has since been produced all across Canada and abroad. I loved its brashness, its daring, its theatricality, and its subversion of genre: melding the tragic, the comic, the mysterious, and the dramatic in a storytelling format that keeps you on your toes.

I have always questioned why our popular culture identifies and obsesses over the perpetrators of violence, while we turn the “victims” into passive participants. The appeal of this play lies in the way it gives voice to the women who were targeted by this real-life sociopath, empowering them to take control of their own stories, and to present them as living, breathing, excited individuals instead of faceless statistics. The play also speaks of the early-20th century, a time when women were severely restricted in their options, but were on the brink of emancipation, including suffrage.

Taking advantage of the flexible space the Pavilion Theatre offers, I chose to stage the play in the round, in order to immerse the audience (sometimes literally!) in the production and performances. At the theatre we can often feel that we are witnesses to a story; the unique, 360-degree perspective of staging in the round takes it one step further, allowing the audience to feel like active participants.

This is a play that stimulates our imagination, engages our intellect, and provokes our emotions. A perfect encapsulation of why we come to the theatre!

James MacDonald, Artistic Director of WCT Director of The Drowning Girls

UP NEXTon the stage:

DRACULA: THE BLOODY TRUTHOctober 10 to 19SAGEBRUSH THEATRE

other activities:

BREWLOOPS 2019 September 27 & 28Evenings for the adultsSat. afternoon for everyoneMacArthur Island

TAKE A BEHIND THE STAGE TOUR OF THE DROWNING GIRLS for Culture Days 2019September 28Pavilion Theatre

wctlive.ca

We extend our appreciation for the opportunity to live, create and perform on the beautiful land located in the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc territory within the traditional

lands of the Secwépemc Nation.

kelsongroup.com

Presenting Partner

Ron & Rae Fawcett

Enjoy the Show!

WCT STAFFJAMES MACDONALD Artistic DirectorEVAN KLASSEN Managing Director

ADMINISTRATIONTERRI RUNNALLS Education & Outreach DirectorRON THOMPSON Finance DirectorSUSAN THOMPSON Associate Finance ManagerCATRINA CROWE Marketing & Communications DirectorFRANKIE KNIGHT Marketing AssociateSUZAN GOGUEN Growth & Engagement DirectorROGER DOWNIE Fund Development ManagerALI WEBSTER Special Events ManagerSARAH BLUMEL Fund Development Coordinator

PRODUCTIONDAWN BERGSTROM ProducerBILL CHABASSOL Production ManagerBRIAN ST-AMAND Sagebrush Technical DirectorPAUL CUTHBERT Sagebrush Assistant Technical DirectorLIAM BEFURT Associate Technical Director CINDY WIEBE Head of WardrobeRORY LYNCH Head of Scenic CarpentryANGELA FRYE Head of Properties & Scenic PainterSELENA “TWITCH” TOBIN Intern Production Manager/

Technical DirectorRYAN PINETTE Production AssistantCHARLOTTE WAGNER WardrobeBRITTNEY MARTENS Scenic Paint Apprentice

VENUE SERVICESSHEVAUN FORTUNE Venue Services DirectorMICHELLE CHABASSOL Venue Services CoordinatorALLISON BREGOLISS Volunteer CoordinatorMORGAN BENEDICT House ManagerHouse Staff:

AMANDA BREUER, NICOLLE DUPONT, MAXWELL GALLAGHER, BERT KEEPER, JAKOB KOPYTKO, KELLY MCCALLUM, LIZ SPIVEY

Kamloops Live! Box Office (KL!BO) Representatives:KORY CUDMORE, MAXWELL GALLAGHER, JANE HARESTAD, JAKOB KOPYTKO, GRACE LABOSSIERE, KELLY MCCALLUM, STEPHANIE MONIUK, GRAYSON NORSWORTHY

David Ross † Tom Kerr ‡

Judge T.W. Shupe §

D. Michael Dobbin *Peggy Gilmour *Francis Barnett *Mike Latta *Anne Manson *Maureen Marshall *Lanni Shupe *

TIM RODGERS PresidentGRANT CHU Past PresidentLORI BREGOLISSMARILYN CROSSENBEVERLEY DESANTISWESLEY ECCLESTONSHARON FRISSELLGORDON MILLERCHRYSTIE STEWART

§ Honorary Life Chairman* Honorary Life Member†Honorary Life Artistic Producer‡ Founding Artistic Director

BOARD

SPECIAL THANKSJENNIE WIEBEHOME HARDWARE

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Presenting Partner

Ron & Rae Fawcett

Enjoy the Show!

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In Honour of Helen Barnett’s Birthday

PLATINUM PATRONS: $5,000-$9,999

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GOLD PATRONS: $3,500-$4,999The Bostock and Fallis Families of

Monte Creek Heritage Fund

SILVER PATRONS: $2,000-$3,499Roland & Anne NeavePeter H Baron

COPPER PATRONS: $750-$1,999Bill AdamsHugh & Marilyn FallisGuy & Jeanine ParkerEdith PletzerKim Senklip HarveyJames MacDonald & Tracey PowerRuss & Jane ReidTacey RuffnerBud & Daphne SmithJames & Barbara Wentworth

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FUNDERSThe City of KamloopsCanada Council for the ArtsDepartment of Canadian Heritage

Canada Cultural Spaces FundGovernment of CanadaThe Province of BCBritish Columbia Arts Council

FOUNDATIONSBC Interior Community FoundationRBC Emerging Artists ProjectThe Hamber Foundation

PRESENTING PARTNERKelson Group, Ron & Rae Fawcett

SEASON SPONSORSCFJC TVHome HardwareKamloops This WeekStone Hazell & CompanyWayside

MAINSTAGE SERIES SPONSORTNRD

STUDIO SERIES SPONSORNew Gold

SHOW SPONSORS98.3 CIFMB-100British Columbia Lottery

CorporationSchoening & First Memorial Funeral

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Western Canada Theatre gratefully acknowledges the following government agencies, corporations, foundations, and individuals for their generous contributions through sponsorships and/or charitable donations. We thank everyone who plays their important part in helping us to bring the highest quality of work to the broadest possible audience.

Listings based on annual contributions, September 1, 2018 to August 31, 2019.

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The Drowning GirlsSaturday, Sept 284:00–5:00pmPAVILION THEATRE

BACKSTAGE TOUR OF

Curious about how theatre is made? Join WCT Artistic Director James MacDonald on Culture Days for a free backstage tour. See how WCT’s production team overcame the technical challenges of this play, including taking into account all that water and having the audience on four sides of the stage – with no wings in which to hide production features. More tour details at wctlive.ca.

FREE

The Drowning GirlsBy BETH GRAHAM, CHARLIE TOMLINSON and DANIELA VLASKALIC

FEATURINGMORGAN BENEDICT Alice

GENEVIEVE FLEMING Margaret

CHEYENNE SCOTT Bessie

CREATIVE TEAMJAMES MACDONALD Director

ANGELA FRYE Set Designer

CINDY WIEBE Costume Designer

BILL CHABASSOL Lighting Designer

LUKAS VANDERLIP Sound Designer

TRACEY POWER Choreographer

NANCY YUEN Stage Manager

DUSTON BARANOW-WATTS Apprentice Stage Manager

Western Canada Theatre is an active member of the Professional Association of Canadian Theatres (PACT) and engages, under the terms of the Canadian Theatre Agreement, professional artists who are members of Canadian Actors’ Equity Association.

Programme Producer: Western Canada Theatre • wctlive.ca • 250-372-3216Printer: Wayside Press • www.waysideco.ca • 250-372-3373Box Office: Kamloops Live! Box Office • kamloopslive.ca • 250-374-5483

The Drowning Girls is staged by arrangement with Ian Arnold, Catalyst TCM Inc. www.catalysttcm.comThe Drowning Girls premiered at PlayRites Festival, Alberta Theatre Projects, 2008.

75-minute running time – No intermission

Kamloops.ca

Western Canada Theatre continues to deliver vibrant and professional theatre

to our community.

The City of Kamloops is a proud sponsor and wishes WCT all the best during its 2019–2020 season.

TRU, Old Main, Student StreetCurtain Nightly @ 7:30pm

Tickets $15, Available Online tru.ca/awt or by calling the Box Office 250-377-6100

Sept 26–28 & Oct 3–5

ART2

0007

WARNING: Some Vulgar Language

T R U A C T O R S W O R K S H O P T H E AT R E 2 0 1 9 / 2 0 S E A S O N

by Stefanie Zadravecdirected by Wesley Eccleston

BETH GRAHAM, CHARLIE TOMLINSON & DANIELA VLASKALIC

Daniela, Charlie, and Beth met at the University of Alberta in Edmonton. Together, they created The Drowning Girls, a play that has had a long and surprising life. Since premiering at Alberta Theatre Projects’ Playrites Festival in 2008, The Drowning Girls has been performed in professional theatres, high schools, community halls, and found spaces across Canada. It has also been published by Playwrights Canada Press and produced internationally in the United States, the UK, New Zealand, and Australia. The play has received Sterling, Betty Mitchell and SATA awards, as well as the Gwen Pharis Ringwood Literary award and a Dora nomination. Daniela now lives in Ontario, Charlie in Newfoundland, and Beth in Alberta.

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OF LIVETheatre

PRINTINGPRINTINGPRINTINGSIGNS+SIGNS+SIGNS+DISPLAYSDISPLAYSDISPLAYS

MARKETINGMARKETINGMARKETINGRESPONSIVERESPONSIVERESPONSIVE

All concerts start at 7:30 p.m.Info and tickets: chambermusiciansofkamloops.org | (250) 377 1880

CHAMBER MUSICIANS OF KAMLOOPSChamber Music - Close and Personal

October 11, 2019 On an Overgrown Path

November 9, 2019Heritage Piano Quintet

CAST & CREATIVE TEAMDUSTON BARANOW-WATTSApprentice Stage ManagerAt WCT: DebutElsewhere: Some selected recent credits include Stage Manager on Enter Laughing (Theatre in the Raw); Japanese Poets North of the 49th Parallel (TASAI Collective); Selfie (Rumble Theatre); Yuko-Kai (TomoeArts); and She Kills Monsters (UBC); Apprentice Stage Manager on It’s a Wonderful Life (Gateway Theatre); Assistant Stage Manager on No One’s Safe (Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity); World of Dreams Vancouver (Takarazuka Revue) and Kayoi Komachi/Komachi Visited (TomoeArts). Other: Duston holds a BFA in Theatre Design & Production from the University of British Columbia. He is excited to be working in Kamloops with WCT for the first time! You can find him at dustonbw.com, @dustonbw, or collecting cat mugs.

MORGAN BENEDICT Alice At WCT: DebutElsewhere: Morgan is a TRU Actors Workshop Theatre Alumni, a Stage One Theatre School instructor, and has worked both onstage and offstage with Project X Theatre. Other: Combining her love of theatre, baths and strong female actors, to be a part of this show is truly a dream come true for Morgan! She is so grateful for this opportunity to open the 2019-20 season with WCT! It is such an honour to have her first professional acting credit come from a company that is so near and dear to her heart. Morgan would like to thank her family, friends, boyfriend and Gatsby for their never-ending love and support.

BILL CHABASSOLLighting DesignerAt WCT: Associate Lighting Designer: Meet My Sister; Production Manager at WCT, in his fifth seasonElsewhere: Graduate of Sheridan College and former attendee of the Banff Centre’s Technical Production Work-Study program. Bill has taught, mentored, and been found backstage on many theatrical productions across Canada for over 15 years. Other: Thanks to Michelle for being the brightest light in my life.

DUSTON BARANOW-WATTS MORGAN BENEDICT BILL CHABASSOL

249 Victoria St, Kamloops 250-374-1711

OCTOBER 10 – 19SAGEBRUSH THEATRE

WCTLIVE.CA

By LE NAVET BETE & JOHN NICHOLSON

In association with Theatre NorthWest, Prince George

GENEVIEVE FLEMINGMargaretAt WCT: A Christmas Carol (2010)Elsewhere: Genevieve is an award-winning actor, director, and producer. Based in Vancouver, Genevieve is the Artistic Producer of indie theatre company Hardline Productions and works professionally in theatre, film and television, and voice over. Select performance credits include Wet (Itsazoo); The North Plan (Upintheair); Creeps (Realwheels); and Bug (Hardline). Select directing credits include Wilderness (Studio 58); Flare Path (Slamming Door); and Of Mice and Men (Hardline). Film and television: Select credits include Travelers, Motive, Supernatural, and Package Deal. Other: Genevieve is the recipient of two Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards for performance and the Ray Michal Prize for direction. She is a graduate of Mount Allison University and Studio 58.

ANGELA FRYESet DesignerAt WCT: DebutElsewhere: Someone to Watch over Me, St. Mary Ignasius Explains It All For You, Duck Variations, Talking With…, Mousetrap. Other: Angela is Head of Props at WCT and has a Master’s in Fine Arts, Painting from Washington State University. She has also worked as a set painter, stage manager and production assistant in several theatres around B.C. Thank you to Maxwell who constantly shows me the great potential of the world.

JAMES MACDONALDDirectorAt WCT: Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story, Vimy, GLORY, A Christmas Carol, Million Dollar Quartet. James is also the Artistic Director of Western Canada Theatre.Elsewhere: 36 productions at Edmonton’s Citadel Theatre, including Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Venus in Fur, Vimy, and Billy Bishop Goes to War; Julius Caesar (Stratford Shakespeare Festival); The Old Ladies (Shaw Festival); A Few Good Men (Citadel/Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre), Miss Shakespeare (Escape Artists, Vancouver), As You Like It, and Much Ado about Nothing (Canadian Stage, Toronto). James is the founding Artistic Director of the River City Shakespeare Festival and the former Program Director of the Citadel/Banff Centre Professional Theatre Program.

GENEVIEVE FLEMING ANGELA FRYE JAMES MACDONALD

Western Canada Theatre

Proudly Supporting

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Home Ownershomeownershelping

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Rick KurzacHome Store OwnerKamloops, British Columbia

Locally Owned & Operated

TRACEY POWER CHEYENNE SCOTT

TRACEY POWERChoreographerAt WCT: Director and Choreographer: ELF – The Musical; Playwright and Choreographer: GLORY; in 2020 she will direct Chelsea Hotel, The Songs of Leonard Cohen.Elsewhere: Tracey has worked for theatres across Canada and internationally as an actor, playwright, director and choreographer. She recently directed Cinderella for Project X, choreographed The Coyotes for the Caravan Farm Theatre, and is also very proud to have again choreographed the twenty-four week national tour of GLORY, bringing this WCT premiere production to twelve different theatres across this amazing country. Upcoming: Choreographer and Assistant Director of La Traviata for Vancouver Opera. She is the recipient of the Betty Mitchell, Sterling and Jessie award for her work. www.traceypower.ca

CHEYENNE SCOTTBessieAt WCT: Julia in Children of GodElsewhere: Cheyenne is Coast Salish of the Saanich Nation and a theatre artist with a focus on developing new works. Through impactful personal expression and storytelling, her work is an exploration and celebration of her Indigenous heritage. She played Julia in the Urban Ink/NAC premiere production of Children of God and continued with the show for two other tours across Canada. She is a Dora-nominated artist for Now You See Her (Quote Unquote Collective/Nightwood/Why Not Theatre). Additional performance credits include Squawk, Sidewalk Chalk (Geordie Productions); and Savage (Native Earth). Cheyenne has been an artist-in-residence with N’we Jinan Integrative Arts and Mikw Chiyam for several years, working with Indigenous youth across Turtle Island.

LUKAS VANDERLIP CINDY WIEBE

LUKAS VANDERLIPComposer/Sound DesignerAt WCT: Composer/Sound Designer: Vimy, Armstrong’s War; Actor: A Christmas StoryElsewhere: Lukas is a composer and sound designer, based in Kamloops. He has done sound and music composition for local film and theatre productions, such as Disappearing Summers and The Wolf and the Woods (films by Kora Vanderlip); She Kills Monsters (TRU Actors Workshop Theatre); The Robber Bridegroom, Frankenstein (Chimera Theatre); Jack and the Beanstalk, Cinderella (Project X); and Medea (Performing Arts Westsyde). Other: Lukas has released two albums of music under the name Beholding, with a third coming out this year. Lukas is in his third year, studying for his Bachelor of Arts with a major in history at TRU. Lukas is very excited for the world to experience this production, and he wishes much love to the cast, crew and audience of WCT. He also wants to thank his family and friends for their love, support and constant encouragement.

CINDY WIEBECostume DesignerAt WCT: Cindy has been Head of Wardrobe since 2003. Past costume designs with WCT include Meet My Sister (with Theatre NorthWest), GLORY, Million Dollar Quartet, Made in Italy, Don’t Dress For Dinner (with Thousand Islands Playhouse, Gananoque, ON/ Richmond Gateway Theatre), Closer Than Ever, Dreary and Izzy, Never Shoot a Stampede Queen, A Christmas Story, A Christmas Carol (2010), and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.Elsewhere: Romeo and Juliet, Elizabeth Rex, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Much Ado About Nothing, and The Tempest (Project X).

elementsromantic 28

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PTE

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Noran Masterworks

Saturday • 7:30pmTimothy Chooi, violin

Dina Gilbert, Music Director

NANCY YUENStage ManagerAt WCT: DebutElsewhere: As an Edmonton-based stage manager, Nancy has worked at the Mayfield Theatre for over 50 productions, including Sleuth, Sister Act, Forever Plaid, All Shook Up, Jesus Christ Superstar, Hair, Cabaret, Hairspray, Chicago, and many more. Some other theatre credits include: Witness to a Conga (Teatro la Quindicina); Crazy For You (Cameco Capitol Arts Centre); Fatboy (Edmonton Actors Theatre); Strike! (Workshop West Theatre); The Last Tree of Rapa Nui (Manitoba Theatre for Young People); Love Song, The Liars (Shadow Theatre); The Three Musketeers, As You Like It, Julius Caesar, The Blonde, the Brunette and the Vengeful Redhead, Equus, A Year with Frog and Toad, The Syringa Tree (Citadel Theatre); Rock ’n Roll, Fire (Canadian Stage Company/Citadel Theatre co-production); Humble Boy (Theatre Calgary/Citadel Theatre); and The Winter’s Tale Project (OrangeBus Production). Nancy is happy to be working on her first show at WCT, The Drowning Girls. Enjoy the show!

Kamloops︱BC • kag.bc.ca

HEXSA’AM / TO BE HERE ALWAYSOCTOBER 5 TO DECEMBER 31, 2019

From Hexsa’am: To Be Here Always, 2018, Photo: Marianne Nicolson

PROUD SUPPORTER OF THE WESTERN

CANADA THEATRE

Enjoy The Drowning Girls

PROGRAM NOTESTHE EVOLUTION OF A MURDER STORY: THE DROWNING GIRLS RISE(S) AGAIN

Beth Graham, Charlie Tomlinson, and Daniela Vlaskalic rise to a big challenge in The Drowning Girls: they take an early 20th Century British true crime, refocus the lens from which it has historically been viewed, do not give short shrift to its horrors, and make their docudrama entertaining and relevant – at once gripping and humorous, a period piece with contemporary resonance.

Society is only beginning to acknowledge the compounding injustice of placing perpetrators of crimes in the spotlight while relegating victims to bit-player status. From 19th and 20th Century British and American to late-20th Century Canadian serial killers, the names stay recognizable; the names of those who suffered at their hands decidedly less so.

A groundbreaking work in Canadian theatre in this regard is Métis playwright Marie Clements’ The Unnatural and Accidental Women (2000): a group of Indigenous women found dead in the company of the same man in Vancouver’s downtown eastside over the course of the previous two decades or so rises from their graves and exacts justice. In an interview in

Beatrice (Bessie) Munday, Alice Burnham, Margaret Lofty Credit: John Frost Newspapers / Alamy Stock Photo

Playing the Pacific Province, Clements acknowledges that encountering in a local newspaper a “huge spread” on the perpetrator with “maybe half a page of all of his victims” was the catalyst for her play. A similar impetus seems at play in The Drowning Girls.Narratives around the “Brides in the Bath” murders – the killings of three newly married women by their serial bigamist groom – have been male centred. For example, the husband’s waxwork likeness was exhibited at Madame Tussaud’s Chamber of Horrors, and the protagonists of fiction by William Trevor and Anthony Burgess (among others) take his deeds as inspiration for their crimes. The case has also remained well-known because of two men who helped solve it: a famous detective fiction writer and an eminent pathologist.

Graham, Tomlinson, and Vlaskalic turn traditional narratives on their heads by reviving the three women – Bessie, Alice, and Margaret – as the stars of their show and relegating the husband to a few lines – spoken by one of his victims. The central question becomes not “Who dun it?” or even “Why and how did he do it?” but “How did these women get deceived by this con artist?” In order to answer that question, of course, the audience needs to get to know the three as individuals.

The characters re-enact their respective relationships with their husband, render the conventions of their British Edwardian society, particularize the gruesome details of their demises, and relate the subsequent trial and conviction. Importantly, this is all done through the prisms of dark wit and irony. As audience members, we are likely to shift between the comfort afforded by the humour and the spatial and temporal distance and a more complicated empathy, or even identification, as we recognize that things have changed a great deal, but then they haven’t.

The Drowning Girls rose from humble beginnings at the Edmonton Fringe to enjoy productions in theatres across North America – a testament to its creators’ ability to envision the power of a narrative creatively refocused and spiritedly retold.

Ginny RatsoyAssociate Professor of EnglishThompson Rivers University

PROGRAM NOTES. . .CONTINUED

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COMMUNITY CONSULTATIONSeptember 25 | 4:30–6:30 p.m.Desert Gardens Community Centre (540 Seymour Street)

Thank you for sharing your thoughts towards a collective vision for the next ten years at TRU. Whether you’ve already contributed or are new to EnvisionTRU, we invite you to our final community consultation where we’ll ask: “Describe your ideal TRU 10 years from now.”

Tell us how you

Find details and more ways to get involved: tru.ca/envision

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AGES4 - 18

STAGE ONETHEATRE SCHOOL

WCTLIVE.CAterri@wctlive.ca

SOME FEAR THE FUTURE. OTHERS DRIVE IT.Live today with a love for tomorrow. Here’s to hitting the fast lane while skipping the gas lane. Here’s to do-ing good and looking good doing it. There’s no better feeling than arriving in a car as beautiful and sleek as the Honda Insight, except the satisfaction of knowing it’s also a hybrid. This hybrid is on a mission to do good for the earth, and your look. Sporting a wide, powerful stance complete with Honda’s signature fly-ing wing grille and bold facia, the Insight is the perfect accessory to your driveway.

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