Yorkton may have been the host of TheatreFest this year, but the Moose Jaw Community Players (MJCP) were the stars.
Taking home three different awards in the full-length play competition was an added bonus to the standing ovation they received on the closing night of the festival.
“It was absolutely the only time I’ve ever seen this. Everyone took a little sigh and then stood up and did a standing ovation (all at once),” said Verna Alonzo Lantigua, the show’s producer. “It put a tear in my eye.”
After only two months of rehearsal, the volunteer group of actors and actresses put on a stellar performance of “Love and Work Enough,” a play by Peggy Sample about “six women who immigrated to Upper Canada years ago, and all the trials and tribulations of learning to live in a new country,” according to Lantigua.
“The girls were amazing. You could tell they wanted to do well,” she said. “They went on with so much and energy.”
For their efforts, the group received the award for best play. Tara Gish also received the Aspirant Award for best performance by a newcomer to the stage. And Debbie Burgher took home Best Director.
For more on this article, read an upcoming edition of the Times-Herald.
