Battlefords’ first professional theatre company heading into its first season
A new theatre company is just about up and running in the Battlefords.
Tale Spinner Theatre will be the first professional theatre company based in the Battlefords, according to its founder Dannyll Challis. He said with the recent announcements of a new hotel and cinema, the Battlefords have a lot to offer and he wants to show people they don’t have to go to Saskatoon for quality entertainment.
“One of the things that has bothered me since moving back (to North Battleford) is always hearing people saying ‘we’re going into the city,’ whether it’s to see a movie, whether it’s to go to a concert, whether it’s to see some theatre, even shopping,” he said. “I think right now is the perfect time to start providing the Battlefords with an alternative to going into the city.”
The company will have three main portions. The first is a youth theatre program, which will provide theatre classes for teenagers and culminate in a final production. The second is professional theatre, which Challis said will bring in professionals from across the province to work on top-notch performances. The last portion is community programming, which Challis said will have the company working with businesses around the northwest region to provide specialty programming to draw attention to the community’s needs.