Kidding Around Vancouver Island

Opening night isn’t far away and Grace remains as cool as a cucumber.  We’re as nervous as… as radishes.  All we can think about is her getting up on stage and trying to remember songs, dances, where she’s supposed to be on stage, and whether her hat’s on straight.  It’s so confusing.  Thankfully, the kids [...]

One of my favourite musicals of all time – Fiddler on the Roof – is being put on at the Port Theatre in Nanaimo March 13 – 15th. It’s the story of trying to maintain traditions in the face of changing times; I’m definitely going to see it differently as a mother of two! [...]

Readers of this column know our family loves going to live theatre – pantomimes in particular. Well, all of that has given Grace the acting bug, for which we’ve found an excellent cure. It’s called Red Room Studio in Nanaimo and they offer year-round acting programs for kids 7 – 15. What [...]

Having taken a break for Christmas, it’s time to continue our central island pantomime crawl:
There’s Mother Goose at the Bailey Theatre in Nanaimo, from December 26 to January 3, with matinees most days.
Then it’s on to Chemainus for Rumpelstiltskin at the Chemainus Theatre Festival. It runs now until January 3rd, with special Family Nights [...]

Panto time is here! For those who’ve never been to a traditional Christmas pantomime, it’s a bit difficult to explain in words. Imagine being in a movie theatre and wanting to jump up and boo at Darth Vader or cheer wildly for Hans Solo – well at a pantomime you get to [...]

Our children love live theatre and there’s always guaranteed fun at the Chemainus Theatre Festival’s KidzPlay series. We just got back from seeing Land of Legends, which features a series of stories from BC folklore, told by master story-teller Jim Leard. The kids were on the edge of their seats listening to him [...]

What makes a trip with the kids to the Chemainus Theatre Festival extra special is that there’s so much to enjoy in the town before and after the theatre, including the world famous murals. An ice cream cone at Billy’s Delight Ice Cream Parlour is always a must, no matter the weather. Then [...]

Having traditions is very important for kids – even if they don’t always recognize it until later in life – and one of our traditions is to attend a pantomime each Christmas. A pantomime is a tradition in British theatre dating back to the middle ages – something between a music hall production [...]

If you haven’t had a chance to introduce your children to the magic of live theatre, there’s no better time than the Christmas season. Most theatre companies have something for families at this time of year and a set of theatre tickets makes a great Christmas gift. Both of our kids attended their first live [...]