THUNDER BAY – The Old Same Story documentary will introduce you to a theatre group that started in 1974.
Paula Thiessen, director and producer of the documentary, said Kam Theatre Lab started out as an improvisational group.
"Founded by three theatre artists, they were a collective pretty well right from the start.
“They started doing outdoor performances. As it became a little more established, they did strictly Canadian scripts.”
Kam Theatre Lab was a touring company, which distinguished them from other theatre companies, Thiessen said.
“They toured all over Ontario, but also into Manitoba and all the way over to Newfoundland as well.”
In 1988, Kam Theatre Lab folded. Thiessen said people are going to have to watch the documentary if they want to find out more about why that is.
“Kam Theatre Lab was instrumental in inviting popular theatre companies from across Canada to Thunder Bay in 1981 for the Bread and Circuses festival.
“This was where a group called Canadian Popular Theatre Alliance was founded – this was pretty cutting-edge work at the time,” she said.
The Old Same Story documentary will preview first on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Bora Laskin Faculty of Education Theatre at Lakehead University.
“It’s summer solstice weekend and it just so happens to also be the 50th anniversary of Kam Theatre Lab’s first performance.
“After the preview, this documentary will be sent out far and wide to film festivals,” she said.
Some of the early things that Kam Theatre Lab did was a lot of mask work, Thiessen said.
“They would preform plays in this Italian style with half masks. It involved stock characters which they could adapt to Northern Ontario.
“They would produce what is called Canadian Comedia. They also ventured into other kinds of mask making workshops. They used them in their performances as well,” Theissen said.
The preview for The Old Same Story is free for attendees, however you must reserve a spot.
