The Elmira Theatre Company has long provided opportunities for local actors, directors and writers to express their artistic ideas, both on and offstage. Next month, the spotlight will shine on ETC member Tracy Biggar with the world premiere of Medium Rare, her first playwriting credit.
![Nancy Movrin, Dale Kustra, Corie Kelly, Martin Glassford, Desaree da Cruz and Tracy Leighton star in Medium Rare, the Elmira Theatre Company’s latest production set to open Feb. 6. [Scott Barber / The Observer]](https://www.observerxtra.com/content/images/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/post_arts_mediumrare.jpg)
“We are thrilled to get the chance to put this show together,” director Steve Robinson said. “It features the work of a new author who has never had anything presented on stage before, which is always very exciting. Tracy has a wealth of theatre experience, but this is a new experience for her, and she is just tickled pink to see it coming together.”
He continued, “That’s the beauty of community theatre: it allows talented people the chance to try new things.”
Biggar, a veteran with the Cambridge Community Players – where Robinson has acted and directed for many years – performed with the ETC as a member of the cast in last fall’s rousing production of Menopositive: The Musical.
As a published author of short stories and accomplished sketch comedy writer, Biggar enjoys the creativity in developing rich characters in deep stories.
With Medium Rare, her first full-length play, she has penned a “dramedy” about a group of struggling actors holed up at a cottage while on the road for a gig.
Once a psychic joins the fray, things start to take some unexpected turns.
“It’s about a group of people who have been working as an improv troupe and one of the members has a new girlfriend,” Robinson explained. “They get a gig that’s close to where her cottage is and decide to stay the night. As it turns out, the girlfriend is a psychic and while they are staying with her she accidentally, and sometimes on purpose, does some readings for the group; the things she finds out reveal a lot about their pasts, and also some secrets that maybe they didn’t want the other members of the troupe to know. And so by the end of the play, each member of the troupe has been changed in some way by the revelations that she has come out with.”
There are comedic elements as well as some more serious topics, hence the descriptor “dramedy,” which denotes a blend of drama and comedy.
And it features a strong cast that includes a mix of newcomers and veterans: Nancy Movrin as Vanessa; Corie Kelly as Joyce; Dale Kustra as Tony; Martin Glassford as Carl; Desaree da Cruz as Lucy and Tracy Leighton as Nadine.
“Steve has cast a group of people who are perfect for each role,” Biggar said. “He really has a feel for where I was going with this play. He also has a great comedic sense which is so important for this play because it isn’t all slap-stick comedy; there are a number of serious moments in there as well as the relationships develop and are affected by the psychic’s predictions. Steve has a great feeling for how to balance the comedy and the seriousness.”
The Elmira Theatre Company production of Medium Rare runs February 6-8 and February 12-15 at 76 Howard Ave. Show times are 8 p.m., except Sundays (2:30 p.m.) and one-night-only dinner theatre showing on Valentine’s Day (7 p.m.). Tickets are $20 ($56 for the February 14 show), available at the Centre in the Square box office in Kitchener by calling 519-578-1570 or 1-800-265-8977, online at www.centreinthesquare.com.
