Author: Gillianne Richards

It’s a cold winter evening. I gather my jacket around me, tucking my hands into its folds and shrugging my shoulders to block the wind from my neck. I scurry into a warmly lit store, and see a table circled by eager 20-somethings, chatting and laughing as they pull out their supplies….

I have a lovely family picture hanging on the fridge. In it, my grandmother, with her long black dress and cane, stands demurely to my left. My grandfather, with his pink curls and large breasts, smiles brightly to my right. Each time I pass it I am reminded of how the wonderful world of community theatre …

I love improv. Seeing people spontaneously come up with fresh ideas lets me not only feel like there’s a bit of genius in all of us, but that it’s quite normal to have ideas that flop. For example, acting like an epileptic penguin on stage is only funny for so long. It’s all about trial and error.

“Wow Mom, this is, like, where people meditate,” says my six-year-old as we walk through an exhibition at the Kelowna Art Gallery. This is interesting, because the paintings are …