{"id":33413,"date":"2019-10-04T03:51:03","date_gmt":"2019-10-04T10:51:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/?p=33413"},"modified":"2019-10-02T15:56:14","modified_gmt":"2019-10-02T22:56:14","slug":"a-frantically-funny-farce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/2019\/10\/04\/a-frantically-funny-farce\/","title":{"rendered":"A frantically funny farce"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cindy Hirschberg-Schon, left, as Maria Merelli and Tracy Labrosse as Tatiana Rac\u00f3n in A Comedy of Tenors<\/em>, at Metro Theatre Oct. 4-19. (photo by Sophie Gardner)<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Tracy LabrosseTracy Labrosse\u201cWhat could possibly be better than escaping life with a frantically funny farce? A Comedy of Tenors<\/em> has slamming doors, mistaken identities, ridiculous dialects and a very suggestive tongue prop. What else do you need?\u201d said Tracy Labrosse about the upcoming production at Metro Theatre.<\/p>\n

Set in 1936, A Comedy of Tenors<\/em> centres on Henry Saunders\u2019 efforts to put on the greatest concert that Paris has ever seen \u2013 The Three Tenors<\/em> \u2013 but he will only succeed if he \u201ccan keep an amorous Italian superstar and his hot-blooded wife from causing runaway chaos.\u201d Written by Ken Ludwig, the Metro production, which runs Oct. 4-19, is directed by Kayt Roth.<\/p>\n

Labrosse, who works at Vancouver Talmud Torah, plays Tatiana Rac\u00f3n.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love to be challenged in each production I\u2019m in [and] Rac\u00f3n has definitely been a fun challenge for me,\u201d Labrosse told the Independent<\/em>. \u201cI tend to get the \u2018girl next door\u2019 roles, so playing a sexy Russian opera singer has certainly allowed me to tackle a type that I don\u2019t normally get the chance to play. She\u2019s bold, she\u2019s vivacious, and she\u2019s a troublemaker.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jewish community member Cindy Hirschberg-Schon takes on the role of Maria Merelli, the feisty wife of tenor Tito (played by Carlos Vela-Martinez).<\/p>\n

\u201cI tried out for both Maria and for Rac\u00f3n,\u201d said Hirschberg-Schon. \u201cI thought I\u2019d keep the options open. But I have a lot more in common with Maria.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said, \u201cMaria is her own woman \u2013 strong and independent \u2013 but she is also very loving. Maria has a lot of me in her. She and Tito have been married for 25 years and I have been married for 27 years. From their fierce love to their fierce fighting, I can relate.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to her role, Hirschberg-Schon also helped on the costume front.<\/p>\n

\u201cI work in fashion as a technical designer, so I know about apparel,\u201d she explained. \u201cI did costumes once before but, being also an actor, it would be a lot to take on. But we needed help so I stepped in\u2026. I measured the full cast, which for me is not a big deal. I helped out when we needed a few extra eyes to find costumes in both the Metro costume closet and also the kindness of Vagabond Players [and their] closet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hirschberg-Schon studied acting before changing career directions.<\/p>\n

\u201cI went to college for acting in Toronto for two years,\u201d she said, \u201cbut then decided I did not want to be a waitress the rest of my life and went to fashion school. I then concentrated on career, marriage and motherhood. After 20 years, I finally decided it was time to get back to the stage, with the support of my husband and family. So, I guess I have been acting for seven years plus a few.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been in love with theatre ever since I was given my first speaking role in a school play at the age of 9,\u201d said Labrosse. \u201cI went to theatre school after high school, and have been involved in theatre consistently ever since. It\u2019s a lifelong love affair for me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Labrosse said she didn\u2019t audition for any specific role in A Comedy of Tenors<\/em>. \u201cFor me,\u201d she said, \u201cif the story is something I\u2019m drawn to \u2013 something that I find intriguing \u2013 then I want to be a part of it. After that, it\u2019s up to the director. In this case, Kayt saw me as Rac\u00f3n, and I\u2019m so glad she did. It\u2019s such a fun role to play.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both Labrosse and Hirschberg-Schon have been in other Metro productions.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had the pleasure of acting, producing and directing at the Metro Theatre. A Comedy of Tenors<\/em> is my 10th production there,\u201d said Labrosse. \u201cThere are so many wonderful community theatre organizations in the Lower Mainland and I think I\u2019ve worked with most of them over the years. Some of my favourite previous productions include The 39 Steps<\/em>, Steel Magnolias<\/em>, Moon Over Buffalo<\/em> (also a Ken Ludwig show) and Wait Until Dark<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Among Hirschberg-Schon\u2019s favourite roles are Evil Stepmother in the award-winning Cinderella<\/em> panto with Metro Theatre and Lady Edith in Metro\u2019s Robin Hood and Marian<\/em> panto; Penny in Vagabond Players\u2019 You Can\u2019t Take it With You<\/em>; Olga in Royal Canadian Theatre Company\u2019s Bedfull of Foreigners<\/em>; and Yenta in a Toronto production of Fiddler on the Roof<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cGrowing up,\u201d said Hirschberg-Schon, \u201cI watched my mother, Marion Hirschberg, on the stage. She was very involved in community theatre and is still on the stage now, at 80. She taught me so much and I am in awe to see her perform. I have theatre in my blood and stage is home to me. But the biggest thrill is to share it with an audience \u2013 because theatre does not become alive until there is an audience to share it with.\u201d<\/p>\n

To be a part of that audience, tickets can be purchased by leaving a message at the Metro Theatre box office, 604-266-7191, or visiting tickets.metrotheatre.com<\/a>. Note that A Comedy of Tenors<\/em> \u201ccontains strong language and sexual references.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cindy Hirschberg-Schon, left, as Maria Merelli and Tracy Labrosse as Tatiana Rac\u00f3n in A Comedy of Tenors, at Metro Theatre Oct. 4-19. (photo by Sophie Gardner) Tracy LabrosseTracy Labrosse\u201cWhat could possibly be better than escaping life with a frantically funny farce? A Comedy of Tenors has slamming doors, mistaken identities, ridiculous dialects and a very […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":33414,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[785],"tags":[9356,5278,255,6208,9355],"class_list":["post-33413","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-performing-arts","tag-cindy-hirschberg-schon","tag-comedy","tag-metro-theatre","tag-theatre","tag-tracy-labrosse"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33413","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33413"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33413\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33414"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33413"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33413"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.jewishindependent.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33413"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}