Theatre SKAM’s Pop-Up Theatre has yet to fill its summer schedule, which is good news for families and community groups looking for unique entertainment.
The company offers COVID-friendly outdoor theatre in 15-minute sets for up to 50 people, all from the rear of a flatbed truck that doubles as a stage. The home-delivery initiative — which met with great success last summer — has become a demonstration of resilience and adaptability during the pandemic.
“Theatre SKAM generally creates work for unconventional spaces,” said Paula Laroche Humby, who is directing summer cast members Yasmin D’Oshun, Courtney Crawford, Kaelan Bain and Kendra Bidwell. “With Pop-Up Theatre, we bring theatre to people who aren’t our core audience.”
Four family-friendly shows are available by donation to audiences in Victoria, Oak Bay, Esquimalt, Saanich and View Royal through August.
The performances written by Humby and the cast offer a mixture of comedy, drama and music, with room available for improvisation. Weekly shows have already been booked by the North Park Neighbourhood Association, which is hosting Pop-Up events every Thursday, with more booking coming in by the day.
“The actors have to be ready for anything,” Humby said. “They have no idea where they are going to be until the morning of, because people can book shows up until the night before. Sometimes we’ll have an audience of 30 people, and sometimes we’ll have five. Every performance is going to be totally different.”
Even those who are not expecting to attend have been pleasantly surprised, Humby said. The truck, which needs only a 10-metre space to operate, has only to pull up to make theatre happen. “The times we don’t have something scheduled, we’re out rehearsing in parks. We’ve done a couple rehearsals and have drawn some crowds of people who were just hanging out.”
Humby, who recently moved to Victoria from Alberta, where she worked on similar site-specific outdoor events, likes what Pop-Up Theatre offers area residents. “We have seen how much fun people have watching us perform.”
For more information, visit skam.ca/pop-up.
