Actors perform in the Prince Albert Community Player's production of Love, Lies and the Doctor's Dilemma. (Submitted Photo/Gail Enright)

By Derek Craddock and Jaryn Vecchio

FINAL CURTAIN

After 64 years, P.A. theatre group takes its final bow

Oct 5, 2023 | 6:00 AM

They were the first community theatre to hit Saskatchewan but after more than six decades, the curtain is falling on the Prince Albert Community Players.

The local theatre group once performed to packed houses across the city, providing evening shows and dinner theatre to thousands of people each year. In its 64 years of existence, it has performed over 140 shows.

But as club member Melody Kennedy explains, the pandemic dealt them a crushing blow.

“We had a play ready to go to stage in April of 2020 and in March, we got shut down and that really has hurt us and to try and grow membership since then has been very, very difficult.”

The last show the Prince Albert Players put on was in 2019, a production called “The Jack of Diamonds” and it was held at The Sisters of Presentation auditorium in the old Rivier Theater.

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A program for ‘The Jack of Diamonds’ the last show produced by the Prince Albert Community Players. (Submitted Photo/Melody Kennedy)

Throughout its 64 years of existence, the players set up shows at various locations in Prince Albert including the Midtown Hall, the Ball Room at the Coronet Hotel, and for a few years at École Valois.

But even before the pandemic and government shutdowns of businesses and entertainment venues, the Prince Albert Players had a tough time hosting some shows and even their popular dinner theatres due to rising costs and a lack of venues.

With other theatre groups like Odyssey Productions and Broadway North succeeding in Prince Albert, Kennedy realized there wasn’t enough room for everyone.

“It’s hard with our membership declining to keep going.”

The Prince Albert Community Players were inducted into the local Arts Hall of Fame in 2019 along with Bruce Rusheleau and The Watsonairs.

The club celebrated its 60^th anniversary in October of 2019 with Malcolm Jenkins, Roger and Phyllis Williams, and Bev and Carl Klarenbach being inducted as lifetime members.

Jenkins said it’s disappointing to see the Players leave, given the legacy they started in Prince Albert.

“It’s a shame to see them go. Hopefully, they’ll morph into different groups. If you got theatre in your blood, you’re going to find somewhere to do it,” he said.

In a statement, Odyssey Productions, which credits its success to the Community Players said they helped make theatre what it is today in P.A.

“While it is always sad when such a great arts organization closes its doors, we can definitely say their influence and spirit lives on in the Prince Albert theatre community. They will truly be missed,”

When asked by paNOW if the club would still be around had it not been for the pandemic, Kennedy said there may have been a chance but it was slim.

“It was sadly time to move on and try to support our other theatres that are going on. We tried and tried to get new members to come on board and we couldn’t do it.”

While the club is folding, pieces of the Prince Albert Community Players will still be around. The club is accepting applications until Nov. 3 for several of its items including costumes, set pieces, and cash.

Once the applications are accepted, the remaining seven members of the Community Players will review them and decide on who will receive the last remnants of their club.

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panews@pattisonmedia.com