A new community theatre production is bringing Mount Allison students and community members together on the virtual stage.

Cinnamon and the Trolls and Other Short Stories is a collective by the Live Bait Theatre's Young Company Initiative. The production will be held online at several schools across the Maritimes this week as well as public performances on Zoom on March 19. 

The project was spearheaded by Mount Allison sociology and community engaged learning (CENL) student Quinn WayLaing, who reached out to Ron Kelly Spurles at Live Bait Theatre earlier this school year to co-ordinate on the production.

“I’m interested in accessible theatre and wanted to do something with an applied hands-on approach for my capstone CENL project,” says WayLaing. “Ron, the play’s project coordinator, and assistant manager John Briand, have been wonderful community partners to work with.”

This virtual theatre performance is for children ages 7-13; centring on themes regarding the environment and working together. Written by many of the cast members, the production features a collection of short stories and fairy tales.

Mount Allison professor Sacha DeWolfe, WayLaing’s advisor for the
project, says seeing the production come together as it has really speaks to the strong community connections and support for these types of initiatives.

“The adaptability by both our students and community partners for these projects is wonderful to see. It shows the students’ passions for learning and allows them to come to life,” says DeWolfe. “We are fortunate to have community mentors like Ron Kelly Spurles and Live Bait working with our students.”

Cinnamon and the Trolls and Other Short Stories features works by Azrael Kelly Spurles, Peter Kelly Spurles, Devin Rockwell, Hannah Lucas, Owen Switzer, Quinn WayLaing, Rowan White, and Morgan Grant. The cast includes students from local middle and high schools as well as Mount Allison.

Cinnamon and the Trolls and Other Short Stories will be performed online for 10 Maritime schools, including Sackville’s Marshview Middle School on March 18 with two free, online public performances on March 19 at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Visit https://livebaittheatre.com/ for link access.