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A Christmas Carol coming to the islands


Submitted by Pat Carrie Smith for the QCI Arts Council -Our islands have been picked from over a hundred BC applicants to be one of the locations for the annual CBC readings of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. CBC Daybreak North's Russell Bowers will be here to help us stage two dramatic readings of the Dickens classic. The entertainment includes local music and a social hour afterwards. I attended one of these readings in Rupert, and it was a fun evening. The first performance on Haida Gwaii will be in Port Clements at the Port community hall on Friday, Dec. 1, and the second on Saturday, Dec. 2 at the Skidegate community hall. Both events will start at 7 pm.
The readings are traditionally held to raise money to benefit the host communities. This was a tradition in Dickens' time as well. Literacy Haida Gwaii and the QCI Arts Council will receive the proceeds from ticket sales and will return them to the island communities in support of literacy and arts. The cost of tickets will be affordable, and will be announced.
We are seeking people with good speaking voices and/or drama experience to volunteer as readers. We have a few candidates already, but would like to hear from anyone who is interested. Please contact Pat Carrie Smith at 637-2312 or Alison Gear at 559-8398. We will need four or five readers for each location. Readers will be expected to attend a rehearsal prior to the event, which will be scheduled either on the afternoon of the event day or the evening before.
Literacy Haida Gwaii and the QCI Arts Council are very excited about this event. Mark your calendars - it should be an awesome start to the holiday season!