Submitted by Pat Carrie Smith-An enthusiastic Sandspit audience listened to Zachary Stevenson's very articulate presentation of "The Ballad of Phil Ochs" Monday evening (September 22). Written by Ross Desprez of Victoria, the one-man play is a provocative glimpse into the short life of Phil Ochs, a 1960's protest folk singer and songwriter. Using only a stool, a guitar, special lighting, and small articles of clothing as stage props and effects, Stevenson took command of his audience from the beginning, entertaining with evocative, and often haunting, arrangements of Phil Ochs' songs, like "Cops of the World," "There But for Fortune," "When I'm Gone," and others. The action of the play flowed through the troubled political history of the demonstration era in the US, guided by Stevenson with easily recognizable scene shifts, which were created only by small stage actions or words, and inconspicuously assisted by his Stage Manager, Nic Poppell.
The show was brought to the islands by the QCI Arts Council, and was also presented in Masset, Queen Charlotte, and Port.