What’s the deal with Ghost River Theatre?

Ghost River is Calgary’s only professional theatre company that produces exclusively new work.

How much new work?

It depends. We tend to produce between two and four original productions a year. However, for some reason we decided to get ridiculously ambitious in 2007/08 and are mounting seven productions!

So are those all, say, pre-written scripts?

Some of our work is scripted, and some is collaboratively created within the company. Mesa, for example was written by Doug Curtis. An Eye for an Eye on the other hand was created by an ensemble comprised of Kira Bradley, Tony Eyamie, David Rhymer, Duval Lang and Karen Johnson-Diamond. Our door swings both ways.

Do you ever win awards?

Not to brag, but shyeah! We’re consistently one of the most-nominated theatre companies in Calgary (these would be Betty Mitchell Awards), and tend to take home two or three awards per year. We’ve also won several Sterling Awards in Edmonton.

How come I’ve never heard of you before?

Well, new play production is tough in the sense that new work has yet to prove itself, and has no built in profile or pedigree. Nothing against Hamlet, but you’re probably pretty familiar with that play – what with its three-hundred year history. Maybe not so much An Eye for an Eye – even though it has toured across Canada and was produced and broadcast on the CBC in October of 2006. We do our best to promote our shows, but we have a modest budget and a small staff. We’ll be working towards raising our profile in the coming months, but profile-raising can be a protracted business. Anything you can do to help spread the word would be very much appreciated.

Where do you perform?

We perform at a variety of venues throughout Calgary. This year we’re mounting shows at MOTEL, The Pumphouse Theatre, The Big Secret Theatre, and Vertigo Studio Theatre. Please see our VENUES page for further information.

How do I get tickets?

You can purchase tickets by phone or via our web site. If you click on the show you want to see, it will tell you which number to call for tickets. And, of course, you can always purchase tickets on-line by clicking on any of the BUY TICKETS NOW buttons.

Are you like Ghost River the actual river?

No, but we’re named after it. Doug really likes that river.