 L-R: Dawna Morey, Lending Cupboard; AnnaMarie Lea, Cow Patti Theatre; Rudy and Marie Kiist; Marsha Glenn, Clive Resource Centre and Friends of the Library; Carol Kelly, Medicine River Wildlife Center; Kasota East camp; Kevin Broderson, Lacombe Golf and Country Club. Not pictured: Caroline Seniors. Benefit performances of Cow Patti Theatre’s production, The Christmas Express, raised more than $23,000, which the company and Lacombe Golf and Country Club distributed to six recipients on Friday afternoon. The six beneficiaries include: The Sawyer Kiist Passion for Life Bursary, Medicine River Wild Life Center, Kasota East Camp, Caroline Seniors, Clive Resource Center and Friends of the Library, and The Lending Cupboard. “This is a community-based company and yes, we are a professional company but Cow Patti has always been a company I’ve insisted that people feel they belong to,” said AnnaMarie Lea, artistic producing director. Lea said Cow Patti accomplishes that by giving back. “And what better way to create awareness and financial gain through laughter, good food,” she said. Read the FULL Story by clicking here or visiting Lacombe Online
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By Chris Roberts - Lacombe Globe Originally posted Nov 5, 2015 at 8:00 AM - Click Here for Full Story Longevity in theatre is far from guaranteed, but beginning Nov. 10 Cow Patti theatre company will return with its 20th season of shows in Central Alberta. Performing primarily at the Lacombe Golf and Country Club, the season will kick off with the comedy thriller The Butler Did It and in February the company will perform Wally’s Cafe. From November to March, more than 50 performances will be put on by Cow Patti, from senior’s brunches to benefit dinners, kicking off with one for Fort McMurray on Nov. 10. “We’re not the artsy fartsy stuffy theatre. This is a place where I want people to feel like they belong and have ownership of in a certain regard,” said AnnaMarie Lea, artistic producing director for Cow Patti. “And I think that we’ve really accomplished that over the last 20 years and that’s something that makes me very proud.” The Fort McMurray season-opening show is just one of 16 benefit shows scheduled this season. Lea reached out to numerous municipalities in Alberta, offering to put on benefits, and one of the first ones to come to mind was Fort McMurray. There will be a silent auction and 50/50 during the evening, while $10 of every ticket will be donated to Fort McMurray families. “I think it’s a really special way to kick off our 20th season,” she said. And though the professional comedy dinner theatre company has performed throughout Alberta, it is very much a part of Central Alberta. Its first show 20 years ago was performed just outside of Clive, while countless shows have since been performed at the Lacombe Golf and Country Club, where Cow Patti now calls home. Lea brought the theatre company to Cornwall, Ont. for a decade while her husband, a pilot, was transferred there, but returned to the area six years ago and with her returned Cow Patti. Like her, the cast for the upcoming shows will be professional actors who will arrive in Lacombe from other parts of the country just two weeks prior to the first production. “And that’s very much part of being a Canadian actor – you have to move around,” Lea said. Read the FULL Story by clicking here or visiting the Lacombe Globe Website By Sarah Maetche - Lacombe Express Originally posted Nov 5, 2015 at 8:00 AM - Click Here for Full Story There's more to the holiday season than Singing carols, drinking hot chocolate and decorating the Christmas tree. In Cow Patti Theatre's latest production Ethan Claymore, kicking off the 19th season, we learn that miracles still do happen, even in the simple life of a Central Alberta farmer. We will get to see a true reflection of life in the '70s and of course, in true Cow Patti fashion, enjoy plenty of laughs as well. Ethan Claymore, premiering at the Lacombe Golf and Country Club, will run until mid December. The production features a cast of eight and is penned by Canadian playwright Norm Foster. Cow Patti's Artistic Director AnnaMarie Lea said usually for the first show of the season, the company produces a farce, which is not the essence of Ethan Claymore. "No matter what farce you do, they all kind of work the same way, and I thought it was time to give our audience a bit of a toss up," she said. HEARTWARMING - Cow Patti Theatre Company Artistic Producing Director AnnaMarie Lea sits in the ’70s themed set of Central Alberta-based theatre company’s upcoming production Ethan Claymore. Shows run at the Lacombe Golf and Country Club. The production debuts on Nov. 19th and runs through to Dec. 19th. - Image Credit: Sarah Maetche/Lacombe Express Read the FULL Story by clicking here or visiting the Lacombe Express Website |