Tricksters leaving their mark

By Melissa Piche Times Contributor

Wheatland Elementary School is in full swing preparing for their weeklong residency with Calgary Based Trickster Theatre Feb. 13-17.  

Trickster Theatre began in the 80’s when founders David and Cheryl Chantler “hit the road” to bring live theatre to schools across the country. In the 30 years that the company has been touring and offering programs to schools, they have had residencies in over 100 Indigenous communities and over 250,000 people of all ages have spent time creating shows with the theatre.  

Emily Garrioch, associate principal at Wheatland Elementary, is very excited about this opportunity for the school. 

“It’s a great opportunity for all the students (kindergarten to Grade 6) and staff to participate in a live performance,” she said.  

This will be the schools’ first yearend performance since before COVID, so the atmosphere around the residency is one filled with curiosity and excitement. In past years the yearend performance has been limited to Grade 6 students. What makes this one so special is the fact that the whole school community is involved.  

“We haven’t had an opportunity for all our students to perform before in this capacity,” said Garrioch. 

She explained that the number of audience members is limited to two tickets per student, different from the Christmas concerts for example where the gymnasium is packed to capacity. 

Six artists from the theatre will be calling Wheatland Elementary home for a week. During this time, the students will be busy brainstorming with one another on creating props, designing costumes and co-creating stories to perform for parents and peers. Each class will spend up to three hours a day collaborating with the professional Trickster artists on a daily basis throughout the week.  

The theme for the school’s performances is “Leadership for Change” which goes along with the Leader in Me philosophy at the school.

“The focus will be on how we as a school can be a leader for change within our community, provincially and globally,” said Garrioch.  

The Wheatland Elementary Schools parent advisory council (PAC) has played a role in making this dream become a reality through school fundraising such as their hot lunch program and their annual gift card fundraiser. The PAC has donated extra money toward each classroom to help with the endeavour.  

For more information on Trickster Theatre you can visit their website (www.trickstertheatre.com).