Just because summer is on the way out doesn’t mean the laughs are stopping at Lighthouse Festival. We are thrilled to welcome patrons back to the theatre this November with our first ever fall production; the world premiere of Tip Of The Iceberg. Written by three playwrights based out of Norfolk County as part of Lighthouse Festival’s Play Development Program, Tip Of The Iceberg is a story of friendships. It’s filled to the brim with original folk music woven into the production and guiding the story along in a unique way. It projects an inspiring message of “It’s not too late.” Above all, it carries the Lighthouse Festival banner forward with a Canadian sense of humour that patrons know and love.
Show Synopsis
Gordon and Archie are lifelong friends born and raised in a remote Newfoundland fishing village. After a lifetime on the seas, they are surprised tourism has become the main industry in their sleepy town. Rich tourists are paying big bucks for an authentic NFLD experience and Archie believes he has hit upon an idea where they can reclaim their youth and make a fortune off the flocking tourists. All he needs is his friend, a boat, an iceberg, and a little bit of luck.
About Tip Of The Iceberg
In the summer of 2019, Lighthouse Festival’s Artistic Director, Derek Ritschel, was approached by three aspiring playwrights from Norfolk County: Chris Rait, Mark Williams and Jeannine Bouw. The three had a rough draft of a script they were writing: a story concept created by Chris Rait, injected with some of Jeannine’s comedy and Mark’s authentic Newfoundland homegrown stories to anchor it.
“We’d have a glass of wine and Mark would start telling a story and I would type as he would talk.” – Jeannine Bouw
Having never previously written a play, the three approached Ritschel with a first draft hoping for some simple advice and pointers. That’s not what happened though. Instead, Ritschel was so impressed with the story and their ideas that the three friends were ushered in under Lighthouse Festival’s Play Development Program.
“We asked Derek if he could just humour us and read the play for feedback as a favour, the next thing we know we get a call from Derek asking if we can come into his office.” – Chris Rait
Derek’s involvement led to a second draft of the story and a professional table read at the Tarragon Theatre in Toronto with actors Sam Rosenthal, David Rosser, and Ralph Small. Three years full of countless rewrites, edits and compromises between the playwrights has since passed to fine tune the show. Now, Tip Of The Iceberg is ready to make the Lighthouse stage it’s home. While full of original music, fun and laughter, the writers hope a strong message comes across to the Lighthouse audience.
“These are two men; their best days are behind them. But at the same time, throughout the play the audience and the characters come to the realization that it’s not all said and done yet. There are new doors to open, there’s new avenues to travel. You can move on; you can move forward. There’s still a lot of fun to be had.” – Mark Williams
“I want someone leaving the theatre going ‘I haven’t played my guitar in like 20 years; I want to go home and do that tomorrow. I want to try gardening, or I want to go to Mexico.’” – Chris Rait
Lighthouse Festival has been a part of the fabric of Norfolk County since the 1980s’ and now the Niagara Region for the past decade and is absolutely thrilled to support aspiring local playwrights in the development of their stories.
“To be able to say we wrote a play, and had it preformed, and we’re from Norfolk County, and it opened at Lighthouse Festival. That’s a big source of pride.” – Mark Williams
Tip Of The Iceberg
Written by Chris Rait, Mark Williams and Jeannine Bouw | Music by Chris Rait
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