The best of theatre from throughout the province is coming to a stage near you.
Mainstage is back in Vernon after a successful festival in Fort St. John in 2025.
The annual drama festival returns to the Vernon and District Performing Arts Centre from July 6 to 10 with five plays.
Each evening features a different play from a different region of British Columbia.
Produced by Theatre BC, Mainstage is one of the longest-running theatre traditions in Canada, dating back to 1932.
“This exciting event is the culmination of winning productions from Theatre BC Zone Festivals involving up to eight zones across the province,” said Richard Kerton, administrative executive.
“Dozens of community theatre groups participate in Zone Festivals held in April and May, all hoping for the opportunity to bring their winning play to Mainstage and compete in a friendly showcase with the province’s finest community theatre productions.
“The invigorating competition among plays selected from the zone festivals held in Theatre BC’s eight zones is the centrepiece of Mainstage.”
Each evening’s performance is followed by a brief public adjudication by the festival’s professional adjudicator.
The following morning, each production is discussed in depth by the cast, crew, adjudicator, and registrants during a Coffee Critique. These sessions are open to both registrants and the public.
For the Okanagan Zone, Playliterate Productions presents West Moon, based on All Souls’ Night, when the spirits of the dead flicker back to life. Lost and disoriented, unsure of where they have been or where they are going, they yearn to know what is happening “up above” in the village they love.
Williams Lake Studio Theatre presents Escaped Alone for the Central Interior Zone. Three old friends and a neighbour, a summer of afternoons in the backyard, tea and catastrophe star in Caryl Churchill’s convention-defying play juxtaposing backyard tea with personal and environmental disaster, exploring themes of politics, crisis, communication, and female endurance.
Corker, presented by Langley Little Theatre (Fraser Valley Zone), is a story of a dysfunctional family and the developmentally challenged young man who tries to attach himself to it.
For the North Island Zone, Nanaimo Theatre presents Two Rooms. Provocative and compelling, this arresting work deals with a subject that remains highly relevant today: the taking of innocent hostages by political terrorists. The play illuminates both the agony of the captive and the helpless fury of those left behind — loved ones impatient for action and officials who feel they must be guided by logic rather than emotion.
Timepiece, presented by Mercury Players (South Island Zone), features retired watchmaker Walter becoming forgetful — or is he simply being capricious? His wife wants to downsize. Walter does not. Their adult children have plenty of advice for mom and dad when they are not arguing with each other. While memory loss in seniors is a serious issue, playwright Gonzalez-Risso turns a potentially depressing topic into a compassionate and often hilarious story of family foibles.
“What a wonderful opportunity to enjoy outstanding live theatre right here in Vernon,” said Kerton.
Mainstage has been promoting the development of theatre in B.C. since 1932.
For tickets, visit ticketseller.ca or call 250-549-7469.