The Tidemark Theatre and Campbell River Literacy Association have partnered once again to present their annual free family literacy event in celebration of Family Literacy Day on Jan. 27.
Traditionally presented as a live concert event, this year will feature a special livestream experience that can be accessed for free via the Tidemark Theatre website or Facebook live to provide added accessibility for audiences and allow the community to gather safely – apart.
“Family Literacy Week is the Campbell River Literacy Association and its community partner’s gift to the families of Campbell River,” says Kat Eddy, CRLA’s Executive Director. “All events are free and celebrate the parents of our city as their children’s first and best teachers.”
The 2021 theme for Family Literacy Week is: Let’s Connect - Learning Together in the Great Outdoors.
“We are very lucky to live here in Campbell River, in the territories of the Laichwiltach people. Surrounding us are these amazing natural spaces that sometimes we overlook.” says, Eddy. “The 2022 Family Literacy Week theme of learning in the great outdoors will provide opportunities for families to head outside, learn a bit more about the forest, ocean, and wildlife that surround us and spend quality time together connecting through observation, conversation and physical fitness. It really doesn’t get much better.”
This free literacy celebration for Campbell River families was made possible in part by donations from community members and local businesses to the Tidemark’s Theatre Angels Program.
“We have this incredible program called Theatre Angels,” Heidi Cuff, Tidemark’s Programming and Marketing Coordinator says, “and through it, we make tickets available to people and families in Campbell River with limited incomes to attend selected presentations throughout our season. This helps increase exposure to the arts and promotes inclusiveness of the theatre, as well as reaching youth and adults who wouldn’t necessarily have access to the arts otherwise.”
Last year, the Tidemark and CRLA partnered to present a free show with viral TEDx motivational speaker and movement storyteller, Dianna David.
“This is our very small way of giving back to the community,” says Cuff. “It’s been a challenging few years for everyone and community events that help keep us connected, while safely apart – are more important than ever.”
This year, award-winning creator and actor Candace Roberts will be headlining the celebration with Ideas Bobert. What happens if we deny our deepest dreams and desires? Bobert is a silent character a la Charlie Chaplin who has a little red bird for a heart. His story asks us, what happens if we are to deny our deepest dreams and desires? Teetering on the brink of absolute failure, love-sick Bobert discovers his heart to be more important than he knew.
Candice Roberts of Candy Bones Theatre delivers a clown tour de force of comedy and conundrum. With vintage silent film styling, shadow puppetry, stop motion animation projections, dance and live music, the world of Ideas Bobert is rich with magic and creativity. Like Ginger Rogers meets Mr. Bean on the Muppet show, Ideas Bobert dances with the hilarious absurd.
Ideas Bobert is whimsy and fiction, but for its creator Candice Roberts, it resonates with her truth. Common amongst many comedy artists, Candice has struggled with anxiety and depression. She claims that clown school saved her life. For her, the art of clowning encompasses such fundamental life-skills as connection with oneself and community, creative communication and of becoming comfortable in the discomfort that is the unknown.
Clowning for her celebrates the multi-facets of what it means to be human. It is the investigation of what is absurd or confounding about ourselves and society. It is the sharing of vulnerability and honesty and the dissolving of shame through exposure. Through Ideas Bobert, she hopes to inspire a deep belly laugh, a tender tear and a reminder of how important it is to listen with our hearts and to be in touch with our creative selves.
Sponsored by the Campbell River Mirror, City of Campbell River and BC Touring Council, the Tidemark Theatre and Campbell River Literacy Association proudly present, Ideas Bobert by Candy Bones Theatre, in celebration of Family Literacy Week in a special live stream performance on Thursday, Jan. 27 at 1 p.m. Tickets are free and can be reserved on the Tidemark Theatre website: tidemarktheatre.com OR tune in via Facebook Live on the Tidemark’s main page.
For the full schedule of free events during Family Literacy Week, be sure to follow the Campbell River Literacy Association on Facebook. For more information about the Tidemark’s Theatre Angels Program or to donate, please visit tidemarktheatre.com or call 287.PINK.