SURREY - "In like a lion, out like a lamb" is the old adage about the month of March. Let winter take its last lick at us (and it did, with snow and ice storms), but think green for March. And that doesn't mean just the weather. It's St. Patrick's Day soon, and the Irish are celebrating. Once again, St. Patrick is helping St. Nick. See, snow and green - perfect.
Surrey Christmas Bureau is putting on another "Shamrocks and Holly" fundraising event on Saturday, March 15, from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Kennedy Sports Pub, 11906 88th Ave., North Delta. Wear your greenest garments and watch for leprechauns at this pub-lunch event. Live music by Copper Sky Trio and spirited stepping by the Steel School of Irish Dance will be worth the price of admission alone.Tickets are $15 and include a choice of burger or chicken strips with fries. You will need to bring green (money) to participate in the silent auction, door prizes and 50/50 draw. All this green activity raises funds for Surrey Christmas Bureau, which helps hundreds of local families every year. Call 604-581-9623 for tickets and information.March is more than being green, though. Blowing in for this month is a batch of community theatre happenings. While audiences are important, the first step is getting cast and crew for any production.Beach House Theatre Society, a nonprofit theatre company, is casting for Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors and also for The Three Munschketeers, a play for young audiences based on the stories of Robert Munsch. The auditions will be held on Tuesday, March 18, and Thursday, March 20, between 7 and 10 p.m. Callbacks will be Sunday, March 30 at 7 p.m. Non-equity males and females aged 19 and above are required. Advance work is required if you plan to audition for comedy: prepare a oneto two-minute comic Shakespearean monologue. Those wishing to audition for The Three Munschketeers will be sent a monologue.Auditions will be held at Alexandra Neighbourhood House, at 2916 McBride Ave., at Crescent Beach. To set up an audition, email auditions@beachhousetheatre.org stating if you prefer to audition on March 18 or March 20. A confirmation email will be sent with your audition date and time.Rehearsals will commence in early June for The Comedy of Errors and late June for The Three Munschketeers and run through August, with show dates from Aug. 11 to 17 under a tent in beautiful Crescent Beach.Beach House Theatre has had tremendous success in its infancy, under the artistic direction of Candace Radcliffe and Rick Harmon. In fact, it has been darn near impossible to get tickets to performances unless you book them during the first hour the day they go on sale. True story. Vancouver may have Bard on the Beach, but we have Beach House Theatre. Who would ever believe that staging Shakespeare in Surrey would be so popular? March is filling up fast. Something interesting caught my eye as I was browsing through all the theatre events: I don't know much about it, but take a chance on Izabobo. This is an African musical coming to Surrey Arts Centre for shows on Saturday, March 15, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, March 16, at 2 p.m. Izabobo uses a rich mélange of African instruments and song to convey ancient philosophies, in a story that focuses on a village girl struggling between the traditional (village) lifestyle and the city. Tickets are reasonably priced at $20/$15. The show is presented by African Stages Association of B.C. Visit the website at www.africanstages.org and phone the arts centre for tickets, 604-501-5566.You know, after the interesting winter we have had, maybe we are all ready for a good laugh as well as going green. White Rock Players' Club is hosting Scared Scriptless by Vancouver Theatresports League at Coast Capital Playhouse on Saturday, March 15; call 604-536-7535, or visit www.whiterockplayers.ca to buy tickets online. This is the first time ever that Vancouver Theatresports League is bringing its hit show to White Rock. You won't have to travel all the way to Granville Island to experience this hilarious improvised show. Let not the bridge toll for you.melminty@telus.net