WIND IN THE WILLOWS
Where: University Club, West Campus Way, University of Victoria (near the Phoenix Theatre)
When: Friday, Aug. 16, 6 p.m.; Saturday, Aug. 17, 2 p.m. and 6 p.m.
Tickets: $35 (adults/seniors), $20 (students) and $10 (children) from or at the door
Note: All current Blue Bridge ticket holders will have their orders honoured
A new three-play summer season from Blue Bridge Repertory Theatre, which gets underway Friday, begs the question: Have reports of the theatre company’s demise been greatly exaggerated?
That would be appear to be the case.
In July, word began circulating that Brian Richmond, who co-founded the non-profit theatre company in 2008, had returned to the fold. The return of Richmond, who retired in 2022, after his final season as artistic director, was a welcome one after nearly two years of upheaval at Blue Bridge.
Prior to his departure, the company sold its venue, the Roxy Theatre, in 2022 and entered into a three-year renewable lease with new owners Strandlund Investments Ltd., one that was expected to keep the company in its longtime home through 2025.
According to a report at the time, Blue Bridge had been carrying a debt of approximately $1 million when the building was sold, and though the final sale price was not revealed, the building on Quadra Street was on the market for $1.49 million. “That had left a fairly decent surplus, and the plan was at that point in time to make a go of it [as a tenant] at The Roxy Theatre,” Richmond said.
Those plans soon fell apart, and the newly-constructed Blue Bridge (with which Richmond was not involved), broke its lease and ceased operations at The Roxy on Dec. 31, 2023. The abrupt end meant Blue Bridge had produced only one of four shows in its previously announced 2023-24 season, tickets to which had been purchased by patrons.
The company liquidated assets to satisfy a portion of its debt, but an unspecified amount remained. That, in part, is what brought Richmond back to the table several months ago. “I’m not pointing fingers at at the board or anyone else involved. Blue Bridge was not fortunate enough to get any COVID-19 money [from the government], so that really was a severe handicap for the society.”
Following an annual general meeting in March, a new 10-member board was eventually assembled, with Richmond elected as interim president. “I didn’t want to see the company disappear, and leave debt and obligations to ticket buyers behind. I felt an obligation to step up. We think this company is worth saving.”
There’s fresh sense of optimism within the society ahead of radio-play performances of Wind in the Willows on Friday and Saturday at the University Club at the University of Victoria, the first production in a new season that runs through December. Blue Bridge has not staged a local production since November.
“It’s going very well,” Richmond said. “I can safely say we will not leave debt and we will not leave obligations to ticket buyers. I think there’s a very good chance there will be a bright future ahead of us.”
Performances of Wind in the Willows will be held on the outdoor patio beside the pond at the University Club at the University of Victoria. Ten actors, including Iris Bannerman, Britt Small, Michael J. Bell, Kholby Wardell, Kelly Hobson, and R.J. Peters, will portray more than 60 characters in the play based on Kenneth Grahame’s 1908 classic novel, with direction from Jacob Richmond.
Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (Nov. 1-3 at the David Foster Theatre in the Oak Bay Beach Hotel) and Miklós László’s The Shop Around the Corner (Dec. 13-15 at UVic’s Phoenix Theatre) round out the upcoming season, which Richmond does not believe will be the last for Blue Bridge. Theatre veteran Mercedes Bátiz-Benét (who is the new artistic committee chair of Blue Bridge) is already at work on a future framework for the company, Richmond said. “I will do what I can in order to pass off everything to whomever comes in.”
He does not expect to be involved much past Dec. 31. Richmond, who is also a professor in UVic’s theatre department, is hoping tackle a few new projects, including writing his memoir, in the coming months — stones he has not yet turned during his six-decade career in the performing arts. “It was 60 years ago that I graduated from high school and started my first theatre company,” the 77 year-old multiple Dora Mavor Moore Award winner said.
“I kind of feel 60 years is enough. But I certainly want to make sure that I am not going to leave Blue Bridge with debt or disappointed customers behind. I honestly believe there is no reason why it can’t survive and carry on.”
