By Adam Donnelly

Chimera Theatre bringing Hydra Fest to Kamloops in May

Apr 24, 2018 | 11:30 AM

KAMLOOPS — A one-man show about a mine collapse, a post-apocalyptic stripsical, and a magic show for grown-ups; what do these three shows have in common? They make up 1/4th of the shows which will be on display at the inaugural Chimera Theatre Hydra Performing Arts Festival next month at the Actors Workshop Theatre at TRU.

“It All Started With a Dick Pic” is a post-apocalyptic stripsical (what writer Coco Creme calls “the burlesque equivalent of a musical”) and it’s one of 12 shows developed by local artists which will be featured at next months Hydra Performing Arts Festival.

“It is set in a post-apocalyptic future,” Creme explained. “We travel through time and find out the end of the world actually started with a dick pic.”

The burlesque stripsical was one of nearly 30 submissions made to the festival jury, a number which took Artistic Managing Director Andrew G. Cooper by surprise.

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“We were so impressed that there was that many artists and companies in town that wanted this festival,” Cooper told CFJC Today. “It was really affirming for us because then we saw there is a need for this in the community.”

Not only is Andrew in charge of organizing the festival, he’s also going be performing in one of the shows. According to Melissa Purcha, of JAMM Theatre, ‘Perseus & Andromeda’ will be a new take on a Greek classic.

“It’s a show that’s going to combine dance, acrobatics, puppetry, some ancient Greek text… into a wild physical theatre piece,” Purcha explained. “It should be entertaining and exciting, and maybe a different spin on the tired, old damsel in distress trope.”

The dozen shows will be the centrepiece of the festival, but there will also be a number of other events taking place at the same time, including improv shows, live music, and workshops.

“We’re going to be having bands play and buskers,” Cooper said. “There’s going to be a lot involved around the 12 shows that are happening, and we’re just really excited to be bringing all this extra stuff to Kamloops as well.”

Tickets to the Hydra Performing Arts Festival are available on the Chimera Theatre website. The festival will span a pair of weekends, from May 10th to 13th and May 17th to 19th.