Smith & Sholdice's FURY to Premiere at The Blyth Festival This Summer

The Blyth Festival continues its 41st Season with the world premiere of a new musical, Fury, written by Peter Smith with music by Samuel Sholdice. Directed by Micheline Chevrier, Fury plays at Blyth Memorial Hall from July 29 to September 12. Tickets are available by calling Blyth Festival's Box Office at 519.523.9300, Toll Free 1.877.862.5984 or online at blythfestival.com.

The Great Storm of 1913 remains the deadliest and most destructive natural disaster ever to hit the Great Lakes. More than 250 lives were lost, twelve ships went down, and more than 20 ships were driven ashore. Of the twelve ships that sank, four have never been found. The Wexford was discovered nine miles off St. Joseph on August 25, 2000, in 25 feet of water. At the height of the storm it is believed she struck bottom at Black's Point and in the collision lost her propeller and rudder. Drifting helplessly, she finally came to rest at her current location.

Set against the fury of the Great Storm, Judge Cassidy of Goderich has pledged to care for his niece Margaret. In an effort to secure her future, he arranges for her to marry an upwardly mobile young lawyer from Toronto. At a debutante ball, where the engagement is to be announced, the wistful Margaret meets another young man, only he's from the town of Carlow: the infamous, Michael Grey, a notorious bootlegger and bare-knuckle boxer, with a reputation for trouble-making. Michael also happens to be a gifted singer, with a voice as clear and colourful as a Huron sunset. What follows is a story of forbidden love, perseverance, and passion in the eye of the great storm of 1913.

Playwright Peter Smith (book and lyrics) has been a dramaturge, story editor, theatre director, actor, screenwriter and playwright for the past thirty years and has worked coast to coast to coast. As the Artistic Director of Playwrights' Workshop Montreal, the Blyth Festival on two different occasions, and as Associate Artistic Director of the Canadian Stage Company, he has been involved in the development and production of many different stories in a variety of venues. Peter is presently the Project Director for the Blyth Arts and Culture Initiative: 1419.

Clinton native, Samuel Sholdice (composer) is a composer, musical director, sound designer, and musician. Some of his recent credits include Founding Father at the Charlottetown Festival, Accidental Death of an Anarchist for Toronto's Soulpepper theatre company, The Boy in the Moon at Ottawa's Great Canadian Theatre Company, and As You Like It and Titus Andronicus at Canadian Stage's Shakespeare in High Park; as well as Beyond the Farm Show, Yorkville: The Musical, and Falling: A Wake at the Blyth Festival. Some of Sam's other credits include being editor and composer of The Spoke podcast and drummer in the band Token.

After making her Blyth debut in Seeds, Rachel Cairns plays the ragged heroine role of Margaret MacKay, a fiery young woman from the Magdalen Islands who comes of age in early twentieth century Goderich, and falls in love with the Carlow troublemaker, played by Jeff Irving. "When we were searching for the actor to play Michael Grey, the bootlegging bare-knuckle boxer, director Micheline Chevrier said 'he needs to have a voice like an angel.' When we discovered Jeff was available, Micheline immediately leapt at the chance to collaborate with Mr. Irving again," said Gil Garratt, Blyth's Artistic Director.

Jason Chesworth plays the ambitious young lawyer engaged to wed the indomitable force that is Margaret MacKay. Mr. Chesworth is a familiar face to Blyth audiences having played in Dear Johnny Deere, Kitchen Radio, Stag and Doe and earlier this season, Seeds.

After playing many roles in Seeds, Keith Barker is originating the comic role of Bernard Smoke, a raconteur and adventurer, with a bad case of narcolepsy.

The cast is completed with Blyth favourite, David Fox as Judge Cassidy, Margaret's uncle. Mr. Fox recently played Percy Schmeiser in Seeds earlier this season at Blyth and was Walter in last season's St. Anne's Reel.

Creating the setting for Fury are the award-winning team of Ronnie Burkett (set and costumes), Gemma James-Smith (assistant set and costume designer), Robert Thomson (lighting), and Samuel Sholdice (music director, sound). Crystal MacDonell is the Production Stage Manager and Christina Cicko is the Assistant Stage Manager.

For over thirty years, director Micheline Chevrier has had the good fortune of working across Canada as a director, dramaturge and artistic director. She has directed at such theatres as the Shaw Festival, the National Arts Centre, the Citadel Theatre, Alberta Theatre Projects, the Globe Theatre, Prairie Theatre Exchange, Canadian Stage, Young People's Theatre, Centaur Theatre, Geordie Productions, Imago Theatre, Théâtre français de Toronto, and Theatre New Brunswick. Since 2013, Micheline has been Artistic Director of Imago Theatre in Montreal. This is Ms. Chevrier's first time at Blyth.

Blyth Festival acknowledges the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, the 2015-2017 Season Sponsor Parkland Fuels/Sparlings Propane and 2015 Season Media Sponsor CTV.

Fury is generously sponsored by Ideal Supply (Production Sponsor) and 104.9 The Beach (Media Sponsor).

The Blyth Festival is a professional theatre that enriches the lives of its audience by producing and developing plays that give voice to both the region and the country. The theatre produces a repertory summer season of exclusively Canadian theatre, with an emphasis on new work. Blyth Centre for the Arts, including the Blyth Festival, was founded in 1975.

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