27th KAMLOOPS

March 2-11, 2023

At the Paramount Theatre

Advance KFF tickets and passes are available online and at the Paramount Theatre (503 Victoria Street) during open hours. For open hours and to become a KFS Member (for extra discounts) please see thekfs.ca thekfs.ca/kff

DIRECTOR’S NOTES by

CATRIONA LEGER

I never grew up with sports or any kind of costly extracurricular activity. I was an arts nerd because being a part of the high school drama club was free and that’s what my parents could afford. I first encountered curling during the 2010 Olympics. I intentionally left my tiny Vancouver attic apartment on 12th and Main St. and took a trip to Hawaii to escape the mayhem. At that time, I enjoyed the beach during the day and at night I found myself spending a good deal of time in a hotel room watching… curling! While I was in that lei-filled, fishbowl drink paradise, I became obsessed with watching matches and, when I returned to Vancouver during the closing ceremonies, I couldn’t believe I had squandered the opportunity to walk just a few blocks up the street to experience curling fever.

As in sport, in my work as a theatre artist—and as a human—relationships, communication, and camaraderie are at the forefront. In all instances, we come together to experience a live exchange—one where we have ups and downs, where sometimes we sweep so hard and the rock is so close but doesn’t hit, and other times where the rock hits so hard that we miss the contact we need in order to meaningfully succeed. Missed connections, misunderstood communication—we are always on that slippery ice that we try so hard to control but just can’t.

At the core, to me, this is a show about love. Love for curling, yes. But also, romantic love, love of friends, love for home, love for community, and love of one’s own self. In a close-knit community such as Kamloops, more than a few tens of thousands of people larger than the tiny town of Stayner, Ontario, I am reminded of how the sport of curling represents the bonspiel of life. We can’t always control it, but sometimes, if we hurry hard, we may just hit the button. And if we don’t quite make it, we can always throw again.

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