Blyth Festival opens season with play about Matthew Dinning

The Blyth Festival opens its 42nd season with Our Beautiful Sons: Remembering Matthew Dinning, a riveting new play by Christopher Morris, directed by the festival's artistic director, Gil Garratt, which opens June 15.
 

Based on the true story of a local family, the Dinnings of Wingham, just north of Blyth, the play tells of their eldest son, Matthew, who was a dynamic, funny, and charming young man, adored by the community. His first posting with the Canadian Forces was at Petawawa in May, 2004, as a member of the Military Police. In April of 2006, at 23 years young, Corporal Matthew Dinning was killed in Gumbad Province, Afghanistan.

A year later, his younger brother, and the Dinnings' only other child, Brendon, volunteered for active service in Afghanistan. The Canadian Forces called his parents and asked them how to proceed. Should they grant his request, knowing the sacrifice this family had already made for their country? Should they reject it? How do a loving mom and dad make a decision like this?

This is a play about the bonds of family, the search for bravery, and the always complicated paths to manhood, motherhood, and peace. This powerful play was written after extensive interviews with the Dinnings, themselves, who opened their home and their hearts to the playwright throughout the creation of this singular piece.

 

This is a prime example of what Blyth does best: telling powerful local stories, and putting relevant, original Canadian plays onstage.

 

Returning to the Blyth stage in Our Beautiful Sons: Remembering Matthew Dinning, are festival favourites J. D. Nicholsen as Lincoln Dinning (St. Anne's Reel, Billy Bishop Goes to War, Dear Johnny Deere, Death of the Hired Man, Barndance Live) and Rebecca Auerbach As Laurie Dinning (Stag and Doe, Kitchen Radio, Dear Johnny Deere, Reverend Jonah, The Ballad of Stompin' Tom), along with Clinton native Cameron Laurie (Falling: A Wake) as Brendon Dinning.

They are supported by Tony Munch (Falling: A Wake, Beyond The Farm Show, The Devil You Know, Rope's End, Hometown) and Catherine Fitch (Falling: A Wake, Pearl Gidley, The Nuttalls, The Mail Order Bride, Courting Johanna).

 

Blyth welcomes newcomers Jesse LaVercombe as Matthew Dinning and Meghan Chalmers as Sarah.
LaVercombe is a Toronto-based actor and writer whose stage credits include The Bakkhai at the Marigny Opera House, New Orleans, the Canadian Tour of Mistatim, and Hacked for Caravan Stage Company, including the United States Tour.
Chalmers is a graduate of the Theatre Performance program at Humber College where she was the recipient of a Humber Theatre Performance Award, and is one half of comedy duo Two Juliets.

 

Playwright Christopher Morris' recent credits include The Road to Paradise for Human Cargo, Crow's Theatre, and Buddies in Bad Times; Dust for Alberta Theatre Projects; and Night for Human Cargo and the National Arts Centre as well as national and international tours. He is currently writing The Runner, a play being developed and set in Israel, and is also creating a play with Chinese playwright Nan Zhang and the Shanghai Dramatic Arts Centre called The China Project.
Nominated for a Dora Mavor Moore Award for Return: The Sarajevo Project, Morris is also the artistic director of Human Cargo, a Toronto-based theatre company dedicated to the creation of theatre that explores the extremes of the human condition. As an actor, he was seen on the Blyth stage in Cruel Tears, Sometime Never, and Death of the Hired Man.

 

Our Beautiful Sons: Remembering Matthew Dinning, runs from June 15 to Aug. 6 in Blyth's Memorial Hall. Reserve your seats by calling the Box Office at 519-523-9300, toll-free 1-877-862-5984 or on-line at blythfestival.com.
 

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 Season Media Sponsor CTV.