Playwright's Message
The answer to your question is "No." Spring Alibi is not autobiographical. With that out of the way, let me tell you a bit about the play, and me.
In 1996 the planets aligned in a painfully perfect way and in the spring of 1997 I found myself in the Yukon on a self-imposed sabbatical. I knew no one. Waiting to hike the Chilkoot Trail, I went into the most interesting looking bars and took no time at all connecting with people. Eventually I was directed to a pretty cheap hotel, torn up for renovations and with no kitchen and a shower down the hall.
I rented a PO box about two miles away, and walked to it twice a day. On those journeys, I'd stop for coffee, go to the library, marvel at the beauty around me, and write. On one such journey, I saw a poster for Nakai Theatre's 24-Hour Playwriting Competition. The $35 fee included a hotel room and some food. It was early, and I still had money. A 24-hour window to create something was right up my alley. The idea of a soak in a bathtub was enticing beyond belief.
I showed up with a pad of paper and a couple of coloured pens, wearing a borrowed t-shirt (thanks Brian!) that said, "I feel like a Wanker," which is a brand of beer. They gave me a key and some instructions and I went to my room. Now what? In 17 hours I had 2 baths and a shower and two meals. At mealtimes many people confessed to coming out of the bush every year for this competition, mainly for the bath. I kept writing. When I approached the desk with a stack of damp, scratched up paper, I asked for a match so I could set fire to it. The staff gently wrestled it from my hands.
Weeks later, a friend (either a barfly or a politician, I can't remember which) told me about a radio bulletin: If anyone knew of my whereabouts, send me to Nakai Theatre. There I was handed a cheque. It was prize money. More than just rent, this implied an audience, and they liked it! I was intrigued.
One night at the T&M (a rockin' good bar), Artistic Director Philip Adams arranged 5-minute readings of the winning plays. I was either terribly nervous or was getting the change from my beer when mine was read, because I have no recollection of it. Some weeks later I came back to Edmonton but continued to work with Philip as my dramaturge. Spring Alibi was read at the 1998 New Theatre North Festival, but I didn't hear about it in time to go. When Philip left the North, that was that.
I decided to apply for the Edmonton Fringe Festival, promising myself that if I ever got in, THEN I would meet people in the theatre community. Twice not drawn, twice wait listed. I contacted no one, and no one picked up on my telepathic vibes.
In February 2004, I made yet another trip to Whitehorse and introduced myself to Michael Clark at Nakai who advised me to join the Alberta Playwrights' Network. I did this immediately and by March, I was in a wonderful playwriting circle. Only then did I realize I had written ten drafts, and had never heard a word of it aloud. After the brief readings arranged by Conni Massing, I was hooked. I knew I had to get Spring Alibi off the page and onto the stage. I WOULD see it through this time.
I remember Gerald's call telling me that I was no longer the Susan Lucci of the Edmonton Fringe. I was IN! Over the next several months, I tried to get connected, really, but it always came back to Gerald (i.e., "She's not available, who else do you know?"). Until he suggested David Cheoros. David met me for coffee and asked what I wanted. I had my answer ready: I want a crew that will help bring out the best possible production of Spring Alibi, I want a Director who will not make it so horrible that I never want to write again, I want to learn all I can about every aspect of production, and I want to have fun. Deal! The bottleneck cleared, and the absolute perfect people came to me (including Gerald who had been trying for months to avoid me).
I am so grateful to so many. Passionate, generous, talented people have surrounded this project and me. I've learned a ton. I want to keep writing. I've had fun. I hope you do, too.
Linda Wood Edwards
SEE Magazine, August 22, 2005Fringe Edition |
 Back in 1997, Linda Wood Edwards found herself in Whitehorse. She was on what she calls "a sabbatical.'' A local theatre company was staging a 24-hour playwriting competition and they were offering (for the $35 entrance fee) a hotel room. Said Wood Edwards to herself, "I'm in the mood for a hot bath,'' and thought it would be "safe enough'' to join the contest. She wrote her piece and presumably tubbed and scrubbed. Wood Edwards wasn't impressed with her play. In fact, she says, "I just wanted to set it on fire.'' She was very surprised when it won a prize. Back in Edmonton, it joined Wood Edwards's other writings in a drawer. Lots of writings - short stories, stories about the CFL. All of them lovingly crafted - none of them ever seen by anyone. Wood Edwards describes herself as a business nerd. She writes for a living, but it's generally dry stuff, she says, about bylaw procedures.
But Spring Alibi was different. She joined a playwriting circle where Fringe veteran Gerald Osborn was a member. When she tentatively suggested to Osborn that she thought of herself as a playwright, he observed that "You're not a playwright until you have something produced.'' So Linda submitted Spring Alibi to the Fringe - four times. On the fifth try, she was accepted. She had a venue, a play she wasn't too sure of and no knowledge of how to get it staged. She and Osborn - "the crazy-glue, the midwife that kept the project going'' - started phoning directors. Everyone was busy. Osborn suggested one-time Fringe director David Cheoros and the two clicked. Cheoros managed to land two experienced actors, Sue Huff and Andy Northrup, and the show was up and hurtling toward an opening at Fringe A-Go-Go. Wood Edwards wanted to be part of the action. It was not for her to push her work out into the stream and let it float away. She wanted it to be a learning process, so she took the title of producer and agreed to stage manage her own work. She also wanted a good production that wouldn't drive her out of writing forever and hoped that everyone involved would have fun. Cheoros, whose savvy, inventive direction is core to the play's success, managed to succeed for Wood Edwards on all levels. Spring Alibi, running at Stage 6 through Sunday, is a small, well-observed comic gem about two souls adrift in the Yukon. The wellspring for the play is an act of what we used to call in my youth "self-abuse,'' but at its beating heart it is really a romantic comedy about two lonely people finding love. The dialogue is real, the characters flesh and blood and the writing perceptive and very funny. Audiences are responding in big numbers. The Fringe seems to have found a new star. |
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| "…engaging performances…funny premise…an enjoyable hour…4 stars." Judy Unwin, Global TV |
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