May 7 - May 26 2012
Luba, Simply Luba, starring Luba Goy
In her (soon to be) iconic role as... Herself!
Honorary Patrons: James & Louise Temerty and Sen. Nancy Ruth
Pleiades Theatre, in association with Red Boots Canada, is thrilled to present the great Canadian comedy star, Luba Goy, in Luba, Simply Luba, a one woman show written by Diane Flacks, in collaboration with Luba Goy and Andrey Tarasiuk.
Directed by: Andrey Tarasiuk
Musical accompaniment by: Victor Mishalow
Sets by: Douglas Paraschuk
Lighting by: Raha Javanfar and Robert Thomson
Meet Luba Goy and many of the characters who shaped her life... from her budgie, Pretty Peter, to the likes of Jean Chrétien, Margaret Atwood, The Queen and Pierre Trudeau... recreated as only Canada's most beloved comedienne can! Luba, Simply Luba is the personal story, beginning with her Ukrainian childhood, of the great Canadian comedy star, Luba Goy. Known and loved by audiences across the country, she always says: "call me Luba, simply Luba." So we will!
Most of us know Luba as one of the original members and life-long stars of the Royal Canadian Air Farce but not surprisingly, her life has been filled with drama - both funny and tragic. This has made her rise from Ukrainian immigrant to Canadian superstar so endearing.
Under the guidance of Andrey Tarasiuk, who is also of Ukrainian parentage, Luba, Simply Luba has been several years in the making. Working with Luba, and with the support of the talented stage and TV writer, Diane Flacks, Andrey has sought to celebrate the remarkable life of this woman, and to introduce us to a whole other side of her that few people know. In doing so, they have created a wonderful story about Canada and have given us a glimpse into one of its most steadfast and influential cultures - Ukrainian - as seen through the eyes of a life-long little girl. Here, Luba retraces her life, from the daughter of an anti-Stalin firebrand urging his child to ask the P.M. to attack the Kremlin, to being honoured at Rideau Hall where she gets to meet the President of a finally free Ukraine. Throughout, she is accompanied by Victor Mishalow, a renowned Ukrainian-Canadian musician and singer with an awe-inspiring basso-profondo voice and a master bandurist. (The bandura, a Ukrainian national instrument, is lute-like in form but has no less than 67 strings!) Hugely entertaining, Luba, Simply Luba is equally enlightening about the Ukrainian culture that shaped its star and against which her whole life experience is set.
Of course, Luba is endearing and funny but part of the truth is that she turned to theatre and comedy as a young woman to find solace and salvation from the struggles of her early and traumatic childhood as a Ukrainian immigrant living in Ottawa in the 1950's and '60's. Her father, having survived the horrors of Stalin's genocides, followed by internment in Nazi labour camps, was consumed by a passion for his poor, bleeding homeland while her mother, grounded in the daily realities of life, baked bread at the Lord Elgin Hotel. From the moment the family arrived at Pier 21 in Halifax, Luba, a wide-eyed young Canadian grew up with a deep love for both her cultures. Like many such kids, she was often caught between the two. This dichotomy makes for wondrously funny, sometimes tragic but always inspiring consequences. All together, they shaped the life of our great national personality and comedienne.
Luba, Simply Luba is a show you simply won't want to miss!
IN MAY, 2012, at BERKELEY ST. THEATRE, 26 Berkeley St.
In Association With:
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