Beginning tonight (April 26), Enter Stage Right invites the audience to the world of Riverdale U.S.A. in their long-awaited premiere of Jen Nugent’s original musical Everybody Loves Archie.

A brand new show featuring the iconic comic book characters that have been beloved by multiple generations of readers, Everybody Loves Archie brings to life Archie, Jughead, Betty, Veronica, Reggie, and the entire Riverdale gang.

So what can I say? They had me at “Archie.”

Like many people, I read Archie Comics when I was a kid, but for the past 15 years I have been actively collecting Archie books and collectables. From original art, to signed books, to a Veronica Lodge tattoo on my arm (seriously — stop me when you see me at a arts event and I’ll show it to you), it’s an understatement to say I know a lot about Archie Comics.

And the timing couldn’t be more right for Everybody Loves Archie. Having just celebrated its 75th anniversary in publication, Archie Comics not only received a highly publicized reboot, but the new TV series Riverdale — which presents a dark and twisted take on Archie — has become a surprise hit for the CW network, despite being deemed controversial amongst fans. Archie is, once again, front and centre in the pop culture radar.

However, unlike the TV series, Everybody Loves Archie brings back the colourful and fun version of Archie that we all know and love in a lively and family-friendly comedy.

The plot is just as familiar as the characters themselves: filled with big personalities, romantic troubles, zany misunderstandings, and goofball hijinks. In a storyline ripped right out of the comic books, school is back in at Riverdale High, and Betty Cooper and Veronica Lodge are back to vying for Archie Andrew’s attention.

However, finally sick of playing second fiddle to his good-natured foil, Reggie Mantle puts together a diabolical scheme to finally make Archie choose once and for all in the ultimate “Love Showdown”. Will he pick Betty or Veronica ….. or could it be someone else? I don’t want to spoil the fun, but long-time Archie fans already know where this is going — and it’s just as good as you want it to be.

Writer and director Jen also introduces a second love triangle to the story featuring Jughead Jones, Ethel Muggs, and Dilton Doiley. As established in the comic books, Jughead has always been more interested in hamburgers than girls, and has been avoiding the overzealous affection of Ethel for decades. In a brand new twist to the long running one-sided love affair, Jen brings in Riverdale’s genius Dilton who, having spent time with Ethel over the summer, has developed feelings for her — which Ethel is too blind to see.

Everyone else’s romantic pursuits are put on hold when the kids discover a story of unrequited love, and join forces to bring together a surprise couple at the annual Snowball Dance with the help of a “love potion” developed by Dilton. Of course, much in the fashion of a classic Archie comic, nothing goes as planned.

I can’t even begin to express how the cast of Everybody Loves Archie manages to bring the characters from the original Archie Comics to life. All the actors understands the mind and motivations of each of their individual characters and recreate their personalities on the stage.

Jacob Howran, with the production on his shoulders, becomes Archie Andrews. Friendly and welcoming, but also a bit goofy and oblivious to everything around him, Archie is your guide into the world of Riverdale. Although Jacob only had a few months to learn the role as a mid-production replacement, he embraces the role and is a believable Archie.

But just as in the comics, it is Archie’s friends who are larger than life.

Alivia Buchan brings to the stage the snobbish sophistication of Veronica Lodge, while Samantha Pickard is peppy and pretty (and potentially psycho) as girl-next-door Betty Cooper.

In a spot-on performance, Matt Campbell plays the diabolical Reggie Mantle, who doesn’t understand why Archie gets all the girls, while Colton Beale brings the dumb, dangerous, but good-natured Moose Mason to life, accompanied by Antje Kroes as his long-suffering girlfriend Midge Klump.

Issac Martin takes on the role of Dilton Doiley by reciting lines so complex with large words that if he threw a line or two I wouldn’t even notice.

Finally, accompanying the main cast is Sarah Daye as Ginger Lopez, who is as adorable as the character she plays. As my absolute favourite of the Archie gang, it really was a joy for me to see Ginger given such large representation in the show.

But while all the main characters get their stand-out moments, it’s Thomas Bodrug in the role of Jughead and Aiden McDonald as Ethel Muggs who are the scene stealers.

I can’t express how incredible Thomas is as Jughead. With his awkward movements, his cartoonish voice, and his eccentric aloofness, Thomas brings the enigma that is Jughead to life. It is a perfect performance.

Meanwhile, Aiden gets most of the big laughs as Ethel. However, while Ethel’s original treatment in the comics was often cruel (she was portrayed as the “ugly girl”), in Everybody Loves Archie the comedy comes from Ethel being overzealous and trying much too hard, along with the wonderful cartoonish voice she creates for the character. Aiden also gets the musical moment of the night for her performance of the Temptation’s classic hit “Just My Imagination” which beautifully fits into the premise of her feelings for Jughead.

I also want to give a shout-out to Amy Daye as Cheryl Blossom. I can’t say much without giving away a few of the great plot surprises, but what I will say is that she ignites the stage like a red-hot cherry bomb going nuclear, and nicely changes the course of the production upon her arrival.

Both as a comic book collector as well as a die-hard Archie fan, what I love about Everybody Loves Archie is how the cast and crew have been able to bring the classic style of the comic book to life. The sets are bright and colourful, painted in Riverdale’s blue and gold colour scheme. The costumes and characterizations of the characters are dead on. When the principal characters come on the stage, there is no doubt who they are because they actually manage to look like the comic characters.

In fact, when I sent the publicity photos of the cast to comic book artist Fenando Ruiz, he responded on Facebook: “They look more like the real Archie than the cast of Riverdale does.” Fernando should know, because he drew the Archie characters for decades.

While some of the actors, such as Thomas Bodrug as Jughead or Matt Campbell as Reggie, are the splitting image of their characters, other actors, such as Jacob Howan as Archie and Colton Beal as Moose, went so far as to dye their hair to get the look of the characters.

Other cast members had to undergo wigs and heavy makeup to bring their characters to life. In reality, actress Alivia Buchan is a blonde, and Samantha Pickard is a brunette. But the pair, as well as a number of the other Riverdale girls, are put in wigs to bring their Riverdale counterparts to life. While Alivia looks flawless in a dark wig to become Veronica, Samantha’s blonde wig is an outrageous yellow to become Betty. But the aesthetic works perfectly, making Samantha into a living embodiment of the comic character.

Lindsay Rudkins and Robert McEwen are beautifully transformed from young actors to middle-aged teachers in the roles of Ms. Grundy and Mr. Weatherbee, while the pretty Aiden McDonald is transformed into the garish (yet still sort of cute) Ethel. From Ginger Lopez’s white streaks, to Midge Klump’s short hairdo, the cast looks just right.

What even impressed me more was the attention to detail put into some of the lesser-known background characters. The costume that impressed me the most was that of Gabby Byzenko, who plays Archie character Ambrose Pipps (not to be confused for Sabrina the Teenage Witch’s cousin Ambrose Spellman). Although an obscure Archie character, Gabby has the look of the character right, which really brought a sense of authenticity to this production.

Everybody Loves Archie also features some other lesser-known fan favourites such as Cricket O’Dell (Jordan de Groot), Adam Chisholm (Ben Greene), Cora Jones (Nicole Quinlan), Marcy McDermott (Lauren Wilson) and Brigette Rielly (Jaidan Charters) which expands the world of Riverdale even further. Although some of these characters may not be familiar to everybody, to hard-core Archie readers like me, the inclusion of these characters shows that Jen Nugent really did her homework.

Musically, Everybody Loves Archie is a bit all over the place, featuring classic pop numbers from the early to mid 1960s, often rewritten to go along with the characters and plots. When the cast brings it on, they really bring it on. Some of the vocalists, including Aiden McDonald, Lindsay Rudkins, and Issac Martin, are very good, while the dance sequences and large production numbers are ambitious and fun.

It was so great seeing the gang dance in Pop’s Chock’lit Shoppe that I almost wanted to join in (although that would have probably been awkward for all involved).

A piece of advice: although not the fault by any means of the company, the sound system at PCVS is ancient and the sound could possibly be an issue despite everybody’s best efforts. Make sure to come to the show early and get a seat as close to the stage as possible so you can hear the entire production, in case sound continues to be an issue come opening night.

There is so much to love about Everybody Loves Archie, but what I loved the most is that this show brings to the stage everything I love about the Archie Comics and what it is that makes me a fan. The familiar characters, the colourful costumes and sets, and the classic storylines are brought together with an energetic and likeable cast that’s the same age as the characters they represent (with the obvious exceptions of Mr. Weatherbee and Miss Grundy).

It’s funny, good natured and friendly, unlike some of the more recent takes on Archie. Everybody Loves Archie embraces the Archie Comics I love (although there was at least one Riverdale inspired joke that even I had to laugh at, in spite of myself). The cast and crew of Enter Stage Right have put together something to be proud of.

There is a lot of theatre opening this week, but what Everybody Loves Archie offers is something really light and fun. I smiled so much watching it that my face still hurts a day later.

Everybody Loves Archie opens on Wednesday April 26th, and runs until Saturday April 29th at the PCVS Auditorium. Shows start at 7 p.m. and tickets are $15 at the door ($10 for seniors and students).

For the final event in its 2016-17 season, Public Energy is presenting an intimate evening of music called “Songs in the Key of Cree” featuring Cree-Canadian icon Tomson Highway. The concert takes place at 8 p.m. on Thursday, May 11th at the Market Hall Performing Arts Centre in Peterborough.

Highway will be joined on stage by Peruvian/Canadian singer Patricia Cano and Toronto jazz saxophonist Marcus Ali.

This event, a fundraiser to benefit Public Energy’s performing arts programs, is only one of two Canadian performances of “Songs in the Key of Cree”, which Highway has been touring across seven countries in Europe.

A full-blood Cree, Highway is one of Canada’s greatest playwrights, best known for his plays The Rez Sisters and Dry Lips Oughta Move to Kapuskasing, each of which won both Dora Mavor Moore Award and the Floyd S. Chalmers Award.

Peterborough audiences may recall that the O’Kaadenigan Wiingashk Collective, with the assistance of Public Energy, staged The Rez Sisters in Peterborough in 2009, as well as Highway’s musical play The (Post) Mistress in 2012.

It was in the Peterborough production of The (Post) Mistress at the Market Hall where Highway first teamed up with Cano and Ali, who are touring with him in “Songs in the Key of Cree”.

As well as being a celebrated playwright and an author, Highway is also an accomplished composer, songwriter, and pianist. “Songs in the Key of Cree” is a compilation of songs Highway has written over the past 30 years from five of his musicals: Rose; The Incredible Adventures of Mary Jane Mosquito; The (Post) Mistress; The Sage, the Dancer, and the Fool; and a new work-in-progress as yet to be named.

Highway’s music is influenced by country, Brazilian samba, jazz, and French Canadian folk songs, but what makes his songs so unique is the use of his mother tongue Cree in their lyrics.

The names of many familiar Canadian provinces and cities are Cree (for example, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Chicoutimi, Quebec, and Ottawa) and it remains the most-spoken native language in Canada today. It’s a very rhythmic language that naturally lends itself to music and music-making.

“English is so hierarchical,” Highway explains. “In Cree, we don’t have animate-inanimate comparisons between things. Animals have souls that are equal to ours. Rocks have souls. Trees have souls. Trees are ‘who,’ not ‘what.'”

In “Songs in the Key of Cree”, presented by Public Energy and TD Canada Trust with supporting sponsor Trent University Indigenous Studies Program, Highway performs on piano with vocals by Cano and sax by Ali. Cano will sing the tri-lingual Highway’s songs in Cree, English, and French.

General admission tickets are $40 plus fees, available from the box office at Market Hall Performing Arts Centre (140 Charlotte St., Peterborough), by phone at 705-749-1146, or online at the Market Hall Box Office or online at www.markethall.org.

VIP tickets are also available for $100 plus fees and include assigned cabaret-style table seating and a meet-and-greet reception with Highway before the concert from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

The reception features locally sourced Indigenous cuisine from Grandfather’s Kitchen, a wine list developed by Christopher Wilton, and a talk by Highway on the topic “The Birth and Development of ‘Native Showbiz’.” All VIP ticket holders also receive a $50 charitable tax receipt to recognize their donation to Public Energy.

For more information about “Songs in the Key of Cree” and Public Energy, visit publicenergy.ca.

Peterborough’s own Linda Kash appears in the premiere episode of the third season of FX Networks’ hit black comedy series Fargo.

In the episode entitled “The Law of Vacant Places”, which aired on April 19th, Linda performs in two scenes as Stella, the wife of Emmit Stussy, portrayed by Ewan McGregor.

McGregor plays a dual lead role, as brothers Emmitt and Ray Sussy. Emmmit is a handsome and successful self-made man, while his younger brother Ray is a parole officer who blames Emmit for his misfortunes.

Their sibling rivalry leads them into a world of murder, crime, and mobsters.

In the following scene, Emmitt and Stella are hosting a party to celebrate their 25th wedding anniverary. Linda has a chance to demonstrate her Minnesotan accent.

(The balding man in the crowd, who dumps his champagne into the plan, is also Ewan McGregor as Emmit’s brother Ray).

Later, Linda makes another appearance in a scene at the Sussy home when Emmit is called back to the office.

The third season of Fargo was filmed earlier this year in Calgary, Alberta.

Linda is not the only Peterborough actor to appear recently in a major American television series.

Dan Duran, who was announced last week as the new weather analyst at CHEX Television in Peterborough, appears in the ABC series Designated Survivor as a White House reporter.

Linda is currently directing the New Stages Theatre Company’s production of Our Town, which runs from April 28th to May 6th at the Market Hall in Peterborough.

Derek Weatherdon and Nicole Roy, the couple who put together last winter’s highly successful The Reluctant Dragon at the Peterborough Theatre Guild, have a unique philosophy when working with kids.

They never want to have an audience member ever leave their show saying “That was pretty good … for a kids’ show.” They want to create professional and entertaining shows that feature kids, but are aimed at a broader audience.

This philosophy has become the basis for Planet 12 Productions, a brand new theatre company that Derek and Nicole, along with Heather Ross and Amy Keller, have spearheaded. The company aims to give kids between the ages of 11 and 13 opportunities to flex their acting muscles in dramatic roles, and give talented kids an alternative channel to enter theatre than those most often available for them.

“There are kids out there who are super talented,” Nicole says. “These kids can often out-act adults, and they need a chance to do really good theatre.”

Having become familiar faces in the theatre community in the past year, Derek and Nicole appeared together in the My Narrator, the Peterborough Theatre Guild’s entry into the Eastern Ontario Drama League One Act Festival, and Derek recently starred in the award-winning drama A Life Before, while Nicole was in No Exit at The Theatre on King (TTOK).

Derek has a background working with kids as a teacher at Queen Elizabeth Public School in Peterborough, where he has directed a number of school productions before crossing over to do the Theatre Guild’s annual family show last December. Derek believes there’s a lot of potential for kids to be given more opportunities in theatre than they often receive.

“I find that in my line of work as a teacher, as well as in the arts, people tend to cut kids short,” Derek explains. “They don’t know what kids are capable of, and often the assumption is that they aren’t capable of very much. They think that it’s often easier to replace a kid with a young-looking teenager or adult — but you don’t have to. The words can be said just as poignantly, and even more so, by an age-appropriate actor.”

Derek and Nicole are not only involved in theatre themselves, but are the parents of Samuelle “Sam” May Weatherdon, one of Peterborough’s most remarkable young actresses. She has appeared in both family and adult productions over the past three years at 4th Line Theatre, the Peterborough Theatre Guild, and TTOK, and she’s currently working in New Stages’ production of Our Town.

Derek and Nicole say when TTOK’s Ryan Kerr cast Sam along with Lydia Etherington in Hortense Flexner’s Voices last September, they realized that, despite the many opportunities for kids to enter theatre in Peterborough, more could be done.

“Voices was a huge thing,” Nicole says. “That was validation. When Sam and Lydia auditioned for Ryan Kerr, he saw the talent in these two girls but he didn’t have a show for them to do. He had nothing for them, and he could have just let them walk away. But he didn’t want to let these kids go. He had to find something for them, and that was Voices.”

The Planet 12 Productions team invited six of their outstanding performers from The Reluctant Dragon to form a company that will give both acting and production opportunities to pre-teens, but allow them to do theatre that’s more cutting edge than that often associated with kids their age.

“As much as possible, we’re going to be working with the same core group of kids every time,” Derek says. “We’re a true ensemble. We are not focused on musical theatre. We’re not focused on kids’ theatre. We’re not focused on pageantry. The focus is going to be on drama and more serious fare.”

“Most kids’ shows are just that — kids’ shows,” Nicole adds. “They are kids’ shows in their expectations and in their standards and their execution. It’s about dressing them up really cute and have your friends and family come out and see how awesome they look on stage, and that’s it. That’s not what we are going to do.”

Although there are plans to extend opportunities to kids who want to join Planet 12 Productions in the future, the current performers includes Derek and Nicole’s daughter Sam as well as Abbie Dale, Aimee Gordon, Emily Keller, Emma Meinhardt, and Issac Maker. Along with Derek (creative director and sound designer) and Nicole (stage management and producer), the crew includes Dave Butcher (props, lights, and effects) and Heather Ross (lead costumer).

“We have a group of kids who are quite good,” Derek says. “They have presence, they have personality, and they have the right attitude. They are very trusting, their families are very supportive, and they take it seriously. Our short-term goals are to give these kids heavy fare. To have them say things and create things on stage that would not be typical for kids, but may be typical for adults.

“We also want to promote opportunities with other theatre companies for these kids. We want to help them with their auditioning skills and their acting abilities. We don’t want to keep them; we want to send them to other places. Planet 12 Productions is just a place where our kids will always get a place to act.”

For their premiere show, Planet 12 Productions will be presenting Derek’s original play Boy Wonders at TTOK from June 8th to 10th.

A fan and collector of comic books, Derek has written a twisted and poignant look at superhero sidekicks with some real-world twists. For this production, which tells the story of six sidekick superheroes in the 1940s, the kids will be joined onstage by popular Peterborough actor Brad Breckenridge.

“Boy Wonders is sort of The Breakfast Club meets superheroes, but it’s deeper,” Derek says. “It’s a story that’s going to take a big look of what being a sidekick is.

I’ve read a lot of Golden Age comics: The Sandman and Sandy, Green Arrow and Speedy, Merry the Girl of 1000 Gimmicks, Boy Commandos, The Newsboy Legion. As comic book fans, we just accept sidekicks as being a part of the genre. We don’t question it. It just makes sense because it’s been there forever.”

“Look at Batman and Robin,” adds Nicole. “It really hit home with the kids when we talked about them. This rich bachelor millionaire with no wife and no family, with only a butler, who dresses up like a bat at night, he goes and adopts this orphan kid.”

“Batman puts this kid in a bright red shirt and then he throws him in gunfire,” Derek continues. “Meanwhile, Batman stands in the shadows, and we don’t question that. This is the thing that Boy Wonders explores. It’s not a touching story. It’s more of a horror story, but it’s going to let these kids shine right off the bat.”

While many theatre companies only offers kids one or two opportunities to appear in shows per year, Planet 12 Productions plans to do multiple productions a year.

“We never want the kids to ever be asked the question ‘This is a great show, what’s next for you?’ and have nothing to say but ‘I don’t know, whatever comes up’,” Nicole explains.

There are solid plans to do productions in September and December, including a show featuring adult actors with an all-kids stage crew.

“If the kids aren’t in the show, we want them on crew,” Derek says. “We have a possible adult show in the works which we want the kids involved in behind the scenes. It’s three adult actors and the kids will be crewing it.”

Although there are many fantastic opportunities for kids to get into theatre in Peterborough, Planet 12 Productions has the potential to be something very unique and niche. Giving kids of such a young age the chance to work together on dramatic productions aimed for an older audience will be something very interesting to see.

Having seen all of the kids from Planet 12 on the stage before, I have little doubt that they have what it takes to make some very raw and compelling theatre.

“There are going to be a lot of eyes on us,” Derek says. “People are really curious about what we’re going to do, and they seem to be very positive about it. There will be a lot of people who are going to want to come out and see what we are all about.”

For more information and updates on Planet 12 Productions, visit their Facebook page and Facebook group.