This past Sunday evening, I had the opportunity to go to a dinner theatre. Normally, it' a little expensive - more than I would pay - but a friend scored some free tickets and he asked me if I would like to go.
We drove about half an hour, or so, to the town of Bouctouche where the performance is held, and went to Le Pays De La Sagouine, a French one-woman play. However, this year they have added a few English performances, and that's what we went to...otherwise I wouldn't have understood it a bit. Their website is in French and English if you are interested in reading about it. You can also "Google it".
Going into it, I was unsure what to expect. Since it's Acadian themed, I figured it might be about the history and/or deportation of the Acadians from up this way (the Acadians made their way to Louisiana, and I believe the became the Cajuns...but I'm not totally sure on that last fact). It wasn't. The star of the show, La Sagouine (which I'm told loosely translates to the washerwoman) is played by a woman in her early 80s. She basically tells some stories from the life of the character. This woman is so awesome - her facial expressions at times were enough for laughter to erupt. And, of course, the stories she told were all humorous as well.
There was a little swearing in the show, and she took the Lord's name in vain a few times - and that I didn't like. But overall, the show was good and I'm glad I went.
I've never been to a dinner theatre before so I didn't know if we would be eating while she performed or not. The menu was good - well, if you liked the kind of food they offered. We started off with a salad of mixed greens, some red onions, cucumbers and a strawberry (I think) vinaigrette dressing. There were 3 main courses to choose from - salmon with a lobster sauce (which I don't care for...the salmon or the lobster), rice and veggies; chicken with mushroom sauce (I despise mushrooms), mashed potatoes and veggies; or a mix of different Acadian foods - which I don't like either. I ordered the chicken and asked if it was possible to not have any sauce on it, and thankfully they were able to do so. We ate this before the performance started, then about half an hour into the performance, there was a 20 minute intermission and dessert was served - a yummy strawberry shortcake. I don't think I heard any complaints from anyone about the food - or the performance for that matter.
All in all, I'm glad I went. It was a new experience for me, and I don't think I'd mind going to another dinner theatre sometime - depending on what the show is about, of course.
