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I:‘.‘CIl.’l§“§flil"r£dl“~fi‘fi‘Jlflvlll. Iii!!.l.l.l.l By HOWARD MOZEL Oakville Beaver Stafir Granmd, it’s not every day a mem- ber of the Royal Family comes to Oakville but when Britain’s National Youth Music Theatre visits next month itwillbethechildrenthatmakeresiâ€" dents open their hearts and their The troupe will be in town from April 6 through 12 to perform “The Ragged Child” four times at the Oakville Centre - one of only two stops on its first-ever North American tour. (The other is New York.) As if that were not special enough, HRH The Prince Edward - president of the NYMT - will be on hand for the sold- out Saturday, April 10 performance. “It certainly is a coup for Oakville,” says Mississauga’s Brenda _Bisiker, who organized the event. "This isthefirsttimeamemberofthe Royal Family has come to Oakville.” Pleased as she is about the prince’s preserve, Bisiker is clearly enchanted by the opportunity to showcase the tal- ents of the extraordinary young per- formeiswhorangeinagefrom llto 20. In order to do so, however, the logistics behind transporting, housing, feeding and entertaining 67 young people have been more than a little daunting. Fortunately Bisiker has had help - lots of help. Oakville opens its heart to performers “The community has really been 'POR TFOLIO Thank You 53 ROYAL BANK super. Every one of (the visitors) is bil- leted. It’s really a big involvement. They’re here for a week,” says Bisiker, who partially credits the play’s tale of orphans in darkest Victorian London with mobilizing this generosity. “It then became a matter of orga- nizing a royal tour,” said Bisiker. “But it's been very interesting and very challenging. Something new every day. It's become a full-time thing." On the other hand, with Edward's attendance the planning assumed an even more complex tone. Bisiker has been keeping in touch with Edward’s secretary at Buckingham Palace as well as repre- sentatives from the RCMP and Scotland Yard. They have already made security checks at every location where the prince will make an appear- ance, a process that will intensify as the tour nears. “We’ne being low-key on the proto- col but we’ve planned every step of his visit. It’s been precisely orga- Bisiker and her husband were in Britain last summer where they attend- ed the Edinburgh Festival and saw their godson perform in The Ragged Child. In speaking to NYMT artistic director Jeremy Taylor they found that while the New York trip was already organized, Toronto dates were still being explored. The city, however, was too expensive so Bisiker suggest- ed Oakville could better accommodate AKVILLE BEAVER I IIJI||||1I“ i‘1a anI u)!!!- a JIJifii‘FiEhtihI‘l!£ihhih!li§¥il hlétik “We naively wandered into this. We’ve never done this before,” she said; In what Bisiker calls a “massive undertaking,” the troupe will bring over all its props, costumes and most of its musical instruments. While sev- eral local sponsors have come forward - the Downtown BIA, for example, is sending the young cast to the Jays home opener - the venture is strictly A scene from The Ragged Child performed by Britain's National Youth Music Theatre. The Festival Fleet of Corporate Sponsors has found anchor at the Royal Bank- Trafalgar 8r Lakeshore. Sponsors allow the Festivals to happen - The people thank you. SLOUGH ESTATES CANADA Principal Sponso More details: 8455 Box #5906 non-profit. Any money that is made will be funnelled back into the NYMT As the for the young visitors them- selves, Bisiker says all are very com- mitted and love what they’re doing. After all, they’re spending their Easter holidays performing and conducting workshops at Oakville-Trafalgar mance, NYMT will be or Oakville Centre Thursday pm; Saturday, April 10: Monday, April 12 at 2 p tickets are still on s Thursday evening perfom High School and Alderhouse High School in Etobicoke. In addition to the sold out perfor- mance, NYMT will be on stage at the Oakville Cenne Thursday, April 8 at 8 pm; Saturday, April 10 at 2 pm. and Monday, April 12 at 2 pm. Plenty of tickets are still on sale for the Thursday evening performance. FRIDAY, MARCH 26, 1993 PAGE 10 Principal Sponsor More details: 8455585- Box #5906