When a young man goes missing, an overzealous police officer must use social media clues to piece together what might have happened over one crazy weekend in the world within a world that is the Campground.
“I like to take things and give them a bit of a tweak,” says playwright and performer Lucas Myers, Artistic Director of Pilot.co.Pilot, visiting the Rotary Centre for the Arts March 16 with the genre-bending mash-up Campground: A Murder Mystery in the Woods (With Music).
The story starts simply enough as a missing person’s case being investigated by a new, seemingly inept detective. The clues? Facebook posts by the missing man – nondescript videos that yield few clues, until the Mountie makes his way to a campground where he finds several suspects.
The hipster from Vancouver, the redneck Albertan and selfie-shooting American – “I hit the stereotypes hard off the top,” Myers laughs – claim not to know the missing man, but their own Facebook pages suggest something different.
Audience members can follow along not only with what’s happening on stage, but also through videos projected behind the action and the characters’ actual Facebook profiles.
“We slowly realize all these people have interacted with the kid at some time,” Myers says.
More revelations come from the campground talent show, where each character performs. “Each song is about how the kid has affected them,” Myers says.
Experience sparks the imagination
“I try to make my shows about something everyone has experienced,” says Myers, whose family camping trip sparked the Campground concept. “I thought, you can kind of be anyone you want at a campground because you never have to see these people again.”
At the same time, “I’m interested in what unique way I can tell the story,” he reflects.
In this case, a multi-media presentation engages the audience as they, and the detective, try to determine whodunnit.
“It’s definitely a funny show but I’m also looking at some emotional things. I hope it helps people think about not making assumptions. We make these basic assumptions about what someone is going to be like, but maybe he’s the guy in the campground who’s going to lend you a generator when yours breaks.”
Featuring original songs, video and Myers’ unique brand of observational humor and brilliant character work, Campground is a hilarious theatrical experience not to be missed!
You can even do some sleuthing on your own – visit the Facebook profiles of Justin Case from Vancouver and Michael Hodgkins from Medicine Hat and see if you can find some clues!
Get your tickets:
Suitable for Ages 13+, tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for members or groups of six or more, and $15 for students. Purchase online or call the Rotary Centre for the Arts box office at 250-717-5304.