Dolcevita
or
the clown chorus of the carnival del dolcevita proudly presents the sad tale of the turbinado triplets

By Briandaniel Oglesby

Our 2022/2023 Youth Players presented this zany & heartfelt production at the Suncor Energy Centre for the Performing Arts on April 1st, 2023.

About the play:

When our story begins, the Turbinado triplets are already orphans. Zeppelin accident, you know. And now the clownish Chorus spins the sad tales of Amalia-Tamalia, Jayce-Marie, and Nic Turbinado, triplets separated to lead lives so different, it’s like they come from different eras. 

A chance meeting at the carnival their parents used to work at starts a tradition of reuniting once a year – which is shattered when the differences between the siblings become too great to handle.

And for many years, the siblings live their own lives. Nic, whose impoverished life is like a roller coaster, grabs his boyfriend and hits the road – which hits back. Amalia, the invisible one, leaves her middle class upbringing to embrace a life of con-artistry, falling in unrequited love with someone who wants to make history as a bank robber. Meanwhile, non-binary Jayce-Marie lives in the massive family estate that feels like the worst parts of a funhouse, eventually becoming the caretaker for the elderly family matriarch.

A note on staging:

This was originally built to be a promenade play, with the audience splitting up for Act II to follow the triplets’ lives in different orders. To pay homage to the original production and the spirit of carnivals, we created a game for the audience to determine our show order. Between each act, the audience was presented with cups under which were the names of each triplet’s stories. The order was determined by a show of applause, at the encouragement of our clown chorus. Thus, each performance of the show was different. This created unique opportunities for our actors, stage manager, and technician (and kept our instructors on their toes too!)

CAST 

The Turbinado Triplets: 

Amalia-Tamalia Turbinado - Annie Bradbury
Jayce-Marie Turbinado - Gil Rogers 
Nic Turbinado - Kai Kippenhuck 

The Clown Chorus: 

Rosetta: Jenny Bowie
Professor: K. Price
Skills: Hannah King
Lucky: Zoey Zaharchuk
Mrs. Scroggins: Iyla Corrigan
Rob’n: Abigail Janvier
Fortune Teller/Audience Plant (Bear, Ricky, Moinette, Canadian Tourist & More): Iyanna Verceles
Varney: Sophie Ridley
Mickey: Vespen Sturge

Student Artistic Team: 

Stage Manager: Ceilidh Langlois
Student Director (Games, or What Are the Odds?): Jenny Bowie

Dolcevita was originally produced with and for the middle school students of Skybridge Academy.

Stay tuned for more show information and photos