Bow Valley Baptist Church plans to bring their rendition of the Netflix animated holiday film Klaus to help raise donations for non-profit organizations in Cochrane this holiday season.
Performances are set to take place on Dec. 6 at 7 p.m., Dec. 7 at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m., and Dec. 8 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $15 each, with free entry for kids ages two and under. To purchase tickets, please visit www.bowvalleybaptist.com.
Co-directors and mother, daughter duo Moneen and Lynay Wuthrich, explained that all proceeds will be dedicated to the Big Hill Haven Women’s Shelter and Not In My City, a group founded in Cochrane that aims to disrupt human trafficking and sexual exploitation.
Food and Cash donations for the Cochrane Food Bank will also he accepted at the door.
The hallmark film tells the story of a postal worker named Jesper who is relocated to the small village of Smeerenburg in the far north, where he finds a feuding family, but also makes friends with a sequestered toymaker named Klaus.
“Jesper actually enlists Klaus’ help to get the toys to the children go get as many stamps as possible, because that’s how he’s actually trying to get back his cushy lifestyle back in the city,” Moneen explained. “But like all stories, that eventually comes to a head, where he has to make a choice between what is easy and what is right.
The film released in 2019 on Netflix around the holiday season, where it received an average of 95 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes and scored 8.2/10 on IMDb.
Lynay explained that their journey with the production started after they reached out to SPA Studios, the creators of the movie.
“They reached back and said [that] this sounds like a fantastic idea, but we don’t have the rights, reach out to Netflix, here’s the guy to contact,” Lynay explained. “So, we reached out to Netflix, and we said – Look, we are a non-profit, all of our actors, directors, [and] everyone involved are all volunteers, and all proceeds after expenses go to local charities.”
A few days later, a representative from Netflix gave them the green light for their production and wished them good luck on their show.
“It was crazy,” Lynay said. “He said it’s not normally something that they do, but they made an exception for us, so we’re beyond shocked and very grateful, because it’s such a cute cartoon.”
This will be their seventh production in the community, and Lynay explained that they aimed to bring something new to the stage for Cochrane to enjoy.
“I was looking into Christmas movies that I liked and I knew that we could adapt this to the stage,” she said.
With more than 50 cast and crew members, Moneen explains that the talent ranges from a four-year-old boy, to someone who’s right around 60-years-old. From costumes, set design, and stage talent, all aspects of the production will be straight from the community.
“They’re all extremely talented, and they’re spending their free time to put this together,” Lynay added. “It’s a volunteer effort. Just people you know, your neighbours, and people you see at the store.”
With their opening night a few days away, the duo is excited to bring the production to the community. They note that this will be their biggest production yet, and are excited to share their hard work with the community.
“We’re so excited for out play family to be able to share I with our community,” Lynay said. “I know our cast and crew are also equally as excited to have it hit the stage.”
