July 14, 2004 -

If you haven’t seen it…don’t miss the next chance!  The Evening Telegram

A rare prize Ottawa Citizen

Fabulous - among the best productions I've seen anywhere - great acting, brilliant set & strong script. Liz Crocker - Halifax, N.S.

OTTAWA (Ontario) -- First performed for sold-out audiences and to standing ovations at the 2002 Gros Morne Theatre Festival in Cow’s Head, Newfoundland, and a subsequent smash-hit with audiences and critics on tour in Canada, most recently at the second annual Magnetic North Theatre Festival in Edmonton, playwright Robert Chafe’s Tempting Providence is a wonderful, heart-felt play about Newfoundland pioneering “legend” Nurse Myra Bennett. This elegant, beautifully-staged production first delighted Ottawa audiences in 2002 as part of the Atlantic Scene and English Theatre Artistic Director, Marti Maraden, vowed then to bring it back to town.  Following its Ottawa run, the Theatre Newfoundland Labrador production will enjoy a prestigious appearance at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in August, returning to Canada for an extensive tour.

Tempting Providence runs in the National Arts Centre Studio July 15 to 31 with performances at 20:00.  Saturday matinees are on July 17, 24 and 31 at 14:00.   Tickets are available in person at the NAC Box Office or through Ticketmaster at (613) 755-1111, or online at www.nac-cna.ca.  See below for details of a superb dinner and theatre package.

Born in London, England, in 1890, Myra Bennett (née Grimsley) served as a nurse in England for 10 years before moving to Daniel’s Harbour, Newfoundland in 1921.  Over the next several decades, Bennett's medical career along that stretch of coast became the stuff of legends. Daniel's Harbour was an isolated community with no roads or railway connecting the community to the outside world.  During her tenure Bennett estimated that she delivered 5,000 babies and extracted 3,000 teeth. Her greatest feat of medical skill came in 1926 when her brother-in-law, Alex, slipped and fell into the teeth of a lumber saw and almost severed his foot. Cleaning up the wound as best she could, Bennett proceeded to stitch the severed foot back onto the leg. She did such a good job that the foot healed and, after a lengthy recuperation, her brother-in-law was able to walk.

The recipient of an honorary doctorate from Memorial University; Myra Bennett was the subject of a Reader's Digest article, a CBC-TV documentary called "Lady of the Lonely Places" and a book by H. Gordon Green called Don't Have Your Baby in the Dory.  In addition, she was awarded the King George V Jubilee medal, the King George VI Coronation medal, the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation medal, the Member of the British Empire medal, and the Order of Canada medal.

The ‘Florence Nightingale of the North,’ as Ms. Bennett came to be known, passed away in 1990 at age 100. 

Founded in 1979, Theatre Newfoundland Labrador is a professional theatre company under the artistic direction of Jeff Pitcher.  TNL produces a full season of shows in Corner Brook from September to May as well as the Gros Morne Theatre Festival which takes place during the summer and is committed to preserving the rich history of Newfoundland and Labrador through the stories they tell.

Playwright Robert Chafe was named emerging artist of the year by the Newfoundland & Labrador Arts Council in 1999, and won the 2002 Newfoundland and Labrador Arts & Letters Competition Dramatic Script Award for this play.  His works have been seen in productions across Canada.

Brilliantly staged by Jillian Keiley, the Cast for this production is; Deidre Gillard-Rowlings as Myra; Darryl Hopkins as Angus; Melanie Caines as ‘Woman’; and Robert Wyatt Thorne as ‘Man’. Walter J. Snow designed the original lighting for the production and costumes are by Barry Buckle.  Production Stage Manager is Karla Biggin.

Tempt your tastebuds and your imagination with the Tempting Providence Dinner and Theatre package -- Great Value and Great Fun!

The NAC English Theatre and Ottawa’s first fresh fish restaurant The Fish Market Invite you to enjoy a little Atlantic hospitality this summer – Ottawa style! For only $45 (taxes included), you can create your own menu for a sumptuous fresh fish feast AND enjoy an evening of entertaining, theatre from Newfoundland Labrador with the hugely acclaimed production of Tempting Providence Visit the NAC Box Office in person to book your evening of dinner and theatre, or call Ticketmaster at (613) 755-1111 For an on-line menu of the delicious choices on offer on the “Create your Own” menu, Visit The Fish Market at www.fishmarket.ca

Pre-Show Chat:  Thursday, July 15, 2004 at 19:00 with Guest Speaker, Jeff Pitcher, Artistic Director of Theatre Newfoundland Labrador.  In the NAC Fountain Room.

Tickets for Tempting Providence are available at the NAC Box Office in person or through Ticketmaster at 755-1111, and on-line at www.ticketmaster.ca and (a service charge applies to all purchases made through Ticketmaster).  Tickets are $20 Adults; $13 Students.

Groups of 20 or more save up to 20% off of regular priced tickets to NAC Music, Theatre and Dance performances. For information and reservations call 613-947-7000 ext: 384 or e-mail grp@nac-cna.ca.

For more information, please contact:
Laura Denker
Publicity and Media Relations Coordinator
National Arts Centre English Theatre
(613) 947-7000 ext. 389;
ldenker@nac-cna.ca