Spotlight on Charity Principe - Jenny Diver in The Threepenny Opera

What is your background in theatre?

I have a B.A. (Drama) from the University of Alberta. I also completed the Capilano Theatre Program in North Vancouver, B.C. My background ranges from musical theatre, Shakespeare, straight drama to local new work. I have been in West Side Story, The Vagina Monologues, The Laramie Project, Twelfth Night, The Visit, and Running..., to name a few. My interest back in University was in community engagement theatre. I wrote a collective creation piece under the direction of David Barnett (former chair of the U of A Drama Dept.) called I Am Canadian? - a look at the immigrant experience and culture gap for 1st generation Canadians - inspired by my own family's journey to Canada from the Philippines. Community theatre can be a powerful tool to communicate and engage people and can create a forum for positive discourse.

I've done one show in the Walterdale Playhouse as a venue (but not a formal Walterdale Production) for the 2001 Edmonton International Fringe Festival entitled Running: The Alex Decoteau Story which chronicled the life of Canadian Olympic Athlete (1912) and first aboriginal police officer in Edmonton, Alex Decoteau. It was written by Charlotte Cameron, directed by Laura Roald and starred Trevor Duplessis and Amelia Maciewjewski. Amelia was just featured in Walterdale's production of Rabbit Hole and gave what I believe to be one of her BEST performances!

What is your role in this production?

I feel privileged to play Jenny Diver, the lead whore in The Threepenny Opera. There's a group of us, the "Women of Wapping", who play Mack the Knife's go-to girls... it involves a lot of strutting about and looking sexy, touching various body parts, soliciting the men on stage and being empowered to do so - this is our profession, after all. Much thanks to Jody for encouraging us to bust out our inner sexy!

Jenny, also known as Ginny-Jenny or Low-Dive Jenny, is an amazing character to play. She is sexy, tough-as-nails, conniving, and oozing with sensual awesomeness and Judas-like betrayal. Jenny's songs are arguably the most well-known numbers in The Threepenny Opera (aside from Mack the Knife) and the opportunity to sing Pirate Jenny and Solomon's Song is scary but also fantastic!

Why did you choose to audition for this show? What attracted you to it?

It's been well over 15 years since I've been in a musical and almost ten since I've acted in a major theatre project. I wanted to try my hand at another musical. I studied Brecht at the U of A and loved it. The style of the project - a comedy, parodying traditional sentimental musicals, while still being dark, sexy and powerful - is why I decided to audition.

What has the production been like for you so far?

I've enjoyed the laughter and the camaraderie between cast mates the most - while still having the opportunity to do good work. The Director, cast and crew are so funny and at the same time so talented. That's the magic of doing community theatre - you meet people of various ages, disciplines, theatre backgrounds and walks of life - but the one thing you can always count on is the shared passion for theatre, whether it be directing, acting, singing, dancing, set construction and design, costumes. Walterdale is especially great at attracting some of our city's best unsung talent.

The most challenging thing is yet to come. The show features a number called the Tango Ballad and we'll be asked to do the TANGO! I am looking forward to getting started on that!

What do you hope the audiences get from the show?

They say that with the Brechtian style of acting, the acting is in quotation marks. That means that the actors are always seen as "actors" and not real characters to be identified with... This style of acting married with the jarring theatrical conventions that Brecht employs int he script with signs, asides to the audience, comedic songs - all breaking the 4th wall of theatre is always an interesting for an audience. I hope they enjoy that sense of performance and theatricality. The show is also terribly funny. If anything, I hope the audience enjoys the experience and laughs as much as we have during the process of creating it.

Any other Comments?

BIG BIG BIG thank you to Curtis, Sally and the rest of the audition panel for allowing me the opportunity to play Jenny. It's been a truly awesome experience so far and as my first Walterdale production - it inspires me and encourages me to continue to be part of this great theatre community.