Star/creator Beau Dixon embodies 10 different characters in ‘Beneath Springhill: The Maurice Ruddick Story’ October 17 and 18
The Burlington Performing Arts Centre (BPAC) is honoured to present “Beneath Springhill: The Maurice Ruddick Story” this Saturday and Sunday.
This spellbinding one-person musical is based on the true tale of seven miners trapped beneath a small mining town and the racial tension that surfaced as a result.
“The story is about hope, bravery, survival, family and music,” said the show’s star and creator, Beau Dixon. “Especially in these vulnerable times, what better way to celebrate life and the survival of hope and music?”
Maurice Ruddick, an African Canadian, was awarded “Citizen of the Year” for saving the lives of his fellow workers after a historic mining disaster in Springhill, Nova Scotia in 1958. Actor Beau Dixon will recall the events of seven miners trapped two miles beneath a small mining town, the effect it had on their rural Canadian community and the racial tension that surfaced as a result.
“It is exciting to bring ‘Beneath Springhill: The Maurice Ruddick Story’ to the Burlington Performing Arts Centre,” said BPAC Executive Director Tammy Fox. “The message of hope that comes through in this performance is truly inspiring, at a time when we all might need that kind of inspiration.”
Dixon plays 10 characters, namely:
- Maurice Ruddick
- the six miners whose lives he was credited with saving
- a news reporter
- Valerie, one of Ruddick’s 13 children
- Ruddick’s wife, Norma
Beneath Springhill is a story filled with tragedy, drama and comical – yet conflicting – moments of hope and bravery.
Dixon won the award for Best Solo Performance from the Calgary Critics Association, as well as Best Individual Performance from the Dora Mavor Moore Awards. ‘Beneath Springhill: The Maurice Ruddick Story’ also won the Best New Play award from the Dora Mavor Moore Awards.
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