Lampman’s Maureen Ulrich has become a well-known writer locally with her novels and her stage productions.
But she is about to gain international attention now that her one-woman show, Diamond Girls, will be performed at the Adelaide Fringe Festival in Australia from March 3 to 12. It’s the largest fringe festival in the Southern Hemisphere.
Ulrich said the director for Diamond Girls, Kenn McLeod, has brought up the possibility of taking Diamond Girls to an international fringe festival on a couple of occasions. He had discussed taking the show to the fringe festival in Edinburgh, Scotland, which is the largest event of its kind in the world, but that festival happens in the summer, and so it’s up against the summer theatre season.
Since the Adelaide festival is in March, that was viewed as a great time to get away.
“Basically, to get into that fringe, you just need to find a venue, so I struck a deal with the National Wine Centre, and so we are going to be performing eight out of our 10 shows there, and then the other two, we’re performing in a venue close by,” said Ulrich.
Ten show in 10 days will be a challenge for the show’s star, Amanda Trapp, who is well-known to local theatre fans, thanks to her performances with the Souris Valley Theatre since 2014. But Ulrich is confident Trapp will be fine.
Diamond Girls was released in 2016, and initially starred Malia Becker. It tells the story of Mary (Bonnie) Baker, a Saskatchewan-born baseball player who was a star in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in the 1940s and 1950s.
Trapp stepped in as the star last September when the show was relaunched. She learned it in 2 1/2 weeks.
“She does the role really, really well, and she’s a great story-teller,” said Ulrich. “She pays attention to every word of the script, and she does a phenomenal job. I couldn’t be happier with her, and she’s a great gal to work with, too. She and Kenn work well together, too.”
Ulrich knew Trapp through the SV Theatre, and has watched her mature from her first role in 2014 in The Odd Couple. Trapp has grown into assuming the female lead for shows.
Ulrich paid tribute to McLeod for his efforts.
“I would never have gotten this far with my writing and with producing shows if it weren’t for Kenn,” said Ulrich. “So it’s going to be a great opportunity for all of us.”
Diamond Girls has been performed at fringe festivals throughout Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba, and on other stages, too.
But she is looking forward to bringing the show to such a large festival.
“It’s 1,200 shows,” said Ulrich. “I think Edmonton was around 200, so Adelaide is quite a bit bigger, and I think the fringe festival lasts for six weeks. We’re just performing 10 days out of the six weeks.
“That looks to be what most of the shows do. Most of the shows travel, so they’re just taking in part of the festival.”
When Diamond Girls was launched, she never imagined it would lead to opportunities such as this. She hopes it will be able to break money, and give a little more exposure for Trapp.
Ulrich said it’s exciting to see Australians embracing the concept of Diamond Girls. A League of their Own, released in 1992, is a well-known movie based on the All-American Girls league. She hopes familiarity with the league will boost attendance for the show.
