The Question, October 22, 2012

Peggie Hopkins as Miss Mockridge in Dangerous Corner

Pulling them in
by Estelle Rosen

Peggie Hopkins is Founder and Artistic Director of Point St. Charles Community Theatre. Since its inception in 2005, she has combined her Real Estate Broker duties with theatre including Producer, Director and Actor. 

Since you started The Point St. Charles Community Theatre in 2005, in addition to presenting plays, PSC now offers free acting courses to young actors age 8-18, as well as PSC Youth Theatre Acting Out. What was your motivation to start PSC and have expectations been met? 

My motivation to start PSC Community Theatre was a simple one (or so I thought). I wanted to bring people in the community together and felt the theatre would be a good conduit. The plan was that the adult play would bring good affordable live theatre to the neighborhood, as well as act as a fund raiser for a free youth theatre program. This whole idea  came to me as I  started rehearsals for my first play in 2004.

After this performance I was smitten.  I was more determined than ever to give kids the thrill of the stage.  The kids, in addition to learning acting skills, would also learn team building, commitment, and certainly gain self confidence in the process. It could  be an alternative for kids who don't have an interest in sports .

Although the ways to achieve my goals were a little vague - due to my lack of training and experience - with a lot of luck, support and hard work this whole project, involving both the adult and youth theatres, has taken on its own life.  

And the bonus for me was that I never realized how many wonderful people I would meet and how rewarding the whole process would be. We are fortunate to have many, many dedicated volunteers who have shared the dream. 

Both the PSC Theatre and our Youth Theatre program are undoubtedly labours of love.  But when we see the glowing faces of the kids after their performance we know all the effort is worth it.

The PSC Community Theatre website