The Mosquitos
Live at The Capitol Theatre Nelson,
June 12 and 13 2025
TICKETS HERE
"Things are changing rather quickly. We no longer share a reality".
A group of old friends get together for a dinner party, while rumours of an unimaginable change swirl around them. How will they face total transformation?
An absurd comedy of manners with an existential heart, The Mosquitos is original new theatre written and directed by Slocan Valley playwright Marya Folinsbee. With equal parts humour and pathos, The Mosquitos reconsiders our place in the ecosystem, asking;
How do we create a coherent life together when we understand the world so differently?
A meditation on politics, relationships, (mis)information and the role of art in making meaning, The Mosquitos is inspired by absurdist classics like Eugene Ionesco's Rhinoceros and Samuel Beckett's Happy Days (and, by life in these times).
This world premiere features a talented ensemble of local performers and artistic team:
Written and Directed by Marya Folinsbee
Featuring Performances by:
Emily Ryan
Kozmo Sammartino
Roger Carter
Patricia McLaughlin
Karmelle Spence-Sing
Lindsay Clague
James Shaw
Aaron Pickett
Mike Funergy
Sound Designer Jeremy Sauer
Projection Designer Brian Lye
Mask & Puppet Designer Elaine Weryshko
Stage Manager Martina Avis
Technical Director Terry Brennan
Production Designer Marya Folinsbee
Creation support from The Columbia Kootenay Cultural Alliance.
Production support from The BC Arts Council.
We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.
Be/Longing is a pastiche play, exploring the rural lives and history of Kootenay women. It was written and performed by Martina Avis and Marya Folinsbee and toured the West Kootenays in 2018-2019, premiering at the Vallican Whole Community Centre.
Bessie Wapp provided dramaturgical and directorial support.
The project was funded by the Columbia Kootenay Cultural Alliance.
Two scenes from Be/Longing, filmed in 2018.
Evelyn is a Perfect Housewife, stewing in her own repressed juices. Unconsciously frustrated by the dreary duties of domestic life, she discovers, in the course of her chores, deep, mysterious, primal urges, and struggle as she might to stay spic & span, shit gets dirty.
A one-woman play in a neo-bouffon universe, Domesticated Disputes explores the wild impulses lurking under the carpet of even the most perfect home.
Toured the West Kootenays and at Nanaimo, Victoria and Edmonton Fringe Festivals (2021-2023).
Photo by Xela La
A kid-friendly clown story about the fabric of reality, the magic of creativity, and the composition of the cosmos.
Written and performed by Marya Folinsbee & Aaron Pickett, Buttons & Pockets has been performed around the Nelson area and at the 2024 Edmonton Fringe Festival, with support from the Osprey Foundation.
The Church of Birch is an ongoing, work-in-progress roving lantern performance by Marya Folinsbee and Aaron Pickett. It’s also in development to become a one-act theatre performance, a sermon delivered by a tree priest.
Various iterations of the piece have been performed at the Polka Dot Dragon Lantern Festival in Nelson, Revelstoke’s LUNA Arts Fest, and at the Vallican Whole Community Centre.
Whale Fall is a shadow puppet installation created for the 2024 Polka Dot Dragon Lantern Festival in Nelson BC.
It’s a meditation on the generosity and abundance of a whale in death.
Co-created for Material Theatre by Marya Folinsbee, Lisa Johnson & Martina Avis, with installation help from Jacey Schindel, Aaron Pickett and Paul Sergeant.
Photos by Jacey Schindel, Martina Avis and Keely Winnitoy.
Big Water Coming is a short performance that was commissioned for the 2019 New Denver Writer’s Convergence. It imagines a pirate radio station navigating a near-future of climate catastrophe and societal collapse.
Photos by Art Joyce
Miss Marmot’s Playshop is the clown wing of Material Theatre. Marya is a clown performer and facilitator who offers short performances, interactive shows, and workshops for children and adults.
A short film made for “Fast & Loose Digital Video” workshop by The Folklordz and Nakai Theatre.
As the Administrator for the Vallican Whole Community Centre, Marya produced “A Country Road Rural Theatre Lab”, in collaboration with an organizing committee and many local theatre creators.
As the Administrator for the Vallican Whole Community Centre, Marya produced “A Country Road Rural Theatre Lab”, in collaboration with an organizing committee and many local theatre creators.
BRAVE NEW WORKS is a Cabaret of original new theatre work being produced by Kootenay artists.
Produced as part of the Rural Theatre Lab at the Vallican Whole, Sept 2024.
In 2019, Martina directed, and Marya starred in, a Valley Gems Production of Peter Pan.
