Calendar Girls POSTPONEMENT

Due to illness, we regretfully have to cancel our “Calendar Girls” performances on March 14th, 15th and 16th. We have added an extra three shows to make up for this on March 28th, 29th and 30th.

We deeply apologize for the inconvenience this has caused, and we hope you can make the show on another night. Any issues with your refund, please email us at capitoltheatre@shaw.ca or contact Liane at 250-203-1203.

If you had organized a comp ticket for this weekend, it has been cancelled but can be reused on a future date. Please re-book your seat and date in the same way as you originally booked.

Again, we apologize for the inconvenience. Thank you for your continued support and understanding, and again our apologies for the inconvenience.

“Calendar Girls” opens March 7 – Purchase Tickets below the poster . . .

Portal Players Dramatic Society is proud to produce the comedy play “Calendar Girls” by Tim Firth, opening March 7 at The Capitol Theatre in Port Alberni. Tickets are available for purchase online, shown below the poster.

When Annie’s husband John dies of leukaemia, she and best friend Chris resolve to raise money for a new settee in the local hospital waiting room. They manage to persuade four fellow Women’s Institute members to pose nude with them for an “alternative” calendar, with a little help from hospital porter and amateur photographer Lawrence. The news of the women’s charitable venture spreads like wildfire, and hordes of press soon descend on their small village. The calendar is a success, but Chris and Annie’s friendship is put to the test under the strain of their newfound fame.

Based on the true story of eleven WI members who posed nude for a calendar to raise money for the Leukaemia Research Fund, Calendar Girls opened at the Chichester Festival Theatre and has since become the fastest-selling play in British theatre history.

PPDS Season Opening Play Series – 2-One Act Plays!

Tickets Available Here!

Portal Players presents two one-act plays to open our new season. “The Exquisite Hour” is a romantic comedy written by Stewart Lemoine. The cast features award-winning husband and wife acting duo Cydney Pedersen and Darien Edgler. This play is paired with Norm Foster’s “My Narrator” in the double-bill.

Performances are in the evenings on November 24, 25, 30, December 1, 7, 8 & 9. Doors open at 6:30 on show nights with performances starting at 7:30.

One matinee performance will be held on December 2, with doors open at 1 pm and performance starting at 2 pm.

All shows are at The Capitol Theatre in Port Alberni, 4904 Argyle Street, and there is one twenty minute intermission. All seats are $25 each. The tickets you purchase at this link are valid for any one of the performance dates listed above, it’s your choice!

Box office opens an hour before showtime, and our bar is open at evening shows. Box office phone is 250-723-1195. The box office is open Mondays and Thursdays from 3 pm to 6 pm.

PPDS Member’s Night June 16 – All Are Welcome!

Join Portal Players for an evening of fun, performances and entertainment on Friday, June 16 at 7:30 pm in The Capitol Theatre, 4904 Argyle Street, Port Alberni. Admission is free for Portal Players members; for non-members, the entry is only $10 which includes a membership with PPDS for the year!

Our bar and concession will be open to serve you, and a variety of entertainment has been arranged for this fun and social evening. You’ll hear updates from Portal Players, including exciting news about Theatre BC’s North Island Zone Drama Festival, being hosted by Portal Players in May of 2024 at The Capitol.

We hope to see you there!

“I Hate Hamlet!” a comedy by Paul Rudnick, opens April 20, 2023

Portal Players Dramatic Society’s next production is shaping up well – TICKETS ARE AVAILABLE NOW via online purchase (click this link or the image below).

Andrew Rally seems to have it all: celebrity and acclaim from his starring role in a hit television series; a rich, beautiful girlfriend; a glamorous, devoted agent; the perfect New York apartment; and the chance to play Hamlet in Central Park. There are, however, a couple of glitches in paradise. Andrew’s series has been canceled; his girlfriend is clinging to her virginity with unyielding conviction; and he has no desire to play Hamlet. When Andrew’s agent visits him, she reminisces about her brief romance with John Barrymore many years ago, in Andrew’s apartment. This prompts a seance to summon his ghost. From the moment Barrymore returns, dressed in high Shakespearean garb, Andrew’s life is no longer his own. Barrymore, fortified by champagne and ego, presses Andrew to accept the part and fulfill his actor’s destiny. The action becomes more hilarious with the entrance of Andrew’s deal-making friend from LA, spouting the laid-back hype of the Coast and offering Andrew a fabulous new TV deal worth millions of dollars. The laughs are nonstop as Andrew wrestles with his conscience, Barrymore, his sword, and the fact that he fails as Hamlet in Central Park.

“I Hate Hamlet”, directed by L’Rae Whipple and produced by Nicole Foster, opens on April 20, 2023 at The Capitol Theatre and plays on select dates through May 6. It is also Portal Players’ entry in the Theatre BC North Island Zone Drama Festival being held the third week of May in Campbell River.

This play includes scintillating sword fighting and mature content – more details coming soon . . .


Portal Players Dramatic Society is a Volunteer, Charitable & Non-Profit Organization which owns & runs The Capitol Theatre. All our actors, directors, crew, front of house & production team members are highly skilled, talented & local volunteers, working hard to help create and promote a Vibrant Arts Community in the Alberni Valley.

Thank You For Your Support Of Our Productions!


Comedy at The Capitol, Feb 16 – 25, 2023!

“I Take This Man”

by Jack Sharkey, directed by Diena Tyne

On stage at The Capitol Theatre in Port Alberni on select dates, February 16 – 25, 2023.

When lovely young Gideon Hollis a.k.a. Giddy spots an unconscious man in a tank top and shorts lying in Copley Square just after all other Boston Marathon racers have crossed the finish line, she reasons that since nice guys finish last, this must be Mr. Right! She has a helpful policeman tote him to her nearby apartment, shocking her roommate, whose fiance is due for a dinner date. When the comatose dreamboat revives and cannot remember who he is, Giddy tells him they are married. She regrets her subterfuge when he tries to be a loving husband. Complications escalate at a furious pace in this outrageous concoction of wild, warm, and lightning-paced hilarity that is perfect for the entire family.

Tickets are available in advance from the Alberni District Co-op’s administration office, 4885 Beaver Creek Road, Port Alberni (cash sales only). Tickets are also available at the door on show nights at The Capitol Theatre, 4904 Argyle Street. The play runs for two weekends between February 16 and 25, on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights. Doors open at 6:30 pm, and the curtain opens at 7:30 pm. For more information, text or call 250-913-0454.

Please check out this wonderful story by the Alberni Valley News about our production.

We thank our business sponsors for their support: Alberni District Co-op, The Graphics Factory, The Alberni Valley News, 93.3 The Peak Radio and Ferro Studios.