Whitehorse Daily Star

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Photo by Vince Fedoroff

BEHIND AND ON THE STAGE – Frantic Follies co-owners Lyall Murdoch (left) and Grant Simpson were also key performers in the show’s decades-long run. They’re seen here during a 2002 show.

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Photo by Vince Fedoroff

LEADING LADY – Dale Cooper is seen in the Frantic Follies in May 2003.

Follies’ demise spurs memories, sadness

It became a summer tradition,

By Stephanie Waddell on March 10, 2017

It became a summer tradition, an evening of good, family-friendly entertainment that drew crowds into the downtown area night after night throughout the summer.

It also employed generations of Yukoners in its 48-year run and entertained countless visitors and locals.

The recent announcement that the Frantic Follies would no longer stage its large-scale vaudeville production has many Yukoners mourning their loss.

Co-owner Grant Simpson explained earlier this week the show has been operating on a shoe-string budget for about the last five years.

After Holland America dropped it from its tour packages, revenues declined by 60 per cent, and Simpson said tourism just isn’t supporting the production anymore.

“It leaves a massive void,” said Mayor Dan Curtis.

The show served as a great ambassador to the Yukon with its vaudeville-style take on the Gold Rush, the stories of Robert Service and more, he pointed out.

“It had an enormous impact on how people viewed the Yukon,” Curtis said.

In addition to its local production each summer, the Follies also took to the road on a number on occasions in the off-season, touring the show throughout North America.

Growing up in Whitehorse, Curtis was just three when the Follies first took to the stage of a school gym. He said he doesn’t remember a time that the Frantic Follies weren’t part of a Whitehorse summer.

In his early working days at the Whitehorse Travelodge (now the Westmark Hotel) where the Follies were performed, part of his job was to set up the seating for the show, then take it down after.

There were many nights that tickets were hard to come by, he said.

Like many Whitehorse residents over the years, if anyone was coming to visit, Curtis made sure the Follies were on their itinerary.

Just last summer, he and his family took his mother-in-law to soak up the fun.

“She’ll never forget it,” he said.

It was also just recently that his family going through some old papers at home and came across an old Follies program that was signed by the stars of the show at that time.

As Curtis recalled, for many youngsters in the audience, including his two boys, one of the Follies’ highlights actually came after the show, when the cast would stick around to meet their fans and sing programs.

Personally, Curtis said, his favourite parts of the show was the sketch around The Cremation of Sam McGee by Robert Service and the running gag that would go on throughout the night after an audience member was asked where he or she was from.

Wherever they were from was the butt of joke after joke through the entire show. That’s something visitors remembered, Curtis said as he praised the many performers who took to the stage over the years.

Dale Cooper was a familiar face to many who returned to take in the Follies each year.

The former Montrealer arrived in the territory in 1982 to perform in the show as a can-can dancer.

She would go on to perform in the Gaslight Follies vaudeville show in Dawson City before returning to the Frantic Follies stage in Whitehorse for many years, eventually taking on the role of leading lady. She last performed with the Follies about five years ago.

Cooper said this week she’s sad to see something that’s been such a landmark have to end, but expects it will continue on in some form.

The Follies, she said, depicted the Gold Rush in such an entertaining way, making it a fun evening for tourists to come downtown for the evening to take in the show.

While the larger Follies show will no longer be staged for a general audience, Cooper commented, “I don’t think the Follies are gone.”

As Simpson said earlier this week, there may be a role for the Follies to be performed for conventions or special events.

And that’s something Cooper said she’d be pleased to be a part of.

“I love being part of anything the Follies does,” she said.

Cooper took on her initial role with the show because it was a good summer job for a dancer.

“It was fun,” she said. “Everybody became family.”

Like a number of the long-time Follies performers, she and husband Grant Hartwick’s (who was also part of the show for a number of years) daughters were essentially born into the vaudeville life.

They eventually took on their own roles in the Follies, with the whole family being part of the production in some years. Roles ranged from handing out programs to playing the music for the show and dancing on stage.

On stage, Cooper said, they were “totally professional,” leaving their family roles at the door to bring the Follies to locals and visitors.

The couple’s daughters were not alone as a second generation of Follies’ staffers who brought the show to life.

As Simpson recalled to the Star earlier this week, both his and co-owner’s Lyall Murdoch’s kids were also part of many Follies seasons.

As the production closes the curtain on its large-scale show, the tourism industry is praising the Follies as a one-of-a-kind show.

In a statement today, the Tourism Industry Association of the Yukon (TIA Yukon) pointed out the show earned numerous accolades over the years. They ranged from heritage lifetime achievement awards to getting mentioned in a 1991 Archie comic.

“It is incredibly rare that an event would endure for 48 years  – clearly this is a show that has had a special place in the hearts of visitors and Yukoners alike,” said TIA Yukon chair Felix Geithner.

“TIA Yukon strongly supports those who have the passion, foresight and determination to create iconic, enduring experiences like the Frantic Follies that embody the spirit of the Yukon and share it with those who visit the territory.”

The show’s disappearance has shocked many, officials said, adding it’s hoped the spirit of the Follies will find a way to continue to entertain visitors.

“The amount of heart and soul that was put into the show over the years made the Follies the success that it was – it’s important to recognize and celebrate it for the incredible success it generated,” said Geithner.

“TIA Yukon would like to thank everyone who has been involved with the Frantic Follies Vaudeville Review over the years for their dedication to Yukon heritage and the longstanding positive impacts that they’ve had on the Yukon’s tourism industry.”  

Comments (8)

Up 0 Down 0

YC on Mar 17, 2017 at 4:52 pm

I feel very fortunate to have brought my daughter to a show last summer. It was so entertaining and professionally presented. I hadn't had a good laugh like that in such a while; it was refreshing. Plus it spurred my daughter's interest in the performing arts even further.

Thank you and I hope Frantic Follies can continue in some form or another in the future. It's a big loss for Yukon.

Up 1 Down 2

Just Say'in on Mar 14, 2017 at 9:47 pm

It doesn't have to be gone. Just rent a hall and get at-er. Maybe it is the Westmark that's gone and no one is paying????

Up 8 Down 0

Tracey Sauer on Mar 13, 2017 at 11:54 pm

This saddens me greatly. I feel privileged to have been able to enjoy this wonderful show last July 2016. I truly believe this is something that the Government should truly look into as a National Treasure. It is a piece of out Canadian History. It is a reminder of simpler times when one could laugh, and enjoy an atmosphere that is truly Canadian. The silliness and humour is so representative of us as Canadians. It is genuine and something that we need to cherish and share. Such a sad day to see that this piece of Canadian Heritage will be lost.

Up 4 Down 2

YukonMax on Mar 13, 2017 at 5:44 pm

This sure won't help anyone trying to build a case to pave Dawson runway...

Up 9 Down 0

Elaine Mogridge on Mar 12, 2017 at 8:50 am

My 10 years of making the costumes for the Follies in the '70's and '80's and meeting the cast members are some of my fondest memories living in Yukon. So sad to see it close.

Up 9 Down 0

D.Hardly on Mar 11, 2017 at 7:46 pm

Great story about a great loss. However, while Grant Simpson became a co-owner, he is not a co-founder. Lyall and his now deceased brother (James?) were the founders.

Up 14 Down 0

Sunny Patch on Mar 10, 2017 at 6:59 pm

The Follies will be missed - I hope it does continue to be offered again in some way. Good job to everyone who was involved with The Follies - you represented Yukon so well.

Up 5 Down 6

Jc on Mar 10, 2017 at 5:38 pm

The spirit of the Klondike is dead, but the WS won't let me tell you why.

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