Amplify Recovery Theatre (ART) Productions presents Monty Python’s Spamalot! What if the greatest quest of all wasn’t for the Holy Grail—but for hope, laughter, and a second chance?
Grab your coconuts and prepare for an unforgettable adventure as you journey through the wildly ridiculous world of Monty Python’s Spamalot! Follow King Arthur and his delightfully eccentric band of knights on their legendary quest for the Holy Grail, where every turn brings outrageous comedy, unexpected chaos, and laugh-out-loud surprises.
Along the way, you’ll encounter the infamous Knights Who Say “Ni!”, endure the insults of an outrageously haughty French Taunter, and come face-to-face with the most fearsome creature of all—the adorable yet deadly Killer Rabbit.
Bursting with iconic songs, including the crowd favourite “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life,” this production is more than just a musical—it’s a celebration of resilience, recovery, and the healing power of laughter.
Our extraordinary cast is made up of individuals who have overcome addiction, mental health challenges, trauma, and homelessness. Through theatre, they’ve discovered confidence, connection, purpose, and joy. As they journey through Camelot, they also share something even more meaningful: the transformative power of recovery.
Come laugh, cheer, and sing along. You might arrive looking for the Holy Grail—but you’ll leave believing in the incredible strength of the human spirit.
Monty Python’s Spamalot! – August 13 to 15, 2026 – Historic Theatre at The Cultch, 1895 Venables St, Vancouver, BC Tickets
Opening – August 13th at 7:30pm
August 14th at 7:30pm
August 15th at 1:30pm & 7:30pm
See below for more about Amplify Recovery Theatre, and an exclusive interviews with the production team.
ART (Amplify Recovery Theatre)
ART is a collaborative not-for profit theatre production troupe made up of individuals from the local Recovery Community with support from The Kettle Society, Jewish Family Services and AWA Society. Participants engage in comprehensive services including individual counselling, facilitated process groups, and peer-based recovery support, alongside creative therapeutic modalities such as music therapy, dance/movement therapy, and art therapy. These approaches support emotional regulation, trauma processing, identity rebuilding, and sustainable coping strategies. The cast and crew invite you to join them on this romping musical comedy following the journey of King Arthur and his Merry Knights as they seek the Holy Grail and unite medieval England under the watchful eye of the Lady of the Lake.
Interview with Director, Jordana Jackson
Tell me a bit about the history of ART Productions, and where you want to see the organization go in the future.
ART began in early 2025, it almost serendipitous. I’d wanted to create a program like this for nearly 10 years because I had seen the healing power of the arts and the research coming out of Europe on performance-based recovery programs and dance therapy.
At a community meeting, Lucas mentioned that he wanted to make recovery more attractive through theatre. Half-jokingly, I said, “Let’s do a musical!” He loved the idea, we exchanged numbers, and started planning immediately. We were fortunate to receive seed funding from SPARC BC, who believed in both the project and its potential. Our first production, Urinetown, brought together people in recovery from across the Lower Mainland, along with youth from a church in Surrey. It was performed at the Surrey Arts Centre in September 2025 and was incredibly well received. Even more meaningful, four months later, 96% of the cast remained sober. Our vision is to become a year-round arts and recovery program. We’re planning a full season that includes at least two musicals, a play, and original works. We’ve also launched a music program where a producer with a background in recovery and coaching works one-on-one with participants to write original songs inspired by their recovery journeys. It’s an incredible process. We’ll also offer regular dance classes, writing workshops, scene study, peer support, arts-based therapy, and youth prevention programming.
Tell me about some of the other program offerings beyond theatre, and how do individuals qualify to become involved?
In addition to producing shows, we offer counselling, classes, music programming, and support from arts specialists. The only requirements are that participants are committed to their recovery, willing to try new things, open to working as a team, and prepared to be accountable.
Family members and loved ones of people in recovery are also very welcome. There is an audition process, not only to cast the show but to get to know participants, understand their goals, and find the role that best suits them. Casting a show is like putting together a puzzle.
Why was Monty Python, and specifically Spamalot, chosen as your current production?
Comedy and laughter are some of the best medicine. Spamalot gives us endless opportunities to explore character work, showcase every participant, and truly play with the material. It never gets old. The journey to find the Holy Grail—and (spoiler alert!) ultimately discovering it within themselves—is a wonderful metaphor for resilience and self-belief. And reminding people to “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life” is a pretty great recovery message. Plus… there’s tap dancing, which so many of our participants were excited to learn!
Have any of the actors or production crew had previous theatre experience, and what is the qualification process?
Our cast is wonderfully diverse. We have Urinetown alumni, people who perform in other artistic mediums, experienced musical theatre performers, and others who performed before life got in the way and are now rediscovering their love of theatre and their incredible talent.
We also have participants who always dreamed of being on stage but never had the opportunity or encouragement. Many were the “class clown,” thrived in drama class, trained in dance as children, or are singer-songwriters. They come from every walk of life.
Tell me about the selection process for the actors and crew, and the production timeline leading up to opening night.
We hold auditions for about a month at recovery organizations throughout the Greater Vancouver area before finalizing the cast.
This year’s process spanned approximately five months and included dance classes, vocal ensemble training, music rehearsals, and mental health check-ins with breathing exercises, grounding techniques, and process groups woven into rehearsals. We begin with a cast meet-and-greet and read-through, then move into learning the music, choreography, vocal technique, dance technique, and staging. Throughout the process, the cast is encouraged to contribute ideas and make creative choices in a respectful, collaborative environment. Around the halfway point, we begin running the show from start to finish before polishing it and adding the final details. Because of licensing rules, we only received the official orchestral tracks about a month before opening night.
Tell me one or two success stories about individuals who have gone through your organization and are now thriving.
Goodness, that’s a tough one! I would need each person’s consent before sharing their story, so I’ll get back to you as soon as I have permission.
How long have each of you been involved with the organization, and what’s your professional background in theatre?
ART has only existed for about a year and a half, although it feels much longer. Personally, my first career was in theatre before I transitioned into counselling. I trained throughout my childhood in the Professional Division of the Richmond Academy of Dance, performed with Urban Tap Squad, participated in theatre throughout high school, and appeared in local productions before attending the Canadian College of Performing Arts. My performing career took me across Canada and even to New York City, where I had the privilege of performing at the world-renowned Birdland Jazz Club while continuing my training at Broadway Dance Center.
What can attendees expect from this latest production, without giving anything away?
To laugh… and laugh… and laugh some more!
How are fundraising efforts and ticket sales used to advance the organization’s mission?
Every dollar raised supports future programming, theatre rentals, and the operational costs of keeping this program running for years to come.
Anything else you’d like to share about new initiatives or upcoming events?
We have a lot in store! Watch for our upcoming season launch party, auditions, expanded outpatient programming, music initiatives, dance classes, and new therapeutic offerings designed to help fill the gap in aftercare and outpatient recovery services.
Interview with Producer, Lucas Jones
I do have to put it on the table right off the bat that these performers have never done this before. We are all recovering individuals who never saw a adventure like this ever happening in our lives, and are working are hardest to make it a success. We’ve all had our ups and downs through this process and would like to see everyone come at this with an open mind and a big heart. This program has changed minds and built community, helped find people’s voices and provided a whole new outlook on life. It brought the child out from within, and let people play as if they were kids again.
With the ART (Amplify Recovery Theatre) program, we never saw it going the way that it did already, and Jordana and I would love to see this program open up into a treatment facility down the road. The way that this works is ,it’s not about the show , it’s about the journey. From the streets to the stage , the process to stay busy and find purpose to fill that void of drugs and mental health levels is so important for a person’s well-being!
So, this program offers singing lessons, dance lessons, self-check ins, and self-check outs , so that we can find out where people are at in their time with us, share on life situations ,all in a controlled environment. We have counsellors on site, peer support workers, singing directors, and we’re affiliated with the recovery cafe, that holds group circles, art rooms to adventure, music classes, and an overall great environment to stay connected with like-minded persons.
Monty pythons Spamalot. Well, the thing is , who doesn’t like British humour? It’s a classic. Monty python is a dynamic of different personalities, with a huge range of classic jokes and laughs that people in recovery need. We love to keep it fun and interesting, and watch a person really find themselves in their character. Recovery people have this character in them that really needs to come out. For me, I see it all the time, people get to wrapped up in sobering up, finding a job, and rinse and repeat. To the point it breaks them all over again. Monty Python was a great release inside them to find that joy again in their journey.
For the cast and me , we haven’t done this before. This is all a new experience since we have started this program. How the process works
is we start off with auditions. We want the cast to have the full experience of what they would go through if they were to take part in a real show. I can tell you this, not one of them ever thought they would get a chance to perform on a professional level without an agent or experience in the art. Jordana and I give them that. All they have to do is just show up, and they get a part. We turn no one away!
This is a recovery-based program , anyone who struggles with mental health and addictions is welcome to join.
The program has turned into a 5-month process. We start with 2 days a week to get people used to the change in their life, as we want this new seed being planted inside them to grow slowly. To not rush this new process, we want the cast to find something they like about this program and make their own choice if this is for them or not. We will love them until they love themselves with zero judgment.
Jordana and I, accept everyone for who they are and not for what they have done in their past. If someone wants to live in the solution to change, we support them through anything. We don’t solve their problems for them, but give them suggestions on how they can make a safe and better path for there lives.
We find success within this program, not from the fact that we did a show, but from the success of finding the friendships and new family we never knew we had. To be able to call a person who you have spent 5 months with and go for coffee or meet up with people who you’ve only known for 5 months and talk about this experience with after the fact. That’s what’s important.
Let me tell you a story of a man today who out of nowhere was crying. Today was the last rehearsal at the cafe, and he felt it. He knew that the journey of this show was coming to an end, and he never realized how much he fell in love with everyone, until today. The realization that this has brought so much joy into his life and how he just made 23 new friends and how this was so important to his life. This program is not a destination, it’s a journey. We prepare everyone for when the show is over. We are never gone, and always here to reach out and call. We are always here for each other. We are all now friends for life
Jordana and I met last year when I was a fired up sober person whose aim was to keep the newcomer sober through entertainment, because it’s a new world with technology. Jordana came out of nowhere saying, let’s do theatre. And on that day a rock was dropped into a pond, and the ripples grew and grew We are on now on our second season! Jordana was a theatre person, and I was a street kid who owned a construction business in my 30s, and also did acting classes, but never did theatre. This was a huge step outside of my comfort zone, but in my life I thrive in awkwardness and chaos and love how this program brings out the craft, the talent, and the raw brute strength and emotions in someone, opening new doors in life.
Attendees can expect a bunch of nervous individuals who didn’t think they were ever good enough to perform infront of the public to bring the best show that the creators of Monty Python’s Spamalot! would be proud of. Jordana and I are so proud of these people. From the streets to the stage a story that will be told for person lifetime. Friendships will never forgotten. It’s not a destination, it’s a journey they will never forget!
When purchasing your ticket, please consider making an additional donation to support ART (Amplify Recovery Theatre). Through their partnership with The Kettle Society, 100% of donations go directly toward future ART productions and providing free tickets to community members facing financial barriers. Just $25 provides a community member with a ticket to the show. Donations over $3 are eligible for a tax receipt through The Kettle Society. Each donations helps to build a more inclusive and accessible theatre community.
Bryen Dunn is a freelance journalist with a focus on travel, lifestyle, entertainment and hospitality. He has an extensive portfolio of celebrity interviews with musicians, actors and other public personalities. He enjoys discovering delicious eats, tasting spirited treats, and being mesmerized by musical beats.
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