It's not unusual for Melody A. Johnson to discover current and past pageant winners at her show Miss Caledonia.
They are ambassadors, after all, and happy to represent their municipality as well as get a glimpse of how a fictional beauty contestant has plans to take on the world.
"It's interesting to talk to some of these women who have been through a lot of things over the years," said Johnson, a Dora and Canadian Comedy award winner.
In her show, which premiered in Toronto in 2010 and has played out more than 150 times, Johnson uncovers the character of Peggy Ann Douglas.
She is out of her mind on her family farm in Caledonia, Ont., in 1955 and dreams of following in the footsteps of Hollywood starlet Debbie Reynolds.
But, first, Peggy Ann must conquer the local pageant - the same one Johnson's own mother entered as a teen but, like in other towns, no longer exists today.
Johnson, in fact, wrote the script of Miss Caledonia with her mom, who once aspired to be an actor, as a way to learn more about her parent and the time in which she grew up on the family farm in Caledonia.
Johnson, a native of nearby Brantford, said her goal was to tell a narrative from a female point of view.
"There are so many Canadian stories about growing up on farms from a male perspective," she said, "so this is a first."
As a result, Miss Caledonia caters to women of all ages who dream to escape.
"For the younger women, there are a lot of similar stories of wanting to get off the farm or out of your small town," Johnson said, "and there are a lot of older people who lived on the farm in the 1950s and it resonates for them, too, because they wanted to see life beyond the farm."
Indeed, Miss Caledonia has struck a chord with many crowds over its five-year run. After its B.C. tour this month, which includes a stop at Coquitlam's Evergreen Cultural Centre starting on Thursday, it will head to Britain for five weeks.
Tickets to Miss Caledonia from April 9 to 11 at Evergreen (1205 Pinetree Way, Coquitlam) are $35/$30/$15 by calling 604-927-6555 or visiting evergreenculturalcentre.ca.
