Last week, while touring theatres and schools in B.C. and Alberta with Monster Theatre, Tara Travis and Jon Paterson hit black ice.
Travis was driving the van outside of Grand Forks following a show in Nelson when she remembers fishtailing then spinning out of control, narrowly missing another vehicle coming the other way.
Travis broke her collarbone in the freak crash while Paterson sustained soft tissue damage.
"I remember it so clearly," said Travis, who fortunately did not need surgery afterward. "It was like in slow motion."
Travis said the duo feel lucky to be alive and, although the touring van was destroyed, they are happy the company's sets and costumes weren't damaged. "It could've been much, much worse," she said. "Even the police officer was amazed."
The accident forced the duo to reschedule two school events this month; however, they are still on to perform next week at Coquitlam's Evergreen Cultural Centre during the spring break holidays.
"It'll be our first shows since Nelson," Travis told The Tri-City News last Friday. "I may have to modify a few things on stage but the audience won't notice.
"We are both healing very well," she said.
Their fast-paced, 45-minute Mini Masterpieces is geared for students in kindergarten to Grade 7 and is aimed to get children familiar with literary tales and to improve their reading skills.
This year's production includes adaptations from The Ugly Duckling, Anne of Green Gables and Greek mythology. "We've even got a Greek rap to make it fun for the kids," Travis said.
Travis, who is Monster Theatre's artistic director, said the stories are told with layers "so there's something for everybody - no matter what age," she said.
And the response they have been getting from their young crowd has been "lots of laughing and clapping. There's a wealth of adventure to our stories."
Founded in 2000 by Ryan Gladstone, Monster Theatre has two branches: the kids' side and the adult division, in which original works are presented.
In 2012, Monster Theatre brought A Christmas Carol to Evergreen.
Tickets to Monster Theatre's Mini Masterpieces are $16/$12 through the Evergreen Cultural Centre (1205 Pinetree Way, Coquitlam) by calling 604-927-6555 or visiting evergreenculturalcentre.ca. The shows runs March 18 and 19 at 11 a.m. and March 20 at 7 p.m.
