Saving the Station
Written & Performed by Jim Priebe		Saving the Station - Winnipeg, MB
 http://savingthestation.ca		V.7 - School of Contemporary Dancers 
Who doesn't love community radio? What could possibly go wrong when you start one from scratch?

In this solo show, Jim recounts the wild launch of a volunteer-run FM station in small town Ontario — and the betrayal, mutiny, sabotage and dead air that followed. What begins as an idealistic dream turns into something stranger, funnier and darker than expected.

A story of ambition, community and collapse, Saving the Station brings a cast of outsized characters to life in a tale where the signal goes out, but the damage keeps spreading.'

Cast:
Jim Priebe

Director:
Rachel E. Smith

Show Info:
45 Mins minutes
Genre:
Play-Dramedy

Audience:
Parental Guidance

Mild Language

Thu July 16 6:00 PM
Fri July 17 7:30 PM
Sat July 18 11:00 AM
Tue July 21 12:45 PM
Wed July 22 9:30 PM
Fri July 24 6:00 PM
Sat July 25 1:00 PM

Saving the Station

Saving the Station—School of Contemporary Dancers

The pandemic taught us lessons at every stage. The need for community remained essential. Music. Connection. Communication. All became integral.

Jim Priebe steps behind the microphone for his Fringe debut. While some audience members may not be acutely aware of the navigational loopholes, nonprofit bureaucracy, and red tape involved in leading a community FM radio station, Priebe recounts them all.

As someone involved with several community-run organizations, much of this resonated with me. While this is ultimately a story of ambition and perseverance, listening to a sole narrator describe the many people he “had a falling out with” feels deliberate, and leaves little room to understand those relationships from another voice.

Incorporating voiceovers, archival clips, or segments from the radio station itself could have better immersed the audience in the world Priebe worked so hard to build.

Likewise, spending more time exploring the people who helped create and sustain the station would have resulted in a more rounded narrative.

One man does not a station make. Priebe’s narrative seems to disagree.

Their voices could have added depth and balance to a story that clearly comes from a place of passion. At its heart, Saving the Station is a sincere tribute to community broadcasting and the determination required to keep a local institution alive against considerable odds.

Stephanie Adamov