Albertans woke up to a new political reality as the Alberta NDP Party pulled off what many people believed to be the impossible.
    The NDP will form a majority government, winning 53 of a possible 87 seats up for grabs. Emily Shannon who ran in the Drumheller-Stettler   riding, but did not win, feels this will be a responsive government.
    “That’s a fantastic majority, so it will actually be an effective government,” said Shannon. “It’s better than a minority where we are not able to make forward moves.”
    Drumheller-Stettler MLA Rick Strankman said while there is a new political landscape, his concerns remain the same.
    “(My concerns) as usual are property rights and health care, not necessarily in that order, also education,” said Strankman. “It will be interesting to see what the NDP Party comes forward with.
    Their platform didn’t have anything on education. The budget we had was horrible when it came to education.        The home schoolers, the private schoolers, the public schools and Catholic schools were united in their disrespect for the provincial budget.”
    He said he has heard concerns from people in the oilfield and small business.
    “People are learning the seriousness of this electoral choice,” he said.
    He says the role as official opposition doesn’t change.
    “We will just be holding them accountable as per usual. There will be different challenges, but we will just have to provide good government to Albertans and try to maintain the Wildrose policies. That is our mantra, what we live and run by,” he said.
    Donald Wilson has been in the energy industry for many years, and is not overly concerned with the new government.
    ‘”Change is good for anything. What we had was going the wrong way, maybe they will get it right this time,” he said. ‘There is no need for a knee jerk reaction.”
    He says the change in government doesn’t really make much difference in the price of the resources, and that is what will dictate the recovery.

    Legendary country star, June Carter Cash, and her mother Maybelle are set to take the stage in Rosebud. That’s the premise of the play Wildwood Fire, which opened on May 6 on the BMO Studio Stage.
    Rosebud School of the Arts alumni, Lauren de Graaf and Kelsey Krogman, wrote this one-woman tribute to Carter Cash which originally appeared last July in Rosebud. de Graaf is thrilled to reprise her role as June Carter Cash and closely identifies with the country songstress who passed away in 2003.
    “She is a true inspiration for me. She did everything. She went to acting school, became a performer when she was very young, was a single mom and had two failed relationships all before she met Johnny Cash.”
de Graaf first became aware of June Carter Cash when she saw the film Walk the Line, which earned Reese Witherspoon an Oscar for portraying Carter Cash.
    Director Morris Ertman says,” When I directed this show last season as a student final project, I knew it was worth developing more. I believe it is a show that has the potential to play in theatres across the country. It’s about a hard marriage, and the life force that it takes to stay in such a marriage. It’s a testimony to faith, the faith of both Maybelle and June Carter - and Johnny Cash’s even in his absence. It’s a play about sticking it out. It’s a play about music that becomes a balm in hard times. And like any of the old time country and gospel songs in the show, it’s about finding the music in the middle of worry and strife. It’s about dancing rather than falling - and it’s about falling to your knees when you can’t dance anymore. “
    Wildwood Fire revolves around Carter’s tumultuous marriage to Johnny Cash. Of that relationship, June Carter is reported to have said, “it turns out I married the pills right alongside Johnny Cash” which could be viewed  tragically except that she also said “I chose to see the happy times more prominently than the hurting times between them.”
    In the end what remains are the songs. de Graaf reflects, “the music is clever, full of spunk, and deeply emotional, much like June Carter Cash. I thought I knew June until I learned the songs she made famous. She is a generous and feisty woman who has a giant heart, and her music is infused with these qualities. That is her legacy.”     
    Tickets for Wildwood Fire can be reserved by calling 1-800-267-7553 or by visiting rosebudtheatre.com.