by Sam McBride
1981 was a happier time in Trail and Kimberley and surrounding regions. Cominco Ltd. was at the peak of a billion-dollar modernization and expansion program at its mining, smelting and fertilizer operations, with about 5,000 workers at Trail and another 3,000 at Kimberley. Today, it would be about a thousand at the highly-automated Trail plant and just a handful at Kimberley, since the Sullivan Mine finally ran out of ore and closed in 2000 after almost 100 years of production.
When Cominco — originally known as the Consolidated Mining and Smelting Company Limited (often abbreviated to C&S) and today part of Teck Resources Limited — celebrated its 75th anniversary in 1981, the folks from the Trail and District Community Arts Council and its equivalent in Kimberley saw the occasion as a chance to thank Cominco for its support of the visual and performing arts in Kootenay communities over the years.
poster for the 1981 stage show, designed by George Bourchier of Rossland, B.C., who was a long-time Cominco employee and veteran of many Rossland Light Opera Players productions
The B.C. Group Vice-President at the time, A.V. “Marc” Marcolin, had long been an ardent supporter of new facilities and financing for the arts in the Kootenay communities where Cominco employees resided. With that in mind, theatre groups got together to put on a special show “1906 and All That” commemorating the founding of Cominco in that year. What was really special about the project was the cooperation between theatre groups in both communities in putting together a heritage show in appreciation of Cominco’s support over the years that was performed jointly in both Trail and Kimberley, where most of the company’s B.C. Group employees resided.
program cover
Here are some mementos from the show, including posters, program material, photographs and news clippings from shows in both Trail and Kimberley. I remember Marc was particularly pleased to hear the “Cominco 75!” song composed and directed for the occasion by George Ryan, who was well-known for his musical direction of many shows of Rossland Light Opera Players and Trail Theatre Unlimited.
Trail Daily Times photo and caption from an early September 1981 rehearsal
After retiring in 1982, Marc Marcolin went on to serve as mayor of Trail and continued to be a vigorous booster of the community. In the mid-1970s, Marc had a key role in convincing the Cominco board of directors to remain in the Kootenays and upgrade its facilities there, rather than leaving B.C. and building a brand new mining and smelting operation in Latin America, which was an economically attractive option favoured by several corporate leaders at the time.
program pages for the Trail show
program pages for the Kimberley show
Eleanor Honey and Wally Bertoia of Rossland Light Opera in a skit
Trail Times preview of the show, early September 1981
Barbara “Babs” Bourchier, long-time organizer and participant in RLOP productions and an active member of the Trail and District Community Arts Council
Trail Times review of the show, Sept. 19, 1981
one of the letters of thanks to organizers from Marc Marcolin
thebravestcanadian 