Cake-Walk

David E. Kemp, a former professor of drama at Queen’s University, is
the author of The Pleasures and Treasures of the United Kingdom.

Colleen Curran is a novelist and award-winning author of more than 20
plays, including Maple Lodge, Sacred Hearts, and Amelia Earhart Was Not
a Spy.

“Cake-walk” is the term used when contestants in a baking contest
(usually at a small-town fair or exhibition) walk in a procession
carrying their cakes prior to judging. In this comedy, Curran cleverly
uses a cake-baking contest on Canada Day to bring together five unlikely
contestants and allow them to interact with one another. The group of
disparate characters runs the gamut from Ruby, a domineering cub scout
leader, to Martha, the embodiment of 1960s ideals. By the end of the
play each character gets his or her just desserts.

The widely produced Cake-Walk was first performed at the 1984 Blyth
Festival. Like a fine wine, the play has aged well.