Conversation Starters
- Our Ontario Summer Theatre blogger has made her first two trips of the year, travelling to Campbellford to visit Westben Arts Festival Theatre, and to Perth to visit the Classic Theatre Festival and see Barefoot in the Park.
Rachel Fischer and William Vickers in
Barefoot in the Park at Classic Theatre Festival in Perth - Mitchell Marcus, Artistic Producer of Acting Up Stage Company, poses a good question: What will make the great Canadian musical Canadian?
- I’ve been impressed with some of the more nuanced conversations emerging from the latest “cell phones in theatres” brouhaha. Among my favourites: Scott Walters writes on The Clyde Fitch Report about the history of theatre etiquette (“We’ve made the theatrical experience so fraught with the rules of etiquette that nobody wants to venture into a theatre”) with a call to “overcome the distraction of the age by being so compelling that people can't look away.”
- Rob Weinert-Kendt writes in American Theatre about how “it is theatre’s blessing and curse that it shares space with all of humanity—even humans with cell phones.”
- Meanwhile, Travis Bedard suggests that eliminating rules, standards, and controls isn’t welcome an audience—it’s fearing that they’re going to leave, and suggests an approach where “the rules are clear and low friction.”
Behind the Scenes at Ontario’s Theatres
- The inaugural Kick & Push Festival has opened in Kingston, focused on site-specific and immersive theatre, and based on an idea by Theatre Kingston artistic producer Brett Christopher (and includes Blue Canoe Productions among the participating companies.)
- Carolyn Wilson, an alumnus of our Summer Theatre Intensive and now Artistic Director of Durham Shoestring Performers in Oshawa, was profiled in a recent issue of Oshawa This Week.
- Take Two Theatre in Timmins was featured on CTV News Northern Ontario on the occasion of their 30th anniversary.
- A blast from the past—the Ontario Arts Council has a great podcast featuring Pat Bradley talking with Nancy Kenny about their theatre grant programs.
- The OAC has also prepared a video on preparing effective support material.
- Our friends at Playwrights Guild of Canada are running a fun “anti-social media meets Miracle on 34th Street” campaign to bring Tom Stoppard to Toronto for a Canadian literary community super conference.
Migrations
- Evalyn Parry is the new Artist Director of Buddies in Bad Times Theatre.
- Antoni Cimolino has had his contract as Artistic Director of the Stratford Festival extended to 2022.
In Case You Missed It
- Recent Professional Theatre Training Program Project profiles featuring Emma Mackenzie Hillier (training in dramaturgy with Bob White at the Stratford Festival), Catherine Ballachey (training in dramaturgy with Laurie Steven at Odyssey Theatre), and Jasmine Chen (training in outreach with Marjorie Chan at Cahoots Theatre.)
- We unveiled our new four-year strategic plan and staffing changes.
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