Ontario Off Stage

by Brandon Moore, Community Theatre and Communications Manager

In Memoriam

We lost two members of our Theatre Ontario family this past week.

Helen Zdriluk – a former Board member and pioneering advocate in educational theatre with the Council for Ontario Drama and Dance Educators and the Sears Ontario Drama Festival.

Jon Kaplan – a long-time supporter and a member of our Maggie Bassett Award jury. Jon was recognized in numerous tributes from colleagues and the Toronto theatre community:

• Susan G. Cole in NOW Magazine
• Glenn Sumi in NOW Magazine
• Playwright Michael Healey interviewed by Matt Galloway on CBC Toronto’s Metro Morning
• Lynn Slotkin on The Slotkin Letter
• Kate Robertson at NOW also compiled many of the community tributes.

Conversation Starters

• ICYMI: Donna-Michelle St. Bernard – our playwriting instructor at our Summer Theatre Intensive and last year’s “Playwright-in-Person” at Festival in North Bay – was the keynote speaker at Post-Marginal, and the video of her speech is now available.

Behind the Scenes at Ontario’s Theatres

Matt Pilipiak as Simon/e in Carousel Player's production
Boys, Girls, and Other Mythological Creatures
Photo by Lauren Garbutt

• Carousel Players has been facing cancellations of their production Boys, Girls, and Other Mythological Creatures at Niagara Catholic District School Board elementary schools, as Artistic Director Jessica Carmichael shared in an open letter.
• J. Kelly Nestruck of the Globe and Mail reported on the story, reaching out to several people within NCDSB without response.
• Playwrights Guild of Canada has opened a new book store: The Canadian Play Outlet, in the suite we share at 401 Richmond. Come visit the Canadian Play Outlet, and you can get promotional prices on three of our publications: The Agent’s Book, Ontario Playwrights: Eight Short Plays, and Grassroots: Original Plays from Ontario Community Theatres.

TO Toasts

• ... to the finalists for the Toronto Arts Foundation Signature Awards—including The AMY Project (finalist for the Arts for Youth Award), Jacoba Knaapen of the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts, Sandra Laronde of Red Sky Performance, and Mark Hammond of the Sony Centre (finalists for the Margo Bindhardt and Rita Davies Award for creative cultural leadership.)

In Case You Missed It

• Rachel Kennedy invites you to make plans to PLAY this summer with Ontario Summer Theatre.
• Browsing Our Bulletin Board featuring opportunities across the province including grant writing info session, launching your career workshop, voice over workshop, Festival, Summer Theatre Intensive, and more.
• ONstage Openings this week in St. Jacobs, Goderich, Waterloo, Fergus, Toronto, Midland, Beaverton, Ottawa, previews in Stratford and Niagara-on-the-Lake.