Celebrate GivingTuesday with Your Story of Giving to Theatre

Today is GivingTuesday, the "opening day of the giving season."  It is a day when charities, companies and individuals join together to share commitments, rally for favourite causes, and think about others.

Theatre Ontario is thrilled to be part of GivingTuesday - sharing the importance of giving to theatre in Ontario.  Thank you also to everyone who has already given to us at Theatre Ontario in 2013.  For over forty years Theatre Ontario has been fostering theatre in Ontario, nurturing theatre artists at every stage of their careers, and supporting and advocating for theatre across the province.  Donors are an important part of this vibrant theatre network - we sincerely thank you for your generosity, encouragement, and commitment.  We hope you take pride in the part you have played in creating an extensive and vital theatre network.  (It's not too late to be part of this critical work - Donate to Theatre Ontario today!)

Today's post is open - we invite you to share your stories of why you give to theatre, or why you give to Theatre Ontario.

Is it creating outstanding mentorship opportunities that has changed lives through the Theatre Ontario Professional Theatre Training Program or the Neil Munro Intern Directors Project?

Is it showcasing outstanding theatre, celebrating excellence, and bringing together passionate and dedicate theatre artists in communities across Ontario at Theatre Ontario Festival?

Is it connecting new talent and directors, agents, and casting directors at Theatre Ontario's Next Generation Showcase?

Celebrate GivingTuesday with a story of giving.

Join us on December 3 for GivingTuesday

"People may know about Black Friday and Cyber Monday... now GivingTuesday is coming to Canada on December 3, 2013.  GivingTuesday is a National Giving Day.  It is a new Canadian movement for giving and volunteering, taking place each year after Cyber Monday.  The "opening day of the giving season," it is a day where charities, companies and individuals join together to share commitments, rally for favourite causes and think about others.”

Theatre Ontario is thrilled to be part of GivingTuesday - sharing the importance of giving to theatre in Ontario.  We will be thanking our supporters by sharing some inspiring stories of the amazing opportunities in Ontario theatre that have been created by our supporters, and encouraging people with a passion for theatre to give to Theatre Ontario and to our member theatres to create exciting opportunities for tomorrow.

Watch our blog, Facebook, and Twitter feeds on December 3 and join us for GivingTuesday.

For more information or to get involved, please contact Brandon Moore, Communications Coordinator, at brandon@theatreontario.org or Mairin Smit, Program Coordinator at mairin@theatreontario.org, or call 416.408.4556.

Remembering Dorian Rankin

Theatre Ontario was honoured and grateful to receive a bequest from Dorian Rankin (1926-2011).  As reported at our 2013 Annual Meeting, this incredible gift will enable us to develop our webinar program which will benefit theatre groups and individuals across the province.  Margaret Shearman, a past Theatre Ontario Board member, shared some recollections of Dorian with us.

Dorian Rankin has remembered Theatre Ontario in her will.  One can’t talk about Dorian without including her husband Bill. Although she and Bill were solid Theatre Ontario and community theatre enthusiasts, there are many out there that did not know them very well.

Dorian and Bill were always together at the Eastern Ontario Drama League Festivals, and were members of several community theatre groups in Eastern Ontario.  They never missed a Theatre Ontario Festival, and they also travelled to the Theatre Canada Festival when the Tara Players of Ottawa production of Freedom of the City won the Theatre Ontario Festival Best Production in 1990.  They travelled with the production again when it was invited in 1991 to the Dundalk International Maytime Festival in Ireland.

Dorian’s background in theatre was in vaudeville.  At age thirteen, with her mother’s approval, she left home to join a vaudeville troupe.  She toured the English vaudeville trail as a singer and dancer for several years, playing with the likes of Ian Carmichael, until she met her first husband.

In the mid-1950s, they immigrated to Canada and bred boxer dogs in the Toronto area.  It was there that Dorian joined a community theatre group and met Bill. “Well, he thinks a lot of himself” was Dorian’s first impression.  Bill, an architect by profession, was going through a marriage break-up at the time and Dorian fell for him, another of those theatre romances that luckily worked out very well—they were married for nearly 35 years before Bill’s death in 2002.

Dorian came from Nottingham in England and had the lovely accent that goes with that part of the country.  It was sad that the vascular dementia she struggled with for the last ten years of her life left her voiceless for the last three.

I am sure that Bill would have supported Dorian’s legacy to Theatre Ontario, he himself was a Board Member of Theatre Ontario, and also a past chair of the Community Theatre Committee.  They both thought strongly of the importance of community theatre members to enter festivals as a learning experience, and for members to attend the Theatre Ontario Summer Courses.

Thank You to All of Our Donors

A big thank-you to everyone who supported Theatre Ontario with donations in 2012.  Your contribution nurtures theatre artists at every stage of their careers, and supports theatre across the province, through Theatre Ontario.

Our success depends upon the donations of generous theatre lovers like you who share our belief that theatre is critical to the cultural and social vitality of Ontario communities.  Your donation creates mentorships, workshops, networks, and resources.  Make your donation to Theatre Ontario today!

Thank You To Our Supporters

Theatre Ontario is extremely grateful to everyone who has supported our "Behind The Scenes" campaign. The financial support of our donors ensures that Theatre Ontario can begin 2010 with the resources necessary to bring a wider range of programs with increased accessibility. As a thank-you for your contribution, supporters will be receiving your first issue of Backstage within the week. We look forward to this opportunity to keep you in touch with all the amazing work your generosity makes possible.

It's not too late to join...visit "Behind The Scenes" on the Theatre Ontario website, and consider adding your name to the list of our wonderful supporters.