The success of the Cultural and Artistic Leadership Program (CALP) can be measured by the impressive number of works supported by this program since its creation in June 2005: close to 50 works, on both the English and French sides. This unique and innovative program encourages NTS students and recent grads to give form to creative notions or novel ideas that explore social themes and issues of community. The proposals must be mentored, guided or coached as well as being packaged financially. CALP proposals must therefore treat all aspects of a project, from the initial conceptual stage to its realisation.
Projects that have been supported to date range from new exploratory theatre forms, multimedia, theatre for young audiences, musicals, puppetry, and in situ pieces, to community outreach.
The following projects have received CALP support and are presented in chronological order of acceptance:
A Map of Stolen Ambition / Nor the Cavaliers Who Come with Us – One Reed Theatre Ensemble
Megan Flynn (Acting 2005)
This project started out as an ensemble creation about the history and legacy of the conquest of Mexico. It would later be presented under the name of Nor the Cavaliers Who Come with Us in Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa, and at the Catskills Experimental Theatre Festival in the state of New York. The show obtained rave reviews and won the 2006 SummerWorks Spotlight Award and One Reed was named Best Young Ensemble (Stage) by NOW Magazine, in their Best of Toronto list for 2006.
The Stolen Child
Krystin Pellerin (Acting 2005)
This theatre for young audiences mask-based play, exploring the relationship between illusion and reality, as well as communal fears based in folklore and superstition, is inspired by William Butler Yeats’ poem, The Stolen Child. It was chosen by the Resource Center for the Arts in St. John’s, Newfoundland, and was presented as part of their Significant Other Series in 2006.
The Heart of a Woman
Michelle Girouard (Acting 2003)
Extensive research was done on Acadian deportation, and the myths surrounding it, in order to integrate this information into a solo creation about an orphaned Acadian girl’s newly discovers roots. In this creation, the protagonist learns the Acadian language and travels back in time in order to communicate with her ancestor, Pélagie-la-Charette. CALP funding was used for research and development. The Heart of a Woman... was shortlisted for the 1st Annual Canadian Short Playwriting Competition.
Every Day above Ground
Trent Pardy (Acting 2004)
The creation of this theatrical adaptation of Michael Ondaatje’s The Collected Works of Billy the Kid serves as an examination of humanity and the grotesque. Every Day above Ground was presented by SaBooge Theatre in Philadelphia, Dublin, Montreal, as well as at the Performance Space 122 in New York.
Use My Babies Well
Kate Hewlett (Acting 2003)
The stories of the many brutalized children in Shakespeare’s writings are adapted into a new work which examines violence against young people. Testimonies from around the world were gathered to create this piece in which music plays an important role.
The Man with the Wolf in His Belly
Stuart Wiber (Acting 2005)
The goal of this project was to create an original shadow puppet show telling the story of an Everyman following his own dreams to a reconnection with nature and freedom. The second phase of this project aimed to develop an engaging workshop for children and to prepare The Man with the Wolf in His Belly for touring. In the summer of 2006, it was presented in several parks in and around Toronto.
Antigone, a Clean House for a Dead Season
Evan Webber (Acting 2005)
The project started to take form when Chris Abraham (Directing, 1996), Artistic Director of Crow’s Theatre, was looking for a new adaptation of Antigone. After some initial research, it was decided that the play would speak of the struggle of the dead and the living, and how the identity of each is shaped by the other. This is achieved by integrating the voice of Antigone’s dead brother, Polynixes. The creation of this work was also funded by the Theatre Creators’ Reserve of the Ontario Arts Council and will be premiered in the winter of 2009 as part of Soulpepper’s mainstage season.
Fish Eyes
Anita Majumdar (Acting 2004)
This solo piece focuses on a young Canadian girl and an older Indian woman who share their love stories, only to realize they are walking the same path. In this play, Indian traditional dance plays a major role and was greeted with enthusiasm when it travelled across Canada to Toronto, Vancouver, and Victoria-by-the-Sea (PEI), and to India at The Other Festival. Fish Eyes was nominated for a Dora Mavor Moore Award for Best Choreography in a Play or Musical in 2006.
Rosaline
Indrit Kasapi (Acting 2006)
This play based on Rosaline, a character in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, explores the nature of conflict between women by confronting Rosaline and Juliet in a fight for Romeo’s heart. The show, which incorporates music and folk dancing from Albania, was presented at the Edmonton Fringe and received very good reviews from local press.
Structure and Function
Adrienne Irving (Acting 2007)
The creation and development of a workshop piece based on structural functionalism was at the center of this project which set out to find parallels between social systems and biological systems, utilizing art as a vehicle to depict this symmetry. The show was presented in an unconventional venue in Montreal to a diverse audience who were integrated on stage at the end of every performance.
1984 Untitled
Jessica Carmichael (Acting 2003)
This stage adaptation of George Orwell’s 1984, as seen from Julia’s point of view, adopted Theatre of the Oppressed (TO) techniques in its exploration of whether love can exist in an oppressive society. Resulting from a TO workshop with Calgary’s Stage Left Productions, the project gained notice from its Artistic Director, Michele Decottignies; she mentioned it in an article she was writing for Augusto Boal and the International Theatre of the Oppressed Organisation. The Alberta Foundation for the Arts offered funding for the production of this play and it will be brought to the Edmonton community in the spring of 2008.
You Like It
Darrah Teitel (Playwriting 2007)
This queer adaptation of Shakespeare’s As You Like It, deals with coming out in contemporary gay culture. It was presented in 2006 at the Montreal Fringe and at Toronto’s SummerWorks Theatre Festival. This collective creation, exploring the themes of identity, intolerance and ideology, received a warm welcome by the local press in both Montreal and Toronto.
In the Beginning / On a Wire Theatre
Christine Khalifah (Acting 2007)
This collective creation explores one’s personal experience with death and grief through shadow and movement, while incorporating myths from different cultures. The play was part of the 2006 Montreal Fringe Festival and a reading was presented at Toronto’s SummerWorks in 2007 as part of the Youth Reading Series. On a Wire Theatre was founded in order to present In the Beginning to new audiences as well as to offer workshops to adolescents from 15 to 20 years of age, welcoming them to share their own experiences with death and the loss of a loved one.
Untitled Honour Project
Anita Majumdar (Acting 2004)
Much research went into the development of this play which explores the theme of honour killings, while incorporating Indian classical dance. The work was inspired by the story of a young woman who was killed by her parents for choosing love over family. Anita was invited to be Playwright in Residence by Toronto’s Nightswimming Theatre during the Fall-Winter Season of 2007-2008 enabling her to complete this piece. The play will premiere at the PuSh Festival in Vancouver in January 2008 under the title The Misfit.
People of the Book – One Reed Theatre Ensemble
Evan Webber (Acting 2005)
Under the working title of (Never Underestimate) The Power, this original, collectively-created performance examines the Book of Revelation, prescience and one’s conception of the future as space or territory. This project was co-produced as part of the Theatre Centre’s artist residency program in the fall of 2007. Performances of People of the Book will take place in 2008.
...and stockings for the ladies
Brendan McMurtry-Howlett (Acting 2008)
Original solo creation based on insightful, first-hand accounts of post-war Germany by surviving displaced persons and Canadian veterans, this play, written by Attila Clemann and directed by Zach Fraser, gives voice to many characters through one actor (Brendan) and many puppets. It won Best English Production at the Montreal Fringe in 2007 and it also obtained rave reviews at the Toronto Fringe. ...and stockings for the ladies will be part of Montreal’s Centaur Theatre’s Wildside Festival in January 2008.
Hablando se entiende la gente
Gemma James Smith (Acting 2004)
This project aims to bring a Spanish language one-man show to Canada, written and performed by Hernan Jiménez (Acting, 2004), which garnered much success in his native country, Costa Rica. The solo show, to be performed by Hernan in English, offers the perfect setting for cultural exchange between the two countries. The title, a popular saying that means “if people talk, they understand each other”, encourages communication and cross-cultural partnerships, such as those between Canada and Costa Rica.
In the Dark
Eva Blahut (Acting 2005)
A solo performance created through found texts, dance, physical theatre and personal anecdotes, it examines our sense of sight and life without it. The inspiration for this project came from Eva’s own experience with the degradation of her sense of sight. This show was presented at the summer 2007 London (Ontario) Fringe Festival. Benefit performances were added for two organisations: Run for Retina Research and the Canadian Council of the Blind.
Offensive to Some
Bridget Wareham (Acting 2008)
This one-woman show, written by Canadian actor and playwright Berni Stapleton and directed by fellow Newfoundlander Lois Brown, offers a modern twist to the story of the last person who was hanged in Newfoundland, just outside the St. John’s Courthouse. Catherine Snow was hanged in 1834 for murdering her husband after putting up with years of abuse, yet received the unusual honour of being buried in a Roman Catholic cemetery. Presented in the summer of 2007 at the Rabbittown Theatre in St. John’s, the play gained a lot of positive attention from the local press.
Lucrezia Borgia
Joseph Aragon (Playwriting 2006)
The Canadian Musical Theatre Development Group (CMTDG) presented Joseph Aragon’s new musical offering, a fresh look at the infamous lady of legend. This Winnipeg-based group seeks to provide the local community with original Canadian musicals. Lucrezia Borgia was performed by non-professional and semi-professional actors at the Gas Station Theatre as part of the 2007 edition of the Winnipeg Fringe Festival and received very good reviews from the local press.
Borealis
Catherine-Amélie Côté (Interprétation 2005)
The cast of Borealis features members of different ethnic backgrounds, creating a highly theatrical and socially poignant original work on the theme of cultural integration. Interviews with newcomers to Canada about their experience with immigration and integration served as the foundation for this play which was presented at Toronto’s 2007 SummerWorks and generated local media attention.
Canadian Africa Youth Theatre Initiative
Matthew MacKenzie (Playwriting 2009)
The initiative for this project was, over the course of one year, to connect Canadian and African students through theatre in the battle against the AIDS pandemic. In the summer of 2007, Matthew and Charlotte Corbeil-Coleman (Playwriting, 2008) travelled to Ghana to collect information in order to present their findings to other NTSers who would like to get involved in the development of dramatic works about AIDS in Africa. Eventually, these are to be presented in high schools throughout Canada.
It’s Hard to Count to a Million – One Reed Theatre Ensemble
Evan Webber (Acting 2005)
The creation of this collaboratively devised performance concentrates on the way that number systems mediate relationships between individuals and communities. A preliminary version of the play, which alludes to the story of 1940’s code-breaker Alan Turig, harassed by the British government for his homosexuality, was presented at the 2007 Lab Cab Festival in Toronto.
Arenal
Marc Bendavid (Acting 2004)
Through a story and character workshop, the themes of immigration, proselytism, capitalism in the Third World, and family were explored in this examination of the convergent experiences of immigration and artistic realisation.
Slow Shuffle
Ellen Close (Acting 2006)
This project aims to create an immersive installation using visual art, music, text and performance to explore memory, memory loss and aging. Slow Shuffle will be presented as part of The Downstage Performance Society’s the birds and stone series in Calgary in March 2008. For that occasion, the venue will be separated into eight distinct spaces in which the work of an actor, a visual artist and a songwriter will engage the senses, emotions and intellect of visitors.