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Backstage after a performance of Sound of the Beast. (Me, Tamyka Bullen, Desmond Cole and Donna-Michelle St. Bernard.) This moment was one of many moments of celebration during the run of Sound of the Beast, but it also reminds me that it may not be a good look to pull your shirt tails out from under your sweater?
Above is a picture taken after a performance of SOUND of the BEAST at Theatre Passe Muraille. I’ve put it there because that show is one of my favourites produced during my tenure at TPM. It was also the only play that I directed during my 12 years as Artistic Director. I didn’t direct because that way I could offer more work to others, particularly those who hadn't yet had a chance to direct in a venued theatre company, or were not yet even uplifted to that role.
SOUND of the BEAST is also a favourite because I had the joy of co-directing it along with the legendary Jivesh Parasram while working with Donna-Michelle St. Bernard.
SOUND of the BEAST embodied so many of my ambitions for TPM and represents much of what I’m interested in as an artist.
· It’s a new work,
· it presents a relatively unseen lived experience,
· it explores the complimentary narrative idioms of text, spoken word and rap, it has a sense of humour, it has an international dimension, it is political, it has an uncompromising POV without being preachy, some of the script was developed, written or edited while Donna-Michelle was on her feet, it got to go on tour, it demands a lot of its audience, it gives a lot to its audience, it is the only one of Donna-Michelle’s expansive roster of plays that she has acted in, it is accessible to both the initiated and the un-initiated, the creatives on the process represented a diversity of age, race, gender, sexuality, class, humour, geography & education, it was the result of a long collaborative process that was full of love and empathy and vulnerability.
Why build this web site? What am I seeking?
One thing I love to do is to chat with people about our sector, our artists, our work, our organizations. I have invested my life in theatre and I love talking about it. I'm hoping one or two of the things on the site might pique your interest and you might want to engage with me. Click on the “Contact” link in the menu bar at the top of this page to get in touch with me. It goes directly to my email address so I'll be able to respond promptly. ❤️