The Phoenix and the Fire
As if I’d been sucked through the phone and appeared on the other end of the line, I could see an abstraction of the house against a blue sky with its windows ablaze.
Forgetting the Fear
I used to isolate myself backstage and cry after we performed for our first audiences. The energy they brought into the room utterly rocked me.
Cantonese, Culture, and Being ‘Canadian’
It had been so long since I had heard Cantonese spoken in performance and media. I had forgotten how wonderful it was to hear your own language on stage.
Paving the Way for Change in Our Churches
Systems of oppression and imbalance between men and women have been built, reinforced, and codified through some of our primary foundations of faith.
To the Theatre School Graduates of 2019
Two years ago, a very scared, small, worn down version of myself sobbed in a bathroom stall. This was after I’d performed in, what I was told, one of the biggest opportunities of my young (not yet even started) career.
Dancing between Worlds
Our stories aren’t confined to one stage, one month, or one nation—whether that of our current home, or the lands our roots reach back to.
10 Reasons Why Fame is Different after Sixty
Studio execs aren’t worried about your chemistry with your co-star which is usually a therapy dog named Bootsie anyway.
Escape to Manitoba: Addiction, Mental Health, and Healing
At the height of my mental health and addiction morass, I was lauded. I produced one of the most successful seasons at Buddies which was nominated for multiple Dora Awards.
Emerging Across Canada: The West
Applying for grants, moving forward, all the while writing through consistent doubts: is what I have good enough? Have I made the right choices?
Don’t Call Me Jerry Lewis – My Life Performing for Retirement Homes
Whenever we perform, we are providing a service whether it be to simply entertain or to provoke and ignite discussion. Performing for the elderly is simply taking that next step in the art-form of giving.
Homelessness and Performing in Parks
An artist who performs outside and who works with homeless and street-involved people, I want to speak about the realities of sharing public space with people who are not housed.
Actor Training in Canada: An Appeal for Change
Our current massive industry shakedown presents an opportunity—and a responsibility—to revisit and challenge the practices and bedrock values of professional training in this country.
When Blind Casting Isn’t Enough
“From the moment I decided I wanted to act in the fifth grade until my graduation from theatre school twelve years later, I never had the opportunity to play a character that was written for someone who looks like me.”
10 Reasons Two Actors Wouldn’t Survive the 1600s
Actors Ghazal Azarbad and Paolo Santalucia each give five reasons they wouldn’t have survived the 1600s.
Teenagers from This Year’s Paprika Festival on What They Want to See More of on Toronto Stages
Six young artists involved in the Paprika Festival tell us what kind of theatre they want to see more of.
The Problem With “The Show Must Go On”
When I reflect on the number of artists I know who suffer from mental health issues, and the unique stressors that come with our profession, the resources available to us and the awareness we have about public services feel meagre and insufficient.