Personally, I support women’s rights and women’s wrongs — especially when it comes to my girl Hedda. And it seems that at least two Ontario directors share my viewpoint, with Hedda Gabler opening twice in the same month at Stratford and at Coal Mine Theatre in Toronto. What makes her story so appealing?
A season of less than 50 per cent female playwrights, directors, and actors means the female-identifying population is not being fully represented. Programming becomes a question of this play or that play, as opposed to this and that, resulting in some narratives receiving short shrift.
My process with solo shows involves sharing bits of text with audiences when I don’t really know where it’s going, or how it’s going to end. I’m pivoting myself to the responses from the audience — I sniff out where I want to go, and how I want to shape the piece. Through creating solo shows, I discovered how much I love this direct, unfettered relationship with an audience.
By Aisling Murphy /Mar 3, 2022
iPhoto caption: Always Still the Dawn is a double bill of radical works that aim to examine themes of femininity, family, and rebellion. Photo by Olla Ky.
The women creators of Canadian Stage's 2019 - 2020 discuss the new season, and what unique story each production tells in terms of Indigenous communities, the #metoo movement, and gender dynamics.