We must all do our part to keep the light on the theatre even though they are closed. So I’ll be posting the press releases of many theatres that are being pro-active and brave in planning their seasons and initiatives. One would usually find this information in newspapers, but even they are struggling.
I’ve already posted the 20-21 season information for The Theatre Centre and Outside the March. Heady stuff to look forward to.
Today I’m posting the season announcement of Nightwood Theatre which focuses on feminist issues and stories.
The Groundswell Festival is vital in seeing the work of emerging and established writers. There are conferences, initiatives and productions to look forward to. Have a look.
| In the spring, we were poised to announce our most expansive season yet for 2020-2021 with a festival, two world premieres, a multi-award-winning remount, a local and national presentation, and a national and international tour. We’d determined that the pulse of this season was to dare: dare to speak out, dare to heal, dare to be big, dare to be intimate. And then everything just stopped. And while we still need to dare to speak out, heal, take up space and be intimate, more and more we’re examining what is ‘big’. Is ‘big’ about abundance? Is ‘big’ about energy? Is ‘big’ about showing off or keeping up? Is bigger actually better? Here we are in the wake of the pandemic’s persistent devastation, and in the most transformative time of our existence, and the key takeaway for us has been further introspection, deeper intimacy, and investing in the caretaking of others, including showing up, thinking outwardly and a greater devotion to being part of a larger voice. Now presenting our biggest season ever doesn’t seem so… big. As a company whose mission is to create live feminist theatre we are moved to go ever deeper into who we are, who our community needs us to be and to harness the power and ingenuity of artists to reflect this time, and to lead us slowly toward communal experiences once again. Along with the four main pillars of 20-21 season programming, which we are thrilled to share below, we will be creating as many opportunities to connect as a community and find ways to be creative. We will kick off our inaugural Digital Creative Space, Nightwood’s Play Club, the Rising Moon Writing Program for youth aged 16-19, along with digital iterations of our long-standing Young Innovator’s Program, Write From The Hip Playwrights Unit, and our annual Lawyer Show. We look forward to to supporting the incredible local theatre artists who we need to stay nimble and nourished, including numerous residency opportunities that will be announced throughout the year. Internally, we will take this year to examine how our values can be even more deeply embedded in all we do, making Nightwood Theatre a safe place to make exceptional things happen. We all have a lot of healing to do. And we aren’t rushing back as many industries are. It’s often been said in this time that theatre was the first to close and will be the last to reopen. And when we reopen, we will reopen better. We hope you will join us for our most intimate season. Love from all of us at Nightwood.  THE 20-21 GROUNDSWELL FESTIVAL Including readings from our 2019/20 Write From The Hip Playwrights ProgramNovember 2020 Digital readings and conversations Satisfy your appetite for brand new works! Our Groundswell Festival will deliver readings, interviews and more from our Write From The Hip Playwrights unit, led by Program Director Donna-Michelle St. Bernard. Join us digitally to explore new works from Bilal Baig, Shelley M. Hobbs, Erum Khan, Rachel Mutombo, Pesche Nepoose and Phoebe Tsang. This festival will also provide a hub for deeper discussion with several events including a conversation with SPiLL.PROpagation – our trailblazing friends in Deaf-hearing collaboration – as well as free professional development opportunities for next generation playwrights and artists. We look forward to sharing the full Groundswell Festival schedule in October, 2020!  THE FEMINIST UNCONFERENCE Hosted by Sedina FiatiJanuary 2021 Digital gathering Inspired by the powerful connections and conversations of last year’s event, theatre practitioners are once again invited to listen, lead and unpack all things feminist and reckon with the new challenges and questions facing our industry at this hierarchy-smashing, participant-driven unconference.  EMBODYING POWER AND PLACE Nightwood Theatre presents a digital experienceMarch 2021 In 2019, the federal commission on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls released their final report, Reclaiming Power and Place. In 2020 a dozen artists were commissioned by New Harlem Productions to read and respond to specific chapters of the report through their artistic medium. Embodying Power and Place weaves together visceral offerings of song, poetry, dance and theatrical works by such incredible creators as Tiffany Ayalik, Tara Beagan, Yolanda Bonnell, Darla Contois, Deborah Courchene, Aria Evans, Eekwol, Jessica Lea Fleming, Falen Johnson, Émilie Monnet, Yvette Nolan, Michelle Olson, Natalie Sappier and jaye simpson curated by Donna-Michelle St. Bernard and New Harlem Productions.  LOST TOGETHER Nightwood Theatre presents an UnSpun Theatre ProductionCreated by Shira Leuchter with Michaela Washburn Performed by Shira Leuchter and Michaela Washburn Spring and Summer 2021 Digital and live performances Nightwood is pleased to present UnSpun Theatre’s Lost Together by Shira Leuchter with Michaela Washburn. In this micro-performance, audience members enter one at a time to share a story about something they’ve lost. Once shared, Michaela and Shira build and present a small object that encapsulates their guest’s story, which is added to an ever-evolving exhibition, reminding us that loss doesn’t have to be a solitary reckoning. As this performance is for one audience member at a time our goal is to bring the piece closer to you with four locations, starting south in the Distillery District, moving to the west side of Toronto, to the east in Scarborough and then up into Northern Ontario at the Nipissing First Nation’s Big Medicine Studio. An online version will also be made available to enable flexibility during these uncertain times. “Brilliant, and unlike anything I’ve experienced… [an] intimate and unforgettable piece of live art” – Glenn Sumi, NOW Magazine Tickets for Lost Together will go on sale in the new year and all other digital events will be free and or by donation. |