January:
Main Stage:
THE PITMEN PAINTERS
By Lee Hall
Directed by Jack Paterson
United Players (Vancouver, CAN)
“Smartly directed by Jack Paterson, this dignified production is one of the most consistently pleasing shows in recent memory.” – The Province
” This is some of the best ensemble acting you’ll see…Jack Paterson does a stellar job of directing” – The Courier
In 1934, a group of Ashington miners and a dental mechanic hired a professor from Newcastle University to teach an Art Appreciation evening class. Unable to understand each other, they embarked on one of the most unusual experiments in British art as the pitmen learned to become painters. Within a few years, their work was taken for prestigious collections and they were celebrated throughout the British art world; but every day they worked, as before, down the mine. Based on a true story.
February – March
Professional Development:
University of Performing Arts (GITIS):
Stanislavski System and Biomechanics (Moscow, RU)
“In his system, Stanislavski places very high expectations on the actors but it imposes on the director even greater obligations.” – Maria Knebel
Lead by Directing Master Mikhail Chumachenko and Movement Master Maria Shmaevich, this was an intensive in the Stanislavski System and Meyerhold’s Biomechanics at Russia’s leading theatrical training institution. Theatre adventures included pilgrimages to The Stanislavski House and The Moscow Art Theatre, catching Yuri Lyubimov’s stunning The Master and Margarita, Dmitry Krymov’s beautiful Opus no 7, Ivan Popovsky lovely Alice through the Looking Glass and Yuri Butusov’s absolutely insane and wonderful adaptations of The Seagull and Othello.
Special Thank You to Canada Council for the Arts
April- May:
Professional Development:
BALINESE PERFORMING ARTS (Denpasar, IND)
Next was East 15’s Theatre of the East: Balinese Performing Arts and Culture module with the renowned Indonesian Institute of the Arts. The program was led by Prof. I Nyoman Sedana, Ph.D, a distinguished Wayang Dalang (shadow puppeteer). Other instructors included leading Balinese Artists such as Topeng Mask Dancer Prof. I Nyoman Catra, Ph.D and leading international artist/scholar Prof. I Wayan Dibia, Ph.D. An intensive cultural exchange and practical study of the Balinese Dance, Drama and Music Arts featured Topeng, Wayang Kulit, Legong & Baris , Kecak, Arja, Gamelan Music plus traditional Mask and Puppet making. The module concluded with a cross cultural creation with remarkably skilled ISI students. Lab. 63: Wasting Time was a devising piece incorporating multiple traditional forms in an expression of modern day Balinese living. It was one of the earthiest and most enjoyable theatre experiences I have had. A huge thank you to Indra and the gang.
Special Thank You to Canada Council for the Arts
Producing:
BoucheWHACKED!
(Vancouver, CAN)
BoucheWHACKED! was back this summer at the rEvolver Festival with our fourth Ta Gueule Workshop and Reading Series of francophone works in translation. This season’s workshops included CHILD OBJECT (L’ENFANT MATIÈRE) By Larry Tremblay & translated by Chantal Bilodeau FLOTSAM (ÉCUME) By Anne-Marie White & Translated by Louis Patrick Leroux. Ruby Slippers Theatre joined us with teir reading of IT’LL NEVER LAST (DEUX ANS DE VOTRE VIE) By Rébecca Déraspe and translated by Leanna Brodie.
The series culminated in a Cross Cultural Round Table featuring francophone playwrights Larry Tremblay and Rébecca Déraspe, translators Chantal Bilodeau and Leanna Brodie and Theatre artists Diane Brown, Heidi Taylor, France Perras and Gilles Poulin‐Denis.
June-July:
New Works:
THE RUTH ELLIS SHOW
A new verse drama
by Christopher O’Shaughnessy
Directed by Jack Paterson
The George Wood Theatre (London,UK)
“…acting, direction, lighting and sound could not really be bettered” – John London, Goldsmith’s University
The play traces the spiritual trajectory of Ruth Ellis as she remembers, mis-remembers, and re-engages with her life in the moments before she is due to be hanged for murder in Britain in 1955. A surrealist, impressionistic, imaginative, highly theatrical rendering of this fascinating story.
August – October:
New Works:
DREAM: A MUSICAL
Music by Nassos Chalmoukis
Book & Lyrics by Timothy Vest
Choreography by Roman Berry
Directed by Jack Paterson
The Tristan Bates Theatre (London, UK)
“…a beautiful show.”– Anthony Clark (former AD of The Hampstead Theatre)
‘Dream’ follows a love triangle complicated by individual dreams and aspirations. Both hopeful and tragic, the musical explores encounters both surreal and concrete, blurring the lines between dream and reality in a fusion of text, song and contemporary dance.
Devising:
ODYSSEY
Inspired by Homer’s poem
Devised and created by the Ensemble
Directed by Jack Paterson
The Corbett Theatre (London, UK)
“…an astonishing show!” – Simon Usher, Director (RSC)
“…an impressive production of a complex text, delivered with tremendous skill and polish.”– Stephen Unwin (former AD of The Rose Theatre)
Inspired by The Balinese Performing Arts, Odysseus’ epic journey home from the ashes of Troy. After ten years at war, a man is lost, wandering the ocean, pursued by the vengeful storm god Poseidon in a desperate quest to return home in a tale of heroes, gods and monsters in a fusion of dance, song, movement and poetry.
November – December:
Acting:
THE PATRON SAINT OF STANLEY PARK
By Hiro Kanagawa
Directed by Melissa Thomas
Theatre Northwest (Prince George, CAN)
Featuring Brian Linds, Jack Paterson, Anita Wittenberg, Sebastian Tow and Emma Tow
“Paterson needed to be spot-on… He carried the ball over the goal line…I knew he was winning when I recognized myself…” – The Prince George Citizen
It’s Christmas Eve. One year ago, Josh and Jennifer’s father disappeared in a floatplane accident at Prospect Point, where the children have come to honour his memory. As the sky darkens with the approach of a terrible storm, a bunker beneath the park begins to whir with twinkling lights and magic. What mysterious force could be at work? Aliens? Bigfoot? Santa Claus? Sweet, poignant, and suffused with the healing power of love.