TheatreOne’s Fringe Flicks program comes to an end
For more than 25 years, TheatreOne has offered our exciting and vibrant Fringe Flicks series as a fundraiser for our live performance programming. Recently, our audience numbers for this program have dwindled significantly, while at the same time, our costs to rent the theatre, acquire the films, and promote these screenings have increased. Ultimately, lost revenue from what was supposed to be a fundraiser has become our organization’s largest financial liability. In a post pandemic world that now has wide, easy, and inexpensive movie streaming options, the Fringe Flicks program is simply no longer sustainable for our organization.
At the recommendation of our Artistic Director and new Executive Director, the TheatreOne Board of Directors has decided to discontinue Fringe Flicks for the time being. Although we have agonized over this decision, we feel it is the right one, as we need to focus on our mission of connecting Nanaimo audiences to quality live theatre – in essence, theatre which can “move hearts and minds.”
TheatreOne Artistic Director, David Mann comments: “Cancellation of Fringe Flicks is certainly a sad event for me, as well as for the loyal core audience of the series. When we introduced it over two decades ago, Fringe Flicks was a valuable program which provided an opportunity to enjoy alternative, newly-released films in a communal, big-screen setting. For years the series was popular and fulfilled its role as a fundraiser which supported the core live performance activities of TheatreOne, but unfortunately times change, and recently the series has become an unsustainable drain on our financial and human resources.”
While Fringe Flicks will no longer be available, we are very excited by our upcoming season of live professional performances, which will be announced soon. We hope that you will join us as we make our first forays into returning to producing shows for our audiences, as well as bringing outstanding theatre experiences to Nanaimo from outside our community.
Graham Pike, TheatreOne’s Interim President of the Board of Directors adds, “Regrettable as it is, the cancellation of Fringe Flicks will enable us to devote more resources to the core mission of TheatreOne: to ‘move hearts and minds’ through outstanding professional theatre. We’re looking forward to a stimulating season of productions and presentations in our three programs (Mainstage, Emerging Voices, and Just Kidding) – that will provide entertainment and enlightenment for all.”
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TheatreOne has been bringing professional theatre Nanaimo and the mid-Island for 40 years. We engage diverse local audiences of all ages and persuasions, including the very young, and in doing so support theatre professionals and local businesses. We work with playwrights from BC and across Canada to foster development of new Canadian works, we premier new productions, and through our support to touring artists we give Nanaimo audiences access to great theatre developed elsewhere.
Our Raffle draw was conducted live at our last Mainstage Performance and the lucky winners have been contacted. Congratulations to our winners! We are very excited to be able to present great prizes, donated from local businesses and friends of TheatreOne! If you were not contacted by TheatreOne, we regret you did not win but there is always next year!
Some fun upcoming events include:
FRINGE FLICKS (our last one of the season)
“Ordinary Love”
May 29th-June 1st
Sunday: 1 PM, 4PM
Monday: 7 PM
Wednesday: 7 PM
Landmark Cinemas Avalon
JUST KIDDING FOR KIDS
Kellie Haines – A Birdy Told Me So
May 28th: 1 PM
VIU Malaspina Theatre
NANAIMO SUMMER NIGHT MARKET
Come see us Thursday nights from June 23rd – Aug. 18th
TheatreOne in association with Bread & Roses Theatre and The Other Guys Theatre Group, presents
I WALKED THE LINE
written and performed by Allan Morgan
Director……………………………………………………………………..Ross Desprez
Costume Design ………………………………………………Margaret Handford
Sound Design …………………………………………………………….Tobin Stokes
Lighting Design ………………………………………………..R. Robinson Wilson
Projections …………………………………………………………………..Gord More
Production Coordinator …………………………………..Sandy Cumberland
PLAYWRIGHT’S NOTES
This story that I am about to unfold for you is a true story. I and my sisters and brothers in my union were on strike for 132 days, following a lockout by management. Each and every one of us has a story of their journey through those days. This is how I saw and experienced it, this is my version, my truth. Often times it is only the perceived victor who is allowed to create the narrative. I am extremely grateful and happy to have been given the opportunity to share my version of the narrative with you. There are so many folks that I want to thank for their help and support and love to get to this spot: Mary Desprez, Ross Desprez, Other Guys Theatre Company, Jessica Schneider, Janice Ford and Darrell, Kimberly Chartier, Kate Millberry, Jude Morrison, Sharon Phillips, Jennifer Bishop, Marilyn Werden, Leisa Smith and absolutely every person on that line who still believe in ethics, solidarity and collectivity.
– Allan Morgan
DIRECTOR’S NOTES
This project has several very important connections for me. My last directing experience was a one man musical about the life of American activist and folk singer Pete Seeger, so the concepts of unionism and community building were already inspiring me. The hard fought rights of workers securing job protection, fair benefits and a decent living wage are being decimated by corporate greed. Globally we seem to be forgetting about the necessity of community to maintain our survival. The other attraction for me was the opportunity to work with a seasoned and creative artist such as Allan Morgan. In this play Allan presents a heartfelt and personal experience of the struggle to maintain community within a modern day corporate union. His struggle is our struggle. I hope you enjoy the performance and leave the theatre with something to think about and share in your community.
-Ross Desprez
ALLAN MORGAN Writer and Performer
Allan is very pleased to be back on the stage where he has been at home for more than thirty years. Some highlights of his career include appearing in London, GB, Adelaide Australia, Wellington NZ and San Francisco all with The Overcoat. He appeared for several seasons at Bard on the Beach, notably in The Tempest as Prospero, as well as King John, A Midsummer Nights Dream and Much Ado. He has toured across Canada with the Electric Company in Studies in Motion. He has appeared at The Belfry, notably in The Drawer Boy, Dirty Blonde, and I am My Own Wife for which he received the Victoria Critic’s Award for Best Performance. Other favourites include Red, Thinking of Yu, and Abraham Lincoln Goes to the Theatre for ATP in Calgary.
ROSS DESPREZ – Director
Ross Desprez is a theatre artist, teacher and the founding Artistic Director of The Other Guys Theatre Company. With The Other Guys he has written, directed, performed or been the lead collaborator on numerous original musical productions including: Sex: the Musical, The Ballad of Jim Payne,Moodyville Tales, Good Timber and The lncompleat Folksinger. He has directed, written, composed music for, or performed in productions for the Belfry Theatre, The Manitoba Theatre Centre, Rainbow Stage, Theatre SKAM, The Arts Club Theatre, TheatreOne and Theatre Royal Barkerville. Fringe creations include The Ballad of Phil Ochs, Sex: the Musical and Carmanah Man. Ross has also directed over 20 productions for Vancouver Island University where he is an instructor of acting and directing.
SANDY CUMBERLAND – Production Coordinator
Sandy is thrilled to be the production coordinator for I Walked the Line. Her career has spanned over 30 years and every province in the country. From her early days in the dance world (Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Judith Marcuse Dance Company, Universal Ballet of Seoul, Korea) through a stretch of freelance work (Theatre Passe Muraille, Muskoka Festival, Stratford Festival) to many years with Pacific Opera Victoria, she has enjoyed a diverse and exciting career in stage management and production. After twelve years based on Gabriola Island, Sandy is happy to be freelancing once again, to be working with friends, old and new, and to make Victoria her home again.
MARGARET HANDFORD – Set & Costume Design
Margaret is an artist and designer who works in theatre and film. She has worked in Vancouver as crew on corporate events, worked on Vancouver Island as a designer for not-for-profit organisations, and designed for events held in Banff and in Orlando. She painted over fifteen productions at the Chemainus Theatre Festival, had scenic painting work sent to Hawaii, and helped build props sent to Prague. Margaret has worked in the Art Departments of two films, a TV show, and an Apple web series. The majority of her current work is on Vancouver Island working with local theatre companies and university theatre departments. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Theatre from the University of Victoria and a Post-Degree Diploma in Business Studies from Vancouver Island University. Margaret is excited to work on Allan Morgan’s I Walked the Line. Many, many, thanks to everyone in the production.
TOBIN STOKES – Sound Design
Tobin is a regular Other Guy, co-creating shows such as Good Timber, Moodyville Tales, and Flotsam and Jetsam. He’s currently writing music for Slug Run, a new musical about slugs (yes!) with Ross Desprez. He’s created sound designs and original compositions for various shows at the Belfry Theatre in Victoria. Tobin is an opera composer, and wrote Pauline with Margaret Atwood for City Opera Vancouver, which premiered in 2014. His opera Fallujah premiered with Long Beach Opera in California, and New York City Opera, in New York City, in 2016. His opera Rattenbury premiered with the Other Guys and Pacific Opera Victoria in 2017. Tobin is the Social Media Manager for the online coastal science magazine, and Hakai Magazine, which is sort of like an office mail clerk gig, but digital. He’s currently finishing his MFA in creative writing at UBC.
Call for submissions to TheatreOne’s Emerging Voices new play development program
Nanaimo, BC – TheatreOne’s Emerging Voices is now accepting submissions for the 2022-2023 season. Emerging Voices, now in its 18th year, is a series of workshops and staged readings of three new, original plays by local and regional playwrights. Participating playwrights benefit from dramaturgical support before, during and after the workshops, have the opportunity to engage with professional artists during a CAEA workshop and see their plays read before live audiences that evening, receiving valuable feedback from actors and patrons.
Interested playwrights are invited to submit scripts to TheatreOne’s new Artistic Associate, Jessica Schacht at: ev@theatreone.ca. To meet eligibility criteria, playwrights must reside in Canada and the scripts must be new, original plays that have not received a professional production.
New scripts will be selected by September 15, 2022 for the 18th season, but further submissions are always welcome. There is no fee for submitting or for taking part. Selected playwrights will receive an honorarium based on PGC workshop rates.
Emerging Voices supports the Equity in Theatre Initiative, Playwrights Guild of Canada which promotes gender equality and diversity in theatre.
Our Annual Raffle is finally here with four great prizes to be awarded on May 7, 2022! Tickets will be sold in person at all of our upcoming events, or, you can email: office@theatreone.ca. Normally we would say to come on down, but we are still working from home, waiting for renovations to be done.
Check out these amazing prizes! Thank you to all of our sponsors!!
1st prize(Value: $642) Dinner & A Night Out (x4) $100 Brown’s Social House
$100 Gina’s Mexican Café
$100 Top Notch Burgers
$100 Modern Cafe 2 Tickets to each of these: Western Edge Theatre ($46)
Nanaimo Theatre Group ($40)
TheatreOne Mainstage ($66)
Port Theatre Spotlight Series ($90)
2nd prize(Value: $350) Mid-week Getaway 2 nights at Mount Washington Condo
Draw date and location: May 7, 2022 | 9:00 PM
VIU MALASPINA THEATRE
310-900 Fifth St, Nanaimo, BC
License # 132454
Rain City Improv is coming to Nanaimo on January 29, 2022. This is a short, fun interview with Taz VanRassel where he talks about how fun it is to do shows for kids, what to expect from a Rain City Improv show, and a bit about his history in the business!
We are excited to announce four wonderful additions to the TheatreOne team!
Cathy Dyck
Cathy was born and raised in Nanaimo. She completed the business program at VIU and has worked in the field of Sales & Marketing for most of her career. She has been involved in many boards and committees in Nanaimo and believes in giving back to the community that she lives in.
“I look forward to assisting in fundraising and being part of this great organization.” – Cathy Dyck
Heather Pastro
Heather has been a professor of Art Education in the Faculty of Education at Vancouver Island University for over 30 years. She holds an MA in Administration and Curriculum Development from San Diego State University and a B.Ed. in Art History and Art Education from the University of British Columbia. She serves on the British Columbia Art Teacher’s Association Executive and is an active member of numerous national and international Art Education Associations. Highlights in Heather’s 40+ year career include teaching art in rural Uganda at an HIV/AIDS orphans school, a secondment with Crayola writing art curriculum, and initiating global art exchanges in Italy, Turkey, and Egypt. Her studio practice incorporates textile design, painting, and ceramics, and her recent research is visual literacy, looking at Indigenous imagery in children’s literature, to promote deep learning and understanding. Heather has had a lifelong passion for the arts and has been fortunate enough to support live theatre both locally and abroad.
“As a TheatreoOne board member, I would like to promote the theatre to those who experience disadvantages or have not yet had the opportunity to enjoy live theatre or participate in discourse around film.” – Heather Pastro
Cindy Shantz
“Before I retired, I was a high school English teacher and always took my students to at least one professional theatre production. I loved seeing how theatre could “move hearts and minds.” For the past ten years I have been a professional storyteller and recently taught a group of high school students to write a personal story and tell it to a live audience. Now I would like to inspire students to attend TheatreOne productions.” – Cindy Shantz
Ross MacKay
“As Dean of Arts and Humanities, I had the opportunity to liaise with many arts organizations (including serving on Nanaimo’s Culture and Heritage Committee). My current administrative role does not afford me as many such opportunities, and volunteering with TheatreOne is an ideal chance for me to (re)connect with an arts-based community. I have worked in theatre and have always appreciated the communal ethos it fosters in all of its components – from the boards to the boardroom. Theatre also promotes dialogue, education, and tolerance – and many other qualities and values that I espouse. As a new board member, my immediate goal is to listen and learn, collaborate with like-minded people, and find ways of using my skills to enhance TheatreOne’s outreach.” – Ross MacKay
Hey Theatre fans! It is time to vote for your Directors, debate motions, and come together as a theatre-loving community!
This November 29, 2022, we will be holding a zoom meeting where members can vote and give their input on a variety of topics. Yes, budgets can be boring, but what we can do with them is not! Get your membership for $25 / year and receive discounts and special promotions on top of the privilege to have direct input in the operations of this non-profit society!
Guess what? We have paired with Ricky’s in North Nanaimo. For the week of Nov. 21 – 27, you can get 10% off your meal (excluding alcohol) with proof of your Fringe Flicks ticket!
Buy a TheatreOne membership and get year-round discounts!
ALLAN MORGAN Writer and Performer
ROSS DESPREZ – Director
SANDY CUMBERLAND – Production Coordinator
MARGARET HANDFORD – Set & Costume Design
TOBIN STOKES – Sound Design
