Elephant Wake

From the Program: On a very personal level, Elephant Wake is my coming of age story. It grew out of a moment when I realized I ws no longer a boy and that myself and the place I grew up in was rapidly evolving into something different. This self-reflective epiphany, where I balanced precariously between the future and the past, was very profound for me, as it was a complex moment of beauty, fear, sadness, and joy. It is precisely the essence of this moment that spawned the character of Jean Claude. With his child-like simplicity, he is able to live forever in a space where the past, the present and the future are one and the same. He has not grown up. So despite the incredible amount of loss and solitude that defines his world, he is still able to defy despair by populating his community with wonderful old memories and cling to an unbreakable sense of hope. This quality becomes both an admirable feat of innocence and a sorrowful tragic flaw.

Official CCA Jury Memorable Moments:

Ayden: "When he first came out on stage."

Jade: " The props were made of papier mache. I liked all the bright and colourful lights, there were some lanterns that were like stars. I liked the ground because it was made of shredded paper."

Cali: "When his parents died, when he had a party, when his grand parents died, when he made a zoo out of paper, when he was dancing with family and friends."

Giovanni: "I liked the songs. The lights were cool. It looked like a farm. The character had a cool accent and I liked the comedy."

Tough!

Working the Red Carpet, CCA Jury styles

Tough!

The Jury's Favorite actor who played 'Bobby' in Tough!







Workin' the Red Carpet
















From the Program: Though! is part of George F. Walker's celebrated East End Plays, a series that includes such works as Love and Anger, Better Living, and Escape from Happiness. These plays are peopled with the working class and otherwise marginalized characters: idiosyncratic idividuals who often battle with urban forces much larger than themselves. Cutting, funny and ultimately poignant, Tough! takes a hard look at youth on the brink of adulthood forced to make difficult decisions about personal responsibility amid the many confusions of life. Ken Grass has adapted this three-character work to incorporate a multi-racial ensemble of twelve actors to present a compelling perspective on urban youth in the city of today. This version of the play was first presented at the Factory Theatre in 2007, as part of the Luminato Festival.

My Adventures in Canadian Television: An Evening with Rick Mercer

Schmoozin' at the VIP reception




Struttin' it on the Red Carpet

From the program: Rick Mercer chronicles, satirizes, and ultimately celebrates all that is great and irreverent about this country. Known as "Canada's Unofficial Opposition", Mercer is our most popular comic, a political satirist who knows exactly what matters to regular Canadians and what makes them laugh. My Adventures in Canadian Television draws on the best moments from his award-winning show, taking you behind the scenes of classic Canadian moments, including his Talking to Americans specials, and much more. On full display is his understanding of what delights and occasionally enrages us about our politicians, our media, our neighbours to the south, our unique pop culture, and our place in the world.

Official CCA Jury Memorable Moments:

Alex: "Rick Mercer jumping in the lake naked."

Greg: "When the soldiers sang the song."

Jade: "Rick Mercer jumped in a lake naked. This old man kept on hitting him in the nuts. He was just funny."

Giovanni: "The films were hilarious, I liked his jokes. I liked how he made fun of politicians."

Homage

Director Christian Barry took the Jury on a special backstage tour





From the Program: In 2005, my wife, Ann-Marie Kerr, read a Globe and Mail article about an octogenarian sculptor named Haydn Davies whose seminal work, a large scale sculpture inspired by Stonehenge and built out of laminated red Canadian cedar, had been destroyed by the college that had commissioned it 30 years prior. She suggested it might make a good play and I agreed. Over the next couple of years, Christian Barry and I visited with Haydn and his wife Eva Koller Davies on several occasions to talk about the event, and learn about their lives and about their art and aesthetics. We talked, wrote, workshopped. And then, on March 28, 2008, almost exactly one year before our production premiered, Haydn died. This play and its production are an attempt to give form to the themes that Haydn's story suggests- the interplay of form and void, art and politics, life and impermanence. In a medium that is essentially ephemeral, we're pleased that we get to tell you this story, and to keep it alive.

Official CCA Jury Memorable Moments:

Chloe: "They kissed."

Ethan: "Haydn wrecking his model."

Seth: "The crazy blood guy, when Haydn had a heart attack, when they took down the Homage sculpture."

Norman: A Tribute to Norman McLaren

From the Program: A tribute to late filmmaker Norman McLaren, this one-man show plunges audiences into the fascinating world of the great pioneer of animated film. Employing innovative virtual projection technologies developed by Lemieux and Pilon, Norman reveals the power, modernity and humanism of Mr. McLaren's creative genius. Combining interviews with his co-workers- recreated by the magic of their technology, audio and visual explorations- and the masterful dance movements of Peter Trosztmer who literally interacts with the celebrated filmmaker's cinematic universe, Norman is a true revolution in the world of the performing arts.

Official CCA Jury Memorable Moments:

Giovanni: "I really liked the lights. They were crazy. I also liked the dancing (specifically the guy spinning on his hands)."

Jade: "I liked the special effects. I liked the little clips, they were interesting."

Ayden: "I liked Neighbours."

Austyn: "Neighbours!"

Greg: "Neighbours."

Tasnam: "The music, the dance moves, how it was done, lots of people, lots of feelings."

The Children's Choice Awards at the Magnetic North Theatre Festival with the Jury from Suddaby Public School, Kitchener Ontario

Welcome to the Children’s Choice Awards at the Magnetic North Theatre Festival, with 22 nine and ten year-old Jury Members from Suddaby Public School.

As the official judges of the Magnetic North Theatre Festival, the Children’s Choice Awards Jury attended a performance almost every single day of the festival. Like any awards ceremony the judges responded to criteria that they created from their vast expertise. Our CCA Jury took rigorous notes during and after each performance, and collectively determined the 40 award categories and winners. At the awards ceremony each Jury Member presented an award described in their own words.

The Children’s Choice Awards presents youth in positions of power, where their opinions and voices matter proving that they can be articulate and critical. It is also a decisive intervention into the festival and its structure. As the jury attends each show, they are themselves a mini performance as announcements and audience members welcome them. We ask a lot of our fellow artists, as they share their limelight with the jury, and at times deal with a bit more rustling than usual, and for this, we offer our sincere thanks.