It's World Theatre Day. So, what does that mean?
It’s World Theatre Day. It’s also a quiet Monday in the office. Production staff are off, having worked all weekend. Others are away, leaving four of us to contemplate, and consider: what does World Theatre Day mean, to us as individuals, and to the organization? What does World Theatre Day mean to you? Perhaps, like any anniversary, it’s a time to reflect on the past year(s), and consider the future.
We - Sarah, Celina, Natalie & Michelle - are sitting in an institution now, but these are individual accounts. Theatre is a collective medium, but we all assemble / are called for deeply personal reasons.
SARAH - Artistic Director
We all put our particular fingerprints on everything we make. Theatre looks outwards at society, while being hyper local, and always bespoke. It holds the DNA of time, place, and all of its creators. We are here in Odawa, on the unceded and unsurrendered traditional territory of The Anishinaabe Algonquin people. We are making art for the people here, at this moment in time. And we are grappling with what it means to be ‘Canadian.’
As a person working in culture, and now in the remarkably privileged position to help shape culture from within an institution, I think about repair. In Judaism we talk about Tikkun Olam, the commandment to repair the world – to bring the shattered sparks of creation together and so become whole. I also think about Jeanette Winterson’s exhortation that ‘The role of the artist is to bring back visions!’ I believe this is our sacred task: to dream, create, and offer visions of how the world could be. To dream a better world into being.
Stories are culture, and culture is built from the ground up, from the people. Institutions don’t make culture, but we can be a home for it. Every day at GCTC we are working to build a better home for stories and storytellers. I hope you will come visit us in this home for culture. Our quest to make it increasingly open and accessible is ongoing. Theatre is meant for everyone.
CELINA - Company Manager
I’m a relative newcomer to theatre, but I have always been interested in audience connection in arts performance. Whether in music, dance or theatre, the relationship between audience and performer is unique and co-dependent. It is the people in the room that make a work come alive.
For many years at GCTC, I have greeted audience members into the space for performances. There’s often a nervous anticipation that permeates the theatre before a show starts; an acknowledgement that you never truly know what’s going to happen. The show is about to happen right now, live, in front of you. You cannot help but recognize the vulnerability of the performers standing there, looking you in the eye. When I’m sitting in the theatre, I’m primed for anything. I might cry. I might laugh. I might be angry. I’m always confronted with others’ humanity and in turn my own.
I hope you join us in the coming year. We’re working hard to produce and present art that provokes emotion, and exposes humanity - in the performers, the characters they portray, and you the audience.
NATALIE - Marketing and Communications
I come to theatre as a lifelong volunteer, board member, and amateur actor, now devoting my professional skills to presenting and promoting the art that I love. To me, the theatre is a platform to share experiences, histories, passions, and fears – to learn from one another and about one another. How we as a company present a show on the stage, and how we welcome the community to share in it, is a direct reflection of our values as an organization. As a marketer, this has required me to relearn so much of my craft, to make sure the messaging I put forth speaks to all potential audiences, in ways most appealing and accessible to them.
As a person living with chronic illness and a disability, there were long periods of time when theatre felt inaccessible - something that was part of my past but that I didn’t have the energy or ability to participate in any longer. Sitting in a seat for more than 30 minutes was a challenge, getting on stage again felt impossible. The theatre I knew was strict and rigid; there was no rebooking of tickets, no allowance for bathroom breaks - in short, no flexibility. The past four years for me have been an exercise in proving myself wrong, rediscovering my passions, and helping to invite more people, of all abilities, to do the same. Theatre needs all of us - all of you - in order to thrive. We need you in our audience, but also in our boardroom, and on our stage, to help us be a true reflection of our community and culture.
In the coming year, along with show marketing, I look forward to crafting and distributing a broad series of invitations. We as an institution will be inviting you to gather with us, to hear our stories and to share your own. To laugh with us and celebrate with us. To learn with us. Together we can create the theatre this community deserves.
MICHELLE - Development Manager
If you have ever participated in any kind of production or performance, you know the bond you create with your castmates and fellow performers. It’s a support that is only felt in one other place – from the audience. Showing up, buying a ticket, watching the actor’s pour their hearts out on stage is an incredible thing. You are supporting the performers’ dreams and ambitions, you are telling them yes, you should be doing this.
Donating to your local theatre company is one of the most impactful things you can do. When you donate, yes, you are helping the company financially. But your donation is also telling a whole community of actors, designers, creatives, students, and story-tellers that what they do matters. You are telling them yes, what you are creating needs to be seen, should be seen, and deserves to be seen. The world is constantly changing and shifting, but one thing that has always stayed the same is art telling our story. Art, music, stories – they are the things that remain after we are gone. It keeps us connected through generations.
How will you celebrate World Theatre Day? Can we suggest buying a ticket for yourself or someone else? Or, donating to your favorite theatre? (It doesn’t have to be us, but we do hope that it is.) Share the love of theatre with your community, and allow us to share our love of theatre with you.
Sarah Kitz
Artistic Director
Celina Hawkins
Company Manager
Natalie MacLellan
Marketing & Communications Manager
Michelle Gendron
Development & Membership Manager