Event: Artist Talk at TheatreBooks with Sky Gilbert and Shirley Barrie, 4th Line Theatre

4th Line Theatre will present an Artist Talk at TheatreBooks in Toronto with playwrights Sky Gilbert and Shirley Barrie on Tuesday, May 1st from 7:00 to 8:00pm.  This free event offers an insider’s look at the theatre’s 2012 productions of Queen Marie and St. Francis of Millbrook.  Gilbert and Barrie will be joined by 4th Line Theatre’s Artistic Producer Kim Blackwell who will direct both productions.

This unique event is an opportunity for audiences to hear both playwrights read from their plays and talk about how they approached their characters, their creative process and how they developed their works specifically for the outdoor barnyard stages of the theatre’s rustic 5th generation Winslow Farm in Millbrook Ontario.

Barrie, playwright of the musical comedy Queen Marie, will talk about her motivations and research into the life of Cobourg-born Marie Dressler, one of the greatest and best loved stars of Broadway and Hollywood who won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1931.  She has received two Chalmers Awards and a Dora Award and was President of the Playwrights Guild of Canada from 2009-11.

Gilbert will discuss his inspiration and motivations in writing his play St. Francis of Millbrook, a stunning coming of age story about growing up gay in rural Ontario.  Gilbert’s play is about a young man who loves playing hockey, working on the family farm and pop star Madonna, maybe a little too much.  One of Canada’s foremost playwrights, Gilbert has won the Pauline McGibbon Award for theatre directing, the Margo Bindhardt Award from the Toronto Arts Foundation, The Silver Ticket Award from the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts and three Dora Mavor Moore Awards.

Founded in 1992 by Artistic Director Robert Winslow, 4th Line Theatre this unique theatre celebrates the region’s history by telling local and Canadian stories that educate and entertain the audience with unforgettable outdoor, epic theatrical experiences.  Thousands of visitors, young and old alike fall in love with the farm experience complete with picnics, birdsong and sunsets in the country.

TheatreBooks, Toronto: 7:00 – 8:00pm, 11 St. Thomas Street, off Bloor Street between Avenue Road and Bay Street

www.4thlinetheatre.on.ca

Event: 40th Anniversary Reading Series at Chapters/Indigo, Playwrights Guild of Canada

Playwrights Guild of Canada (PGC) is proud to announce a five-day reading series in celebration of its 40th anniversary. Drawing from the organization’s vibrant membership, a lineup has been selected that includes some of the top names in Canada’s theatre scene. The series will run from Monday, April 30th through Friday, May 4th at Chapters/ Indigo (142 John St., Toronto) in the café on the 2nd floor. All readings will start at 6pm. Admission is free.

Monday, April 30th  – Maja Ardal, reading from The Cure for Everything
Maja’s latest work, an adaption of Canada Reads finalist Marina Nemat’s ‘The Prisoner of Tehran’, currently in production at Theatre Passe Muraille in Toronto.

Tuesday, May 1st  – Drew Taylor Hayden reading from Motorcycles and Sweetgrass and Drunk White Writer on the Floor.
Motorcycles & Sweetgrass was nominated for the Governor General’s Award for fiction in 2010.

Wednesday, May 2nd – Hannah Moscovitch reading from East of Berlin and The Russian Play
Hannah’s work has won multiple Dora Mavor Moore Awards, and she’s been nominated for the Governor General’s Award, the Carol Bolt Award among many others.

Thursday, May 3rd – Brad Fraser reading from True Love Lies
Brad Fraser is one of Canada’s best known playwrights, Brad’s plays have won numerous awards including The London Evening Standard Award for Most Promising Playwright, The L.A. Critics Award, The Dora Mavor Moore Award, and London’s Time Out Award for Best New Play.

Friday, May 4th – Marcia Johnson reading from Courting Johanna
Marcia has been a theatre artist in Toronto for over 20 years. ‘Courting Johanna’ is based on Alice Munro’s ‘Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage’ (Blyth Festival). The short opera ‘My Mother’s Ring’, for which she wrote the libretto, was nominated for a 2009 Dora Mavor Moore Award.

WHAT: Playwrights Guild of Canada 40th Anniversary Reading Series
WHEN: April 30 to May 4, 2012 at 6 pm.
WHERE: Chapters/ Indigo, 142 John St., Toronto (2nd Floor Café)
ADMISSION: FREE

Playwrights Guild of Canada is a national arts service organization mandated to advance the creative rights and interests of professional Canadian playwrights, promote Canadian plays nationally and internationally, and foster an active, evolving community of writers for the stage.

Call for Submissions: GYM Playoffs at Canadian Stage’s 2012 Festival of Ideas & Creation, Canadian Stage

Dear GYM Members and emerging artists in Toronto,

On your marks, get set, GO!

We are seeking submissions for short works or excerpts of pieces in development for this year’s GYM Playoffs on Wednesday, May 9 at 8:30pm at 26 Berkeley St. The annual playoffs are a chance to flex your athletic artistry and present your budding new works and collaborations to GYM members, Canadian Stage staff, friends, family and members of the artistic community!

We encourage all submissions but especially those inspired by the focus of this year’s festival: music and sound in performance practice.

If you are interested, please send:

• A short description of the piece you wish to present (please note: Presentations must be 10 minutes or less)
• A list of artists involved
• An excerpt or sample of your piece (if applicable)

Submissions are due Friday, April 20, 2012 by email to Kathryn Binnersley, Hannah Rittner and Mairin Smit, Festival of Ideas and Creation Interns at artisticintern@canadianstage.com.

For more information on Canadian Stage’s free GYM program for emerging artist, please visit https://www.canadianstage.com/gym.

Now lace up those submissions and hit send! We look forward to hearing from you.

Event: 4th Line Theatre expands 2012 Artist Talk Series, 4th Line Theatre

4th Line Theatre has expanded its wildly successful Artist Talk Series to events in Cobourg and Toronto.   These free events offer an insider’s look at 4th Line Theatre’s 2012 productions with conversations with playwrights Shirley Barrie and Sky Gilbert and Artistic Producer Kim Blackwell, directs both shows.

In the past, the Artist Talk Series have only been presented at the Peterborough Museum & Archives.  “These events have grown over the years into standing-room-only events,” said Robert Winslow, 4th Line Theatre’s Artistic Director, “and by expanding the series into other cities we’re able to accommodate more patrons than ever before.”

Tuesday, May 1st, Toronto
This event is a unique opportunity for audiences to hear playwrights Sky Gilbert and Shirley Barrie read from their plays and talk about how they approached their characters, their creative process and how they developed their works specifically for 4th Line Theatre.
TheatreBooks, Toronto: 7:00 – 8:00pm
11 St. Thomas Street, off Bloor Street between Avenue Road and Bay Street

Sunday, May 6th, Peterborough
Join Artistic Producer Kim Blackwell in conversation with St. Francis of Millbrook playwright Sky Gilbert as they discuss Gilbert’s inspiration and motivations in writing his play.  Gilbert’s play is about Luke, a son and a brother who plays hockey and loves working on the family farm.  Luke is just like everyone else except for one thing – his parents are concerned that he likes the pop star Madonna a little too much. This is a must-see coming of age story about growing up gay in rural Ontario.   One of Canada’s foremost playwrights, Gilbert has won the Pauline McGibbon Award for theatre directing, the Margo Bindhardt Award from the Toronto Arts Foundation, The Silver Ticket Award from the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts and three Dora Mavor Moore Awards.
Peterborough Museum & Archives, 2:00 – 3:00pm
Armour Hill, Peterborough

Tuesday, May 15, Cobourg
Join Artistic Producer Kim Blackwell in conversation with Shirley Barrie, playwright of the musical comedy Queen Marie, about her motivations and research into the life of Cobourg-born Marie Dressler, one of the greatest and best loved stars of Broadway and Hollywood who won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1931.  This event is being held just a few blocks from where Dressler lived.  Barrie has written several plays about fascinating women from history, including 4th Line Theatre’s 2007 production of Beautiful Lady, Tell Me….   She has received two Chalmers Awards and a Dora Award and was President of the Playwrights Guild of Canada from 2009-11.
Firehall Theatre,: 7:00 – 8:00 pm
55 King Street West, Cobourg

Kim Blackwell, 4th Line Theatre’s Artistic Producer, has directed eight productions at the Winslow Farm including Schoolhouse, The Right Road to Pontypool, and The Berlin Blues, last season’s sold-out, critically-acclaimed production.

These events are free but seating is limited.  For complimentary tickets and more information call 4th Line Theatre’s Box Office at 705-932-4445 or visit  4thlinetheatre.on.ca

The Artist Talks continue, with some of Canada’s foremost theatre artists, during the summer on Fridays in July and August at the Winslow Farm, from 4:00 to 4:30.