Reconciliation: It’s Not Scary!

Nope, these aren’t Halloween masks. They’re the creation of youth from Knowles Centre, just one example of product from our The Art of Reconciliation workshops!

Reconciliation through theatre is not a one-day job. Since April, our team has joined community organizations to facilitate workshops with youth in the name of Reconciliation and completed the final workshop on October 24, 2019. The amazing team behind these innovate workshops is comprised of Nova Courchene- Project Coordinator, Marsha Knight- Indigenous Outreach Coordinator, and Darla Contois- Workshop Facilitator. Most workshops were also facilitated by various guest Indigenous artists.

We were also happy to host a fundraiser event on October 23, 2019. The fundraiser was a huge success, with a delicious indigenous 1491 meal prepared by Steven Watson and special guest artist KC Adams who spoke beautifully on her experience as an Indigenous artist. The fundraiser helped support Sarasvàti’s transformative theatre work.

We asked Nova Courchene to comment on Reconciliation Through Theatre as we wrap the first phase of the project, she spoke passionately on the subject…

“It’s been an emotional, but amazing experience to work with youth who have experienced so much in their lives as Indigenous youth. The youth we had the privilege to work with and get to know on a very personal level shared their experiences and how they view reconciliation, how racism has affected their experiences, and stories about their everyday lives.”

Each workshop offered something unique – whether it be painting, drawing, rapping or acting. The workshops offered a creative outlet that allowed the youth to thrive and demonstrate their talents as young artists.

“We’ve met such talented and creative young emerging artists. From charismatic budding actors who stole the show, to extremely talented visual artists including comic story tellers, to gifted painters, sketchers, costume designers, and various other visual arts.”

Now that the workshops have concluded, phase two of the project begins. All of the art and stories collected throughout the workshop process will be compiled by our team. We will welcome playwrights Jo MacDonald and other artists as we work towards finding the most exciting way to turn the work in to a performance in May 2020 at The Forks. However, the work with the community doesn’t end there!

The preparation has begun for the next stages and we are currently in search of established and emerging Indigenous talent as set designer, costume designer, lighting designer and other production team members.

It is important to us to maintain the relationship with the community throughout this entire project. This is why we are on the lookout for Indigenous community members who would like to be involved with the second phase of this project. If you or someone you know has experience in production please send us an email at info@sarasvati.ca or feel free to give us a call at (204) 586-2236!

Stay tuned for more information on Reconciliation Through Theatre and the final performance in 2020!

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Introducing Liz Whitbread

By Liz Whitbread

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When I found out that I was going to be Sarasvàti Productions’ new Assistant Artistic Director, I experienced a wild rush of feelings. I felt overwhelmed! Delighted! Shocked! Sweaty! Above all, I felt EXCITED and TERRIFIED – two emotions that I’ve found, more often than not, go together in a surprisingly wonderful way.

The EXCITEMENT came first, of course. Sarasvàti is a company I’ve admired for years – they gave me some of my first professional acting gigs as an emerging artist. I was thrilled to have the opportunity to be a part of an organization that makes art that aligns with my values; to support other emerging artists; and to have a voice in the ongoing dialogue in our country about making our theatre communities safe, equitable and inclusive.

On a more selfish level, accepting the job at Sarasvàti meant that, after three years of living and working in Toronto, I would get to come home to Winnipeg. Toronto is a wild and wonderful city, and I was lucky to get some amazing creative opportunities there. However, after a sequence of family health scares in the spring, I started to re-examine my priorities. Was the work I was doing in Toronto fulfilling enough to justify keeping 2000 km between me and so many of my loved ones? More and more, I was starting to feel like it wasn’t.

And then I saw the Sarasvàti job posting. And I felt the way you feel when you mention to someone that you’re thinking about buying a new couch, and then all of a sudden all of your Instagram targeted ads are for couches. And so I applied, because it seemed like too good of an opportunity to pass up.

Of course, because of the imposter syndrome that I and so many of us suffer from, I didn’t actually believe I was going to GET the job. I thought I’d apply, maybe have a nice interview and get my foot back in the door of the Winnipeg theatre scene, in preparation for my eventual move back to the city – whenever that might be.

What I ABSOLUTELY didn’t expect was that I would get a call in August from Hope McIntyre and a few Board members offering me the job, and asking me to be back in Winnipeg for opening night of their 17^th annual FemFest on September 14^th – just over 3 weeks away.

Which is where the TERROR comes in. First of all, accepting the job meant that my moving-back-to-Winnipeg plan was being pushed up from ‘maybe sometime in the next 6-8 months’ to ‘RIGHT NOW!!’ I had to quit my job, sublet my apartment, figure out how to move across the country, find a place in Winnipeg – all on a very tight deadline.  Not only that, but by accepting this job I was agreeing to take on the responsibility of potentially running Sarasvàti as Artistic Director one day in the near future, as well as upholding and continuing the 20+ year legacy of a successful and lovingly maintained company. There was so much I didn’t know! I didn’t even KNOW how much I didn’t know! Were they making a huge mistake? Was I?

The beautiful thing about Terror and Excitement working in tandem is that, in my experience, they don’t leave you much time or energy to overthink. You’re forced into action. And so I said YES, and figured it out.

I am WILDLY fortunate to have an incredible support system of family and friends who helped me every step of the way – offering me places to stay, helping me move, baking me cookies, generally being unbelievably generous.

And once I arrived in Winnipeg, and was tossed into the wonderful chaos that is a week-long theatre festival, the Sarasvàti staff, Board of Directors, FemFest production team and artists were all SO supportive and welcoming that Terror immediately began to take a backseat to Excitement – Excitement about the wonderful community I was entering into!

Now, a month in to my new job, the Terror is still there. It still pipes up when I’m given a new task, attend a Board meeting, or am faced with writing a big grant. But Excitement really runs the show now.  I still don’t know how much I don’t know – but luckily I have a whole support system filling in those gaps and helping me learn. I am so grateful to be part of the Sarasvàti team, and TERRIFIED and EXCITED for everything that’s coming next!

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The 2019 Federal Election and the Arts

As Canadians, we are fortunate enough to be given the right to vote. On October 21st, our country will vote for the nation’s leaders. It is our responsibility to know what each candidate stands for to appropriately vote for the best and most competent leaders. As a Canadian theatre company focused on social change, we are most interested in what each party offers in regards to the arts.

Did you know that 95% of Canadians believe that arts and culture make a community a better place to live? As well that the arts are a valuable way to connect people of different cultures and languages. More than 87% of Canadians attended arts events in the past year alone! (Source)

Here is a simple breakdown of this year’s candidates and their promises relating to the Arts and other topics important to us at Sarasvàti Productions…

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The Conservative Party –  Andrew Sheer

• Not yet released an arts platform

For more on the Conservative Party, click HERE

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The Green Party –  Elizabeth May

• Includes a section on arts, culture and media with some of the following commitments:
• Increase funding to all of Canada’s arts and culture organizations
• Increase funding to CBC and Radio Canada by $315 million per year
• Review tax incentives for film production to ensure all parts of Canada are competitive
• Fund health Canada’s mental health and LGBT+ services

For more on the Green Party, click HERE

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The Liberal Party – Justin Trudeau

• Includes an arts and culture platform. They also have an official languages platform, which includes some cultural sector commitments. Highlights of the cultural sector announcement includes the following commitments:
• Develop legislation that will take appropriate measures to ensure that all content providers offer meaningful levels of Canadian content in their catalogues, contribute to the creation of Canadian content in both official languages, and promote this content and make it easily accessible on their platforms
• Support Canadian film by increasing annual funding for Telefilm Canada by nearly 50 percent a year
• Strengthen the regional mandate of CBC/Radio Canada
• Provide a $200 credit to every Canadian child when they turn 12, to access local Canadian cultural content and activities

For more on the Liberal Party, click HERE

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The New Democratic Party (NDP) – Jagmeet Singh

• Includes an arts and cultural industries platform. Their platform confirms some of their commitment to:
• Ensure artists and cultural workers earn a living wage including through income tax averaging
• Measures that require Netflix, Facebook, Google, and other digital media companies to pay taxes, support Canadian content in both official languages, and take responsibility for what appears on their platforms
• Increase funding for CBC and Radio-Canada
• Financial support for Indigenous theatre at the National Arts Centre (NAC).

For more on the NDP, click HERE

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On October 21st, if you are 18 years or older, exercise your right to vote! Have your voice heard and help to make a change. If you’re still unsure about who to vote for you can find an informative and quick quiz to help you HERE. As well, find where to vote for your jurisdiction HERE.

For more arts-based insights on the election visit:

https://www.caea.com/Portals/0/Documents/News/2019/Recommendations-2019FederalElectionPlatform-2019-07-09.pdf

https://pact.ca/pacts-2019-federal-election-messaging/

http://www.manitobansforthearts.ca/en/

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Arts have been proven to empower youth (especially those at risk). It has proven to help youth succeed in school, work, and in life. As 85% of Canadians believe that education in the arts helps with both the emotional and intellectual development of children (source), it is important to vote in support of the arts, for our children and their futures.

At Sarasvàti Productions, we greatly value the arts and the power the arts holds in the lives of youth. Especially when it comes to the topics of growth and healing. Coming up next week, we are hosting our “The Art of Reconciliation” fundraiser, in support of our transformative theatre work. Purchase a ticket for the fundraiser HERE. To read more on The Art of Reconciliation, click HERE to find blogs dedicated to the project.

We hope to see you on October 23^rd to celebrate a successful election and the progress towards the arts, equality, and reconciliation.

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Workshop Your Craft

Preparations for this year’s workshop series is underway! Every year we host a collection of informative and useful workshops for artists, with the goal to cover a variety of topics in the arts.

We played host to two workshops during FemFest 2019, including a Pop Art Performance workshop and a playwriting masterclass. Both workshop sessions during the festival were full to capacity! We find the attendance of the workshops reflect the success and need of our workshops series. With the variety stretching, for example, from Pop Art to playwriting, there really is something for everyone.

Some favourites of the workshop series in the past include…

Panels – Professionals share insights on crucial topics of discussion in the theatre industry. Many of our recent offerings have shifted to a roundtable structure with a focus on conversation, with everyone attending asking questions and sharing their own insights/experiences. Past discussion have included queering theatre, making a living in theatre and mental health in theatre.

One Night Stand – We have hosted these play readings for a few years now and heard excerpts from close to a hundred works. Local playwrights are invited to submit scripts and a team of actors read them before an audience for an honest response to the question – would you date this play.

Coffee with a Pro – Another fan favourite, is our intimate sessions that involve emerging artists and respective professionals in their industry. The artists and professionals are invited to sit down and talk shop over coffee. This could include actors, directors, stage managers, playwrights… essentially anyone in the industry that might have insightful wisdom and tips to share.

Emerging Directors having Coffee with Ann Hodges

You can expect these past favourite formats to return with all new topics and facilitators. Roundtables will occur this season on the topics of accessibility and diversity. In addition, we will be offering a movement workshop for performers and a spring Producing 101 crash course for those looking towards the Fringe Festival. We are also revising the One Night Stand series to make it more helpful to playwrights.

Stay tuned for the full calendar of workshop events! In the meantime, we are happy to support The Keep Theatre’s workshop, Intro to Intimacy for the Stage and Film with Siobhan Richardson. To be held on October 24^th from 1pm-5pm at The Keep Theatre (525 Wardlaw Avenue).

Actors will learn specific techniques for accessing their vulnerability in a dramatic context, resulting in powerful chemistry between characters without compromising personal boundaries. Also, how to approach preparing for scenes of intimacy in rehearsal, consent, boundaries, your rights (including union rules), and psychological safety. This is not just kissing or sex scenes. The principles can include the intimacy between parents and children, between dear friends, and can also apply to scenes of sexual violence. All touching is consensual, and participants are always invited to sit out and watch, should they feel uncomfortable or triggered.

Those interested in the intimacy workshop are asked to email Sharon Bajer at thekeeptheatre@gmail.com with “Intimacy Workshop” in the subject line.

Another workshop our Artistic Director, Hope McIntyre, is involved in is Brain Lint Theatre School’s Theatre Workout! For actors of all levels, flex your acting muscles with a 6-week theatre workout. The six weeks will cover Shakespeare, voice and speech skills, improv, sketch comedy and our own Hope will facilitate the audition prep session.

Sessions will run on Thursdays on October 17, 24, November 7, 21, 28, and December 5 from 7pm-9pm. Cost is $290.00, visit Brain Lint Theatre School to register!

To read more on past Sarasvàti workshops, visit our website under the “workshop” tag HERE!

Until Next Year, FemFest

It takes a village… to run a festival! We would like to extend a huge “Thank You” to everyone who helped make FemFest 2019: All the World’s a Stage possible! To our performers, playwrights, facilitators, directors, stage managers, choreographers, volunteers, donors and spectators, FemFest would not have been possible without all of you.

If you made it out to FemFest 2019 as a spectator this year, thank you! We hope you enjoyed this year’s programming of unique and progressive theatre. If you weren’t able to make it out, no worries! There’s always next year and all of the years to come.

This year 110artists and production folks made the festival happen. Add to that 39 volunteers working on site. We sold out our Bake-Off, sold out our first Like Mother, Like Daughter showing, and broke a record with our raffle! Over 1,200 people came out and with intimate shows that could only seat 4 people that’s pretty impressive. We packed 46 scheduled events in to 8 days and we certainly needed time to recover after.

From the eventful opening cabaret to the closing reception, we have compiled photos from this year’s festival for your viewing pleasure! Take a look…

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We also want to hear what your highlights were this year and what you would like to see more of in the future – send us an e-mail, tag us in social media, or heck even feel free to give us a call!

As the age old saying goes, “When one door closes, another one opens.” With FemFest 2019 closed, we now start looking into the future and ask artists from across Canada to submit for FemFest 2020! Submissions are open until the end of November, giving us plenty of time to review your hard work and make decisions for next year’s festival. See the call for scripts and proposals below…

FemFest 2020: Engaging Community- Celebrating Winnipeg’s 18th Festival of Life-Changing Theatre for Everyone

We are currently seeking submissions of scripts for production, short performance pieces for various showcases and expressions of interest from artists with unique ideas for engaging community. Our focus this year will be on productions and processes that build bridges with new artists or partners. All submissions must be from Canadian women. We use an inclusive definition of “woman” and “female” and we welcome pieces created by all who fit under either of these categories/identifiers. Technical and set requirements must be minimal due to the festival setting. A reading committee will assess submissions in order to program a balanced festival.

For more information on how to submit, visit our website HERE!

Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to keep up to date on the rest of the season, including our Art of Reconciliation Fundraiser coming up in just two and a half weeks- Tickets available HERE.

From all of us at Sarasvàti Productions, thank you again for such a successful 17^th annual FemFest. We can’t wait to see you next year!