STAGE NOTES: Buddies new season; Marquee Tourism funds; Dora Awards
16 May'10

JOHN COULBOURN - QMI Agency

After years of being on the outside looking in, maybe it's time for the outsiders to spend some time looking outward. Brendan Healey, Buddies In Bad Times newly-minted artistic director,has announced the company's first season under his artistic stewardship — a stewardship that will apparently be informed by the ongoing outsider status of the queer artist, according to Healey, who promises to "embrace the outsider status in order to challenge established notions of morality, human relations, history and politics."

That promise will start to unfold in a season that kicks off in early September, with Healey directing the Canadian English language premiere of Sarah Kane's controversial and ground-breaking play, BLASTED. It will be followed by a remount of THE SILICONE DIARIES, Healey's acclaimed directoral collaboration with creator/performer Nina Arsenault , before Buddies welcomes the Union Eight Theatre's production of Sonja Mills' THE BIRD, directed by Ruth Madoc-Jones.

Following Buddies annual Rhubarb Festival, Native Earth takes centre-stage for a production of Marie Clements' TOMBS OF THE VANISHING INDIAN, featuring Michelle St. John, under the direction of Yvette Nolan. Madoc-Jones then pays a return visit, helming OutSpoke Productions' presentation of SPIN, created and performed by Evalyn Parry.

Buddies then surrenders its stage to founder Sky Gilbert's Cabaret Company, for a production of THE SITUATIONISTS, written and directed by Gilbert. Finally, following a remount of Buddies' multi-Dora Award winning AGOKWE, written and performed by Waawaate Fobister and directed by Edward Roy, the season closes with another visit from Montreal's 2boys.tv, for the world premier of a new show, titled TIGHTROPE.

AGOKWE and THE SILICONE DIARIES are slated, under Buddies' aegis, to tour to Vancouver, Ottawa and Montreal. Tickets and passes are currently on sale at the Buddies' boxoffice. Call 416-976-8555 for further info.

*****

Both the Shaw and Stratford Festivals are feeling the love from the Federal Government's Marquee Tourism Events Program, with the Shaw Festival announcing Friday that that they have received $2.6 million in continued funding from MTEP, which will allow them to expand existing marketing initiatives and explore new ones. That follows hard on the heels of last week's announcement that the Stratford Festival has received $3-million from the same fund to be used for much the same purpose.

*****

The Toronto Alliance For The Performing Arts will be handing out the hardware on Monday, June 28, as the annual presentation of the Dora Mavor Moore Awards (better known as the Doras) takes place. This year's ceremonies, honouring the best on the local performing arts' scene, will take place at the Bluma Appel Theatre and will be hosted once again by Jian Ghomeshi.

A pre-show VIP reception is planned for the Rosewater Supper Club, and the awards ceremony will be followed by an Under-The-Stars after-party outside the St. Lawrence Centre on Front St. Nominations for the awards are slated to be announced June 2. For further information, visit www.tapa.ca