Rediscovery

Rediscovery

This past week marked my final week as the full-time Theatre Instructor at Sheridan College for the foreseeable future.  The position was always interim, which by definition, is unfortunately finite.  I consider it a privilege to have worked for the division of Visual and Performing Arts in the capacity that I did, and I’m not entirely vanishing from the department in the future.  I get to teach a class this fall with a lot of the students I recruited; a great group of hungry minds. 

At this point, I must publicly thank my faculty partner Stephanie Koltiska for all her support, engagement, and positive collaboration.  We did great big things together and I wouldn’t have made it through the last two years without her, the angel on my shoulder.  She’s a gem, folks.

Transition always allows the opportunity to reflect.  As I look back on the last two years of work, under fast-paced conditions in which long-term planning almost didn’t exist, I had my successes, to greater or lesser degrees.  Within that time, I directed more plays than any other time in my life.  Some of them came together weeks before opening, some of them came together mere hours before opening.  The students grew and adapted to new concepts, and faced introspective challenges, as should happen in college. 

For me, I learned just how much I could do in a two-year long title fight, and in this case my opponent was my own ambition.  My ambition allowed me to take a punch or two, but give them back just as hard or harder.  Some of them were knockout blows, and some of them were well-timed surprise hits that managed to increase my stamina over time.  In this quarantine, I’ve developed a rekindled love for the sweet science.  I’m prone to metaphor, as you may have noticed from prior entries. I appreciate your indulgence.

But moments of nostalgia and self-evaluation should be similar to the interim nature of my Theatre Instructor position: finite.  And, as I mentioned earlier, I didn’t have a lot of time for long-term planning.  At this point, I’m wondering what some of you might be wondering: what am I going to do next.  To be honest with you, I’m not quite sure yet.  But I’ve got some ideas brewing.

This period of lockdown has allowed me the opportunity to recharge my creative batteries, as they were nearly spent.  In that recharge, I reminded myself what truly matters to me about the delivery of my artistic product.  A mentor of mine once told me that theatre must be for the community in which it is delivered, otherwise the message doesn’t land.  Allow me to translate.  One of the original purposes of theatre that has maintained its presence throughout theatre history is to allow the audience the chance to view itself in a controlled format in order to correct any damaging practices.  If theatre doesn’t engage, sustain, progress, or challenge a community (yes, challenge – but much as an instructor would challenge a student to learn), then the art form may not have a purpose in the community.  I wholeheartedly believe that theatre has a place in this community.  Your consistent patronage has shown me that, Sheridan.  So, I look forward to developing a theatre product directed at you. 

I looked back at the mission and vision statements for my production company, Trident Theatre.  Feel free to go look at them as well at tridenttheatre.com.  The rest of the site could use some updating, but hey – I’ve been a tad busy the past couple years.  Moreover, my mission and vision statements remain true.  Trident “strives to … [remain] progressive and relevant in the creation of its product…” and “… connect audiences to theatrical experiences on a visceral level that demand conversation long after the theatrical event is over.”

So, what does this mean?  I will remain committed to creating theatre projects that are relevant and relatable to this community.  How will I deliver that?  Not sure yet.  But, here are some idea floating around in my head: new plays (or maybe older) that address the current human condition, classes or forums on film and theatre styles, possibly acting lessons for students and adults (this stuff is useful both on and off stage – I promise), and experiences that allow us to appreciate our collective culture.  Sounds ambitious right?  Well, to be honest, the bell has rung and I’m still in my corner recovering from the last round.  But, you should see the other guy.
If you'd like to know more, how you can get involved, or just would like to connect, Trident has platforms on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, or you can just write me at trident@tridenttheatre.com.  I'd love to hear from you!

I’ll see you at intermission!