Stage Notes: a new season for Workshop West and other artist accolades

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West Workshop has announced its 2021/22 season. The company, which focuses on the development of new Canadian works, opens with Darrin Hagen’s latest work, Metronome. It will take place November 11-21 at ATB Financial’s Backstage Theater.

Metronome is a one-man storytelling program from the celebrated and multi-talented Edmonton artist about a child’s life-changing love of music and the special piano.

Then in the spring of 2022, Workshop West hosts the Springboards New Play Festival. The seven-day small-scale festival features staged readings of plays in progress in a cabaret setting. There will be discussions and social gatherings that provide a behind-the-scenes look at the heart of the playwrights’ creative process.

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In May, attend the world premiere of Michelle Robb’s Tell Us What Happened. It is a fast-paced drama about friends, the Internet, and sexual abuse.

The final production of the year takes place in June, when The Shoe Project finally hits the stage. As part of a national initiative that shares the stories of Canadian immigrant and refugee women, the project was delayed due to the pandemic. Now, Edmontonians will have a chance to see how real-life women moved to Canada and how their footwear illustrates that journey.

All presentations at Workshop West will adhere to the latest COVID-19 policies. Clients must present vaccination credentials and wear masks. For more details and tickets for upcoming productions, go to workshopwest.org .

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Award Winning Indigenous Bard

Congratulations to Reneltta Arluk. The Northwest Territories-born theater creator and director of Indigenous Arts at the Banff Center for the Arts and Creativity has shortlisted for the 2021 Tom Hendry Awards, which recognizes new works across the country and is presented by the Playwrights Guild of Canada. Arluk, the founder of the Akpik Theater, is being celebrated by Pawâkan Macbeth, an indigenous interpretation of Shakespeare’s Scottish play. The play is nominated in a new category (The Playwrights Guild Drama Award) that includes unpublished works that have not yet had a professional premiere production.

New Artist to Catalyst

Catalyst Theater has announced its Confluence Artist-in-Residence for 2021/22. Berend McKenzie is an award-winning playwright, producer, actor, screenwriter, and published author in Edmonton. McKenzie’s extensive credits are available on the Catalyst website at catalisttheatre.ca .

The $ 20,000 Confluence Award is designed for BIPOC artists who wish to develop new work and / or works outside of traditional theater models.

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