Articles by author: Brock University

  • ‘The Changing Face of Theatre Criticism in the Digital Age,’ A remarkable two-day colloquium with international reach, part of the Walker Cultural Leader Series for 2013-14

    Saturday, February 22, 2014 | By

    Listening to theatre companies, they’ve never needed theatre critics more. Listening to them after a bad review, they’ve also never resented them more. This strange dance of mutual need has been going on since the first time someone recited dialogue on stage, and someone in the next day’s paper wrote "it doth sucked, verily." But what of that relationship today? Do critics matter? Can anyone with a blog call themselves a theatre critic? Are critics there to serve theatre companies or readers? (John Law)

    See the complete article by media journalist John Law in the Niagara Falls Review about his recent participation in the two-day colloquium ‘The Changing Face of Theatre Criticism in the Digital Age‘ organized by Professor Karen Fricker of the Department of Dramatic Arts on the occasion of the special visit by Jill Dolan, Annan Professor in English, Professor of Theater in the Lewis Center for the Arts, Director, Program in Gender and Sexuality Studies, at Princeton University, noted theatre blogger (thefeministspectator.com) and a Walker Cultural Leader for 2013-14.  Special guests J. Kelly Nestruck of The Globe and Mail and Richard Ouzounian of the Toronto Star joined local guests and luminaries including cultural leaders like Jackie Maxwell, artistic director of the Shaw Festival, and Steve Solski, director of the St. Catharines Centre for the Performing Arts.

    The two day program began with the Friday morning public lecture, “Moving the Body Politic: How Feminism and Theatre Inspire Social Re-imaginings” by Professor Jill Dolan.  The lecture was presented in association with the Department of Dramatic Arts and the Centre for Women’s and Gender Studies.

    For a complete list of participants and more information please see the Brock News Article, the Department of Dramatic Arts and the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts web pages.

    There event was marked by a remarkable and rich participation by members of the Niagara region and our international guests. Photos of the event may be viewed at the FB page of the Department of Dramatic Arts and tweeted commentary may be viewed at dartcritics.com .

    The stimulating exchange of ideas and opinions in this "blossoming" cultural scene of Niagara (Professor Karen Fricker) were live-streamed at http://brockvideocenter.brocku.ca/videos/ and are now available (unedited) for viewing at:

    http://brockvideocenter.brocku.ca/videos/video/516/
    http://brockvideocenter.brocku.ca/videos/video/517/
    http://brockvideocenter.brocku.ca/videos/video/518/

    Categories: News, Uncategorised

  • Renowned Canadian Theatre Director visits Department of Dramatic Arts

    Wednesday, February 19, 2014 | By

    On 13 February, 2014, the director Peter Hinton visited the Department of Dramatic Arts for a two-hour talk about his work as a director and adaptor. He responded to questions from students in DART 3P96: Studies in Praxis – Theatre Criticism, as well as from other students in the department.

    Hinton spoke about a number of his recent projects, including his adaptation of Chekhov’s The Seagull, which premiered Montreal’s Segal Centre in February 2014; his 2013 Shaw Festival production of Wilde’s Lady Windermere’s Fan; and his upcoming staging of the musical Cabaret, also at Shaw. Discussion focused on Hinton’s research processes and how these inform his directorial concepts, in particular on his approach to existing and canonical works. Hinton also spoke about his relationship to theatre critics: "I’m not after five stars; I’m after a respectful dialogue," Hinton said of the critics who regularly review his work. "I don’t want to be in search of [their] praise or victim of [their] ignorance." When asked for his advice for a new generation of Canadian theatre artists and professionals, Hinton reminded the group that the professional relationships they form during their student years may be the most important ones in their careers, and urged them to consider their professional creative lives as already underway: "I always thought that theatre was an elite club to get into, but theatre already belongs to you."

    Hinton has worked with major theatre companies across Canada including Theatre Passe Muraille and Canadian Stage; Playwrights Theatre Centre in Vancouver; Playwrights Workshop Montr_al; and the Stratford and Shaw Festivals. He was the director of the English theatre division of the National Arts Centre from 2005-2011, and is originally from Toronto.

     

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    Categories: News, Uncategorised

  • Dr. Fanny Dolansky wins international award for Gender Studies article

    Monday, January 20, 2014 | By

    Congratulations to Dr. Fanny Dolansky who is the 2014 recipient of the Barbara McManus award for best published article on women’s or gender studies in antiquity and Classics for her study "Playing with Gender: Girls, Dolls, and Adult Ideals in the Roman World", published in /Classical Antiquity/ 31.2 (2012): 256-292. The award is sponsored by the Women’s  Classical Caucus, an affiliate of the American Philological Association.

     

    Categories: News, Uncategorised

  • Centre for Digital Humanities pleased to host Every1Games’ Video Game Design programs

    Wednesday, November 27, 2013 | By

    Every1Games offers Video Game Design programs designed to be low anxiety learning environments for youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder. The Niagara Region workshops will be held in the Centre for Digital Humanities at Brock University.

    For more information please visit:
    http://every1games.ca/programs/category/niagara-workshops-at-the-center-for-digital-humanities-at-brock-university/

    Advanced Videogame Design and Digital Art

    Dates: Tuesdays, 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm (November 18th to December 17th)
    Location: Centre for Digital Humanities, Brock University

    E1G Niagara’s Digital Kids

    Dates: Saturdays, 9:30 am to 3:30 pm (November 21st to December 21st)
    Location: Centre for Digital Humanities, Brock University

    Introduction to Videogame Design and Digital Art

    Dates: Saturdays, 9:30 am to 3:30 pm (November 21st to December 21st)
    Location: Centre for Digital Humanities, Brock University

     

     

    Categories: News, Uncategorised

  • Dramatic Arts Professor directs Canadian premiere of a Benjamin Britten opera

    Tuesday, November 19, 2013 | By

    The 2013-2014 season of Toronto’s Voicebox/Opera in Concert showcases some ‘rarities of performance’ and features Gloriana by Benjamin Britten.

    The one-time concert performance at the Jane Mallet Theatre in Toronto is directed by Brock University Dramatic Arts Professor Virginia Reh.
     
    Gloriana was composed for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in June 1953 and VOICEBOX’s performance marks the 100Th Anniversary of the Composer’s birth.

    Queen Elizabeth I is approaching the end of her reign. Her affection for the impressive Earl of Essex is tested when he grows increasingly ambitious. Should she listen to the guidance of her advisors or be swayed by emotion? Moving from the pomp of state ceremony to the intimacy of the Queen’s private rooms, Gloriana depicts the public and private faces of the Virgin Queen, and the deterioration of her relationship with the impulsive Earl of Essex.

    The opera features 15 soloists. In this concert production 10 of the soloists will be coming out of the chorus. The production is in memory of Reh’s friend Stephen Ireland who passed away last October from complications arising from prostate cancer.  The production is sponsored by his foundation.

    Professor Reh will be directing the next mainstage production of the Department of Dramatic Arts, Jehanne of the Witches, opening February 13, 2014.
        
    BENJAMIN BRITTEN
    GLORIANA

    Sunday, November 24, 2013 — 2:30pm
    IN english
    Jane Mallett Theatre (at the St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts) Sunday, November 24 @2:30 p.m.

    purchase tickets here

    Featuring
    Peter Tiefenbach, Music Director and Pianist
    Virginia Reh, Dramatic Advisor
    Robert Cooper, Chorus Director

    Betty Waynne Allison as Queen Elizabeth I
    Jennifer Sullivan as Penelope (Lady Rich)
    Adam Luther as Lord of Essex
    Dion Mazerrole as Cecil
    Jesse Clark as Lord Mountjoy
    Christina Campsall as Countess of Essex
    Marco Petracchi as Sir Walter Raleigh
    Domenico Sanfilippo as Henry Cuffe
    Fabian Arciniegas as The Recorder of Norwich
    Joshua Wales as The Spirit of the Masque
    Keenan Viau as The Master of Ceremonies
    Gregory Finney as Old Man
    Lise Maher as Page
    Jessika Monea as Lady in Waiting
     

    Categories: News, Uncategorised

  • TWELFTH NIGHT, (or what you will) a comedy by William Shakespeare at the Department of Dramatic Arts

    Wednesday, November 06, 2013 | By

    TWELFTH NIGHT, (or what you will)

    a comedy by William Shakespeare

    November 7-9, 2013 at 7:30 PM
    Student Matinee November 08 at 11:30 AM

    DIRECTED BY Gyllian Raby.
    Co-Director and Vocal Coach: Danielle Wilson
    Assistant Director and Dramaturge: Keavy Lynch

    If music be the food of love, play on!
    “Twelfth Night, (or what you will)” presented on stage at the Sean O’Sullivan Theatre

    The Department of Dramatic Arts’ rendition of Twelfth Night gives this classic Shakespearean comedy a 20th century twist, setting it in the 1950s and taking audiences to the era of soul-searching country blues. This production runs November 7, 8 and 9, 2013 at 7:30 p.m., and November 8 at 11:30 a.m., held at the Sean O’Sullivan Theatre, Brock University.

    The magical fictitious kingdom of Illyria is a modern world where boys are boys and girls are girls and subterranean passions blow apart rigid conventions. Fools, lovers, and shipwrecked souls grapple adverse fortunes and comic misunderstandings to find what truth and love might mean. To meet Shakespeare’s demand that Illyria be a land where music is “the food of love,” we present the fool musician Feste as the leader of a country blues band.

    The production is a directorial collaboration between Dramatic Arts faculty Gyllian Raby and Danielle Wilson, assisted by Keavy Lynch. Raby states, “We are performing Twelfth Night using music rooted in contemporary culture, so although this production is not a musical, music is threaded throughout the play.” Wilson adds, “The play has many of the elements common to Elizabethan romantic comedy, including the devices of mistaken identity, separated twins, and gender-crossing disguise, and its plot revolves around whether one can manage betrayal, and overcome the obstacles to truth and love.“

    media release (PDF)

    Facebook Event

    High-School teachers should read this letter about the Matinee performance opportunities available for Twefth Night (November 2013) and Jehanne of the Witches (February 2014)  (PDF)

    A Study Guide is available for review,
    prepared by Gyllian Raby and Keavy Lynch:
    download to print a copy (PDF, 2.0 MB)

    watch this preview on Cogeco TV:

     

    see the article in the Brock News!

    Twelfth Night image

    (From left): Sean Rintoul, Chris Chapman and Bri Lidstone perform in the Department of Dramatic Arts production of Twelfth Night, which opens Nov. 7 at the Sean O’Sullivan Theatre.

    Announcing $5.00 Fridays!
    all holders of Brock ID cards – students, staff and faculty – are invited to take advantage of a special new price for the Matinee mainstage performance. Please present your ID card upon purchase of your ticket.

    Tickets for all performances including the $5.00 Friday Matinees are available through the  Box Office of the Centre for the Arts
    or  905.688.5550  x 3257

    For more information, please contact Marie Balsom, Co-ordinator of the School of Fine and Performing Arts, at 905-688-5550, ext. 4765; e-mail: mbalsom@brocku.ca

     

    Categories: News, Uncategorised

  • Full-time Teaching Opportunity in the Department of Dramatic Arts

    Tuesday, October 29, 2013 | By

    Assistant Professor – Drama in Education/Applied Theatre and Performance

    The Department of Dramatic Arts in the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts at Brock University invites applications for a tenure-track appointment in Drama in Education/Applied Theatre and Performance at the rank of Assistant Professor starting July 1st, 2014. The position is subject to final budgetary approval.

    Qualifications

    The successful candidate must hold a PhD with an emphasis on process drama/participatory theatre and exhibit exemplary practice in the profession. Teaching experience in elementary/secondary schools is an asset. Applicants should be able to teach courses with mixed studio/lecture components as well as larger-scale survey courses and studio performance intensives.

    The successful candidate will teach a range of courses in drama in education, applied theatre, performance, movement, and praxis. The preferred individual will bring knowledge of a spectrum of teaching methodologies in diverse pedagogical situations and critical performance theory, as well as expertise in synthesizing these modes of knowledge. The individual will engage energetically with departmental production activity, specifically the conceptualization and realization of departmental main-stage events and/or outreach educational outcomes. Skills in a secondary area featuring interdisciplinary research and practice may also be of value. Administrative skills are a definite asset.

    The salary is competitive and commensurate with qualifications.

    Notes

    The Department of Dramatic Arts offers a BA Honours in Dramatic Arts. For Honours students, Concentrations are available in Drama in Education/Applied Theatre, Performance, Production and Design, and Theatre Praxis. The Department also offers a four-year (20 credit) BA with Major Dramatic Arts degree and a three-year BA Pass degree, as well as two concurrent BA (Honours)/BEd programs over five years. For more information, see www.brocku.ca/dramatic_arts/

    Located at the center of Canada’s beautiful Niagara peninsula in St. Catharines, Ontario, we are a community of learners and researchers with a strong and expanding regional base, with excellent resources in cultural, social, and athletic enrichment. Canadian and American metropolitan centres are within easy distance.

    In the summer of 2015 the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, including the Department of Dramatic Arts, will move to its new comprehensive facility in downtown St. Catharines, adjacent to a new regional performing arts centre built by the City of St. Catharines.

    Applications will include a brief covering letter, a letter of intent (1200 words max.) and a current curriculum vitae including a teaching dossier and/or artistic/academic portfolio in a theatrical field (mask, movement, directing, publications etc.). A five-year research plan should indicate directions for the future. In addition, candidates will provide the names of three referees who will be contacted in the event of a short listing. Please address applications to:

    Professor David Vivian
    Chair, Department of Dramatic Arts
    Brock University
    St. Catharines ON L2S 3A1
    dvivian@brocku.ca

    The application deadline is December 10th, 2013. This position is subject to budgetary approval. More information on Brock University may be found on the University’s website: www.brocku.ca. Brock University is actively committed to diversity and the principles of Employment Equity and invites applications from all qualified candidates. Women, Aboriginal peoples, members of visible minorities, and people with disabilities are especially encouraged to apply and to voluntarily self identify as a member of a designated group as part of their application. Candidates who wish to have their application considered as a member of one or more designated groups should fill out the Self-Identification Form available at http://www.brocku.ca/hr-ehs/career-opportunities-2 and include the completed form with their application. All qualified candidates are encouraged to apply; however, Canadians and permanent residents will be given priority.

    This posting can be found at
    www.brocku.ca/hr/careers/position_detail.php?id=1370

    Categories: News, Uncategorised

  • Prof. Adam Dickinson’s book of poetry nominated for national literary award

    Friday, October 04, 2013 | By

    Prof. Adam Dickinson’s latest poetry book titled The Polymers, published by House of Anansi Press in 2013 has been shortlisted for a Governor General’s Literary Award.

    Categories: News, Uncategorised

  • New degree program in English and Creative Writing approved by Senate

    Friday, September 27, 2013 | By

    New English and Creative Writing Degree program

    The program is comprised of writing workshops and larger enrolment, lecture-based courses.  In the former, students learn the craft of key literary genres while in the latter, they examine the material and social contexts of creative writing.  In this way, the program allows students the opportunity to develop their talents within an academic environment that emphasizes the crucial role of creative writing and writers in both literary and public communities.

     

    Categories: News, Uncategorised

  • Dramatic Arts Professor receives prestigious Richard Plant Award

    Friday, September 27, 2013 | By

    The Canadian Association for Theatre Research has, since its inception, been the principal catalyst for expansion of theatre research in Canada. The Association works to promote research and publication of the results of this research into Canadian theatre and drama. Every year, CATR announces the results of awards for innovative and forward thinking research into theatre and drama in Canada.

    Dr. Natalie Alverez, associate professor in the Department of Dramatic Arts at Brock University was recently awarded the Richard Plant Award by the Canadian Association for Theatre Research for her essay "Realisms of Redress: Alameda Theatre and the Formation of a Latina/o Canadian Theatre and Politics". This essay, published in New Canadian Realisms: New Essays on Canadian Theatre edited by Roberta Baker and Kim Solga, digs deeply into the pressing practical and scholarly debates concerning racial embodiment on Canadian stages. It is grounded in a rich historical survey of policies, practices and theoretic debates on identity and casting that have shaped Canadian theatre practice. Her arguments draw from the perspective of a Latina/o Canadian theatre culture in formation, particularly as demonstrated by the distinctive casting practices of Toronto’s Alameda Theatre that seek a repressive realism. Professor Alvarez provocatively argues for the potential of an indexical realism to build the foundation for a more viable realism of redress.

    At the 2013 Congress, Alvarez’s two edited books on Latina/o Canadian theatre and performance Fronteras Viventes: Eight Latina/o Canadian Plays and Latina/o Canadian Theatre and Performance were launched at the annual Playwrights Canada Press luncheon. These books are the first collections on Latina/o Canadian theatre and performance and engage in a cross-border dialogue with prominent and emerging US and Canadian scholars who take a hemispheric perspective in their examinations of Canadian “Latinidad.”

    Professor Alvarez has been busy the last few years traveling for her Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada funded research project in performance studies which investigates live, immersive simulations in a variety of contexts. In her investigation into the emergence of "dark-tourism", Alvarez has observed interactions between soldiers and Afgan actors in mock Afgan villages constructed for the final phase of intensive training. She also spent a week in the Utah mountains at an immersive "insurgent training camp" for US military and law enforcement personnel. She presented her research findings at the 2011 American Society of Theatre Research in Montreal in a working session on war and war-time performance. Prior to 2011, Alvarez’s proposal on the illegal border crossing reenactments for tourists in El Alberto, Mexico was selected for the American Society of Theatre Research’s opening plenary panel at the 2009 conference in Puerto Rico.

    The Department of Dramatic Arts congratulates Professor Alvarez for her award and looks forward to the new knowledge and experiences she will share with the students when she rejoins the department in July 2014.

    Categories: News, Uncategorised

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