Media releases

• Vampires descending on downtown arts school for Brock’s mainstage production

  Friday, February 17, 2023 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE: 17 February 2023 – R0016

  The undead will make their debut next month in downtown St. Catharines.

  Moira Buffini’s A Vampire Story, the mainstage production from Brock University’s Department of Dramatic Arts, opens at the Marilyn I. Walker Theatre Friday, March 3.

  Directed by Associate Professor of Dramatic Arts Gyllian Raby with Assistant Director Lucas Irving, the play combines the ridiculous and sublime to tell the tale of a conflicted vampire who yearns to be human.

  The show follows Ella, a vampire who is new to a small town that has been plagued by disappearing high school students and teachers.

  Seeking to become more human, she decides to stop drinking blood and to be honest about her undead state, her vampire mother and her horrific past.

  But Ella’s honesty isn’t well received by the community. Her life is upended as she is ostracized and hunted — all while falling in love and sorting out her priorities in a small town where the residents are as bizarre and insatiable as vampires.

  Raby has an affinity for intelligent, culturally astute comedy. Her productions of Shaw’s Passion, Poison and Petrifaction, the jazz/tap musical Fingers and Toes, Nicolai Erdman’s Russian farce The Suicide! and the international Clown show hit Don’t Do It – Do It have been acclaimed by audiences in Canada, the U.S., the U.K. and Thailand.

  “A Vampire Story is broad and bold,” says Raby, “and not for the faint of heart.”

  The mainstage production includes set design by Nigel Scott, costume design by Alexa Fraser and lighting design by Chris Malkowski, with music direction and live band leadership by Joe Lapinski. A Vampire Story showcases the talents of Brock Dramatic Arts students Hayley King, Simone Cinapri, Maiya Irwin, Thea Van Loon, Alex De Cicco, Cal Webb Wilkinson, Hunter Brown, Nathan Faigundo, Emma van Barneveld, Tyra Hayward, Celine Zamidar, Michelle Shortt, Benoit St. Aubain, Kaitlyn Boyer, Isaiah Alton and Zakk Milne.

  Tickets for the play are $20 for the general public and $16 for students and seniors. Anyone interested in high school group tickets is asked to contact Brian Cumberland at bcumberland@brocku.ca

  For a full schedule of performances or to purchase tickets, visit the Brock University Tickets website.

  A media preview day will take place Thursday, Feb. 23 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Marilyn I. Walker Theatre. Images and assets from this performance will be available by emailing Charles Kim, Marketing and Communications Officer at Brock’s Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, at ckim2@brocku.ca 

  Additional information about the production and the Department of Dramatic Arts can be found on the department’s website.

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews: 

  * Doug Hunt, Communications and Media Relations Specialist, Brock University dhunt2@brocku.ca or 905-941-6209

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  Categories: Media releases

• Pink Shirt Day: Signs suggest bullying may rise beyond pre-pandemic levels, says Brock expert

  Friday, February 17, 2023 | By Brock University

  MEDIA RELEASE: 17 February 2023 – R0015

  Many aspects of life have returned to their pre-pandemic state — and school bullying is sadly no exception, says Brock University researcher Tony Volk.

  As people prepare to don their pink shirts Feb. 22 in recognition of anti-bullying awareness, the Brock University Child and Youth Studies Professor is drawing attention to findings that suggest a further increase in bullying may be on the horizon.

  Since the fall, Volk and his team have been surveying almost 1,000 Grade 8 to 12 students in Niagara, hoping to learn more about bullying trends before and after the most impactful days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

  While data from around the world has shown bullying rates were down during COVID, Volk’s data shows they have since returned to pre-pandemic levels.

  “This rebound suggests that bullying is a deeply-rooted behaviour that doesn’t depend on short-term cues,” says Volk, a member of the Brock Research on Aggression and Victimization Experiences (BRAVE), one of Canada’s largest teams of child and youth bullying experts.

  While bullying has returned to pre-pandemic rates, incivility has further increased, he says. This form of misbehaviour, which is more reliant on short-term learning, includes actions such as not lining up, talking out of turn, eating during class and being rude.

  “That’s important, because a lack of civility can lead to future bullying,” Volk says. “We are monitoring the data to see if this rise in incivility is temporary or if it will also increase bullying moving forward.”

  While Volk has heard parents say they believe bullying has already gotten worse than it was prior to the pandemic, he says that’s likely because it was absent during those restrictive times, along with many social relationships — both good and bad.

  Volk’s research suggests that another consequence of the pandemic is that girls are now emerging from those unprecedented times with elevated levels of mental health challenges, including anxiety and depression.

  “It’s a small, but noticeable difference,” Volk says, adding it may be due in part to the pandemic’s increase of sometimes problematic online behaviour.

  “It appears boys were able to maintain more positive online relationships than girls were,” he says. “That’s a pretty common trend, as boys more often get together to play a game online, while girls more often use their online time to gossip and compare.”

  Tony Volk, Brock University Professor of Child and Youth Studies, is available for media interviews on the topic. A video of Volk discussing Pink Shirt Day is also available on YouTube for media use.

  For more information or for assistance arranging interviews:

  * Maryanne St. Denis, Manager, Content and Communications, Brock University mstdenis@brocku.ca or 905-246-0256

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  Categories: Media releases