Announcements

  • Marlene Moser Memorial Scholarship

    The Department of Dramatic Arts lost a cherished colleague and friend, Dr. Marlene Moser, on December 21, 2010.  In her honour we have established the Marlene Moser Memorial Scholarship. To contribute to this Scholarship please send donations to the attention of Norm Bradshaw, Faculty of Humanities, Brock University. The cheque or gift should be made out to Brock University and indicate Marlene Moser Memorial Scholarship. All donations are eligible to be matched dollar for dollar by the provincial government.

    For more information please contact Norm Bradshaw.

    Tags: , , , ,
    Categories: Announcements, Faculty & Instructors, News

  • DART mourns the passing of a friend and colleague.

    Marlene at the Humanities Research Institute Symposium in December, 2006

    It is with deep sadness and grief that we share with you the news of our dear colleague Marlene Moser’s passing on the evening of December 21, 2010.

    Marlene’s courageous five year battle with breast cancer developed into metastasis this past summer.  Her condition started to deteriorate rapidly Monday morning and she was admitted to the Juravinski Hospital Tuesday morning and passed away peacefully Tuesday evening surrounded by all of her family.

    Marlene has been a member of the Brock Community since 2000. During her tenure as professor, researcher, creator, Director and Chair she provided leadership and love to her colleagues and students in the Department of Dramatic Arts.  She was instrumental to the development of the Department as a site of luminous and rigorous investigation of theatre praxis.  Her mentorship of five colleagues through tenure and promotion is but one facet of her legacy to the future of our research, pedagogy, and community. Her presence in the burgeoning theatre scene of St. Catharines was only recently curtailed as she focused her creative energies to meet the challenge of cancer – the vision of her initiatives remains undiminished and in our hearts.

    Marlene fought this cancer with such strength, courage and determination. The Department greatly mourns her passing.

    for more information please see her web page

    see the Brock News article here

    Information about the visitation and an upcoming celebration on January 4th, 2011 is found in the obituary in the Hamilton Spectator.  Here are the details:

    Family and friends may gather at the BAY GARDENS FUNERAL HOME, 1010 Botanical Drive, BURLINGTON, on Tuesday, December 28th between 2-4 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. A celebration of Marlene’s life (reunion) will take place on her birthday, January 4th at the Royal Botanical Gardens at 2 p.m.

    There is also an online Book of Condolence at the above webpage.

    The department will host a memorial event in the new year, with details to come. Download the PDF for the Department of Dramatic Arts’ celebration of her life here.

    In her honour we have established the Marlene Moser Memorial Scholarship. To contribute to this Scholarship please send donations to the attention of Norm Bradshaw nbradshaw@brocku.ca, Faculty of Humanities, Brock University. The cheque or gift should be made out to Brock University and indicate Marlene Moser Memorial Scholarship. All donations are eligible to be matched dollar for dollar by the provincial government.


    Photos:


    Memories:

    Name: Derrick de Kerckhove
    Location: Naples, Italy
    How did you know Marlene?: I directed Marlene’s Phd. thesis
    Your comments: Since I have been away in Europe most of the time since 2008, having lost touch with Marlene a couple of years after she passed her oral – brillantly – I had not heard this heartbreaking news. I remember her elegance, intelligence, determination and freedom of spirit. This is the kind of loss that sinks deep in a community. My best wishes for the recovery of this community.

    if you wish to submit a comment or share a memory about Marlene, please contact dramatic.arts@brocku.ca

    Tags: , ,
    Categories: Announcements, Faculty & Instructors, News

  • Visitors To Brock (2010-2011)

    Artists who will be visiting DART this season include:

    Nina Arsenault

    February 15th, 2011  13h-14h30 DART 3P96  Studies in Praxis II
    Open to the public 15-16h30
    ST 107
    www.ninaarsenault.com

    Jen Capraru
    Thursday February 17, 9h00
    DART 1F95 Drama in Education and Applied Theatre I
    TH 243
    Artistic Director > Theatre Asylum
    ISÔKO | The Theatre Source
    Modern theatre for social harmony and cultural growth in Rwanda
    www.isoko-rwanda.org/
    www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6YoNN6RyKU
    http://www.harbourfrontcentre.com/worldstage1011/themonument.cfm
    www.theatreasylum.com

    Greg Grainger
    Thursday February 17  10h00
    DART 2F41 Stage Craft
    ST 108
    Join students in DART 2F41 for a special presentation by a former student of DART. Grainger will speak of his academic and professional career in theatre. Now a professional technician, Grainger will answer your questions about how to succeed in the Canadian entertainment industry.  Followed by a Q & A
    PDF poster 

    8 Day ALBA Emoting workshop  Guest lecturer Nancy Loitz
    April 22-30 (with the 26th off)
    TH141
    The workshop will be taught in four hour sessions daily, with one day off. The work is described as intimate, intense, and emotional. The workshop is limited to 12 participants.
    ALBA Emoting: Alba Emoting was developed by neuroscientist Dr. Susana Bloch as a safe, purely physical alternative to emotion memory for releasing, maintaining, and controlling emotional states on stage.

    Tags:
    Categories: Announcements, News, Visiting Artists

  • Internationally renowned drama-in-education educator visits Niagara

    The Department of Dramatic Arts, Brock University will host Dr. Jonothan Neelands, a world leader in Drama in Education on Monday, Nov. 1, 2010.

    Neelands will provide an invitational workshop to local Niagara Catholic District School Board (NCDSB) and the District School Board of Niagara (DSBN) secondary teachers between 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., held at Denis Morris Secondary School, 40 Glen Morris Dr., St. Catharines.

    Later that day, between 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., he will give an open two-hour workshop at Brock University held at the Schmon Tower Room ST103. This is a free workshop with a few openings remaining. Interested registrants can contact Joe Norris directly.

    Neelands will conclude his visit to the Niagara region with a one-hour workshop with a Drama in Education class for the Department of Dramatic Arts.

    Joe Norris states, “This is a remarkable opportunity for all those wishing to teach/learn through experiential and role play models of instruction that incorporate multiple intelligences and the use of the imagination.”

    Dr. Jonothan Neelands is a National Teaching Fellow, Chair of Drama and Theatre Education and Director of Teaching and Learning at the University of Warwick. He is an experienced trainer and workshop leader with a national and international reputation for delivering high quality professional training and development opportunities. He is an associate of the CAPITAL Centre for creativity and performance in teaching and learning, which is a joint initiative between the University of Warwick and the Royal Shakespeare Company.

    Neelands plans to return to Brock University next summer to teach a six-day course for the Department of Dramatic Arts about learning through process drama.

    Tags: , , ,
    Categories: Announcements, Current Students, News, Visiting Artists

  • Lyric Canada 2010

    LyricCANADA 2010 – Thursday, October 21 through Saturday, October 23, 2010.

    Brock University, St. Catharines ON (daytime program)
    Shaw Festival, Niagara-on-the-Lake (evening program)

    Lyric Canada 2010 is an inaugural international conference consisting of one Keynote presentation, two Plenary presentations, Moderated Roundtable, 14 presentations by scholars and practitioners, and 15 Showcase presentations involving composers, librettists and performers.

    Lyric Canada 2010 will bring together creators of lyric theatre in Canada and abroad with scholars whose research does or could encompass their work. In this context the term “lyric theatre” encompasses a wide range of dramatic works in which sung text is an integral part. Thus it includes cabaret, musicals, operetta, opera and all points in between.

    By uniting a transnational group of researchers and creators of lyric theatre, we intend to develop a network from which to draw inspiration, expertise and experience for anyone pursuing research or production of this unique art form.

    Why is this an important event?
     This is an innovative ground-breaking project that nobody else is doing.
     For the Department of Dramatic Arts and the Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts this conference broadcasts Community Outreach and collaboration with the Shaw Festival, our major international collaborator in cultural creation and industry in the Niagara Peninsula.
     We are fostering the development and enrichment of Pedagogical Experiences and Institutional Relationships.
     We are bringing internationally known Composers and Writers to share their creative intelligence and experience with the Brock and Niagara communities.

    SHOWCASE PRESENTATIONS AT THE SHAW FESTIVAL

    A special component of the conference program will be the presentation of new and recent works in the Lyric CANADA 2010 Showcase. The Shaw Festival is a major collaborator in this project, facilitating three evenings of presentation of new and recent works in the Lyric Canada 2010 Showcase program in the Studio Theatre at the Shaw Festival. Details of the Showcase program are available on the website lyriccanada.ca. The program includes:

    Leslie Arden One Step Forward 
    Tapestry New Opera: Tapestry’s Creative Process: Marjorie Chan, Writer in Residence as hostess; A writer/composer team from the most recent LIBLAB; 2 Opera Briefs (10 minutes)
    Paul Sportelli, Jay Turvey, and members of the Shaw Company Maria Severa
    Bram Gielen, Tracy Michailidis, with the Summerworks hit Biggish Kids
    among other established and new artists on the Canadian and American lyric theatre scene.

    Tickets to the Showcase performances are available through the
    Centre for the Arts Box Office at Brock University boxoffice.brocku.ca
    (search for lyric)
    905.688.5550 x 3257 (within local region only) or 1.866.617.3257 (outside local region)
    Cost: $25.00 for one evening program; $65.00 for all three evening programs

    PLENARY SPEAKERS

    Stewart Wallace (the composer of Harvey Milk and The Bonesetters Daughter) is coming from Texas en route to China to present the Keynote speech: FATE! LUCK! CHANCE! Adventures in Opera Making

    Sarah Schlesinger, Chair of Graduate Musical Theatre Writing at the Tisch School of Arts (NYU), Sarah is a multiple award-wining lyricist and librettist – her works include The Ballad of Little Joe, Prairie Songs, and Swing Shift. Sarah will be speaking about nurturing and training the next generation of writers and composers in lyric theatre. We are also programming a pedagogical experience between herself and students of the Departments of Music and Dramatic Arts wherein students of Brock can learn from this powerhouse writer in lyric theatre in an intensive workshop moment.

    Our very special guest Canadian Plenary speaker is Jim Betts, Canadian composer, lyricist, and librettist (Colours in the Storm, Thin Ice, Shooting of Dan McGrew), and author of Field of Stars: Songs of the Canadian Musical Theatre (2004) and Field of Stars: More Songs of the Canadian Musical Theatre (2008) (Toronto: Northern River Music). Jim’s provocative presentation is entitled Why Canadians Can’t Write Musicals (And Why Almost No One Else Can, Either)

    PANEL PRESENTATIONS

    Thirty panel presenters from Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States complete the wealth of the panel program to be presented at Brock University.

    A selection of the three-day program includes:

    JOINT SESSION:
    Robert Walsh, composer will present From the Ashes: The development of lyrics in The Forbidden Phoenix, with Wayne Strongman and Tapestry New Opera, Toronto speaking about their production Iron Road

    JOINT SESSION: Kathryn Harvey, University of Guelph’s L. W. Conolly Theatre Archives and Francesca Marini, Stratford Festival, ON, will speak about the challenges of archiving performance, particularly musical theatre, and the wealth of their respective archival collections.

    Mel Atkey, London-based author of Broadway North: The Dream of a Canadian Musical Theatre will speak about his new volume: A Million Miles from Broadway: Musical Theatre from a Universal Perspective

    Julie Salverson, Queen’s University, ON will present Opera meets clown and the Atomic Bomb . . . The development of Shelter 

    Sheldon Rosen, Ryerson University, and Darren Russo, McGill University, will present Hansel & Gretel: Typographic Play

    Please see the online programme schedule at lyriccanada.ca

    The Conference may be attended in whole or in part. Members of the public are welcome to the conference or only attend the evening performances at the Shaw Festival.

    Conference Registration is available at the conference website lyriccanada.ca
    Cost: $150.00 to 290.00 depending upon program and including the Showcase program.

    questions or inquiries, please contact:

    Marie Balsom, Communications
    Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, Brock University
    Niagara Region | 500 Glenridge Ave. | St. Catharines, ON L2S 3A1
    mbalsom@brocku.ca | T 905 688 5550 x4765 | F 905 378 5712

    Your hosts for LyricCANADA 2010:

    Professors Virginia Reh (Dramatic Arts)
    vreh@brocku.ca

    David Vivian (Dramatic Arts/Centre for Studies in Arts and Culture)
    dvivian@brocku.ca

    LyricCANADA 2010 is produced with the generous support of:

    Brock SSHRC Institutional Grant (BSIG)
    The Humanities Research Institute of Brock University
    The Marilyn I Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts
    The Centre for Studies in Arts and Culture
    The Department of Dramatic Arts
    The Department of Music
    Centre of Teaching, Learning and Educational Technologies, at Brock University

    and our special collaborator
    The Shaw Festival

    Hospitality vehicle provided by St. Catharines Mazda

    website: lyriccanada.ca
    general enquiries: info@lyriccanada.ca

    Tags: , ,
    Categories: Announcements, Events, News

  • Dr. Joe Norris appointed to the Department of Dramatic Arts at Brock University

    14-joe-norrisThe Department of Dramatic Arts welcomes Joe Norris to the Department as of July 1, 2009. Joe has had a long history of teaching in, through, and with drama both at the secondary and post-secondary levels and is eager to serve the Ontario educational theatre community. Please see the attached PDF for more information about our new colleague.

    Tags: ,
    Categories: Announcements, Faculty & Instructors, News

  • Excellence in Teaching and Research

    In February 2009 Associate Professor Gyllian Raby was awarded a very significant SSHRC Research and Creation Grant in the Fine and Performing Arts for her project Devised Theatre with Youth in Niagara Schools. Gyllian’s project draws on her RSVP research and is in collaboration with Carousel Players of St. Catharines.

    Services for Students with Disabilities awarded Associate Professor David Fancy the Making A Difference Award from the Services for Students with disABILITIES department in the Student Development Centre. The award was presented in April of 2009.

    In 2008 our part-time instructor in Drama in Education and Society – Suzanne Burchell – received this award.

    Associate Professor David Vivian was awarded the 2009 Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching (Faculty of Humanities), presented at the 2009 June Convocation.

    Part-time Instructor and recent Limited Term Appointee Helen Zdriluk was awarded the Best Practices Recognition Award, 2008 by the Brock Centre for Teaching, Learning and Educational Technologies (CTLET).

    Tags: , , , , , , ,
    Categories: Announcements, Faculty & Instructors, News

  • Niagara Centre for the Arts Receives $36 Million

    (Source: Brock University Web News)

    The city-owned Niagara Centre for the Arts will be adjacent to Brock’s Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts. The project is “the cornerstone of Council’s vision for a revitalized downtown,” St. Catharines Mayor Brian McMullan said.

    Brock University President Jack Lightstone hailed the announcement. “This is a day we have all been looking forward to for a long time,” he said, “not just because this cultural landmark will complement our Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts, but because it illustrates how a whole community can benefit when people work together.”

    Tags: , ,
    Categories: Announcements, News

  • New Concentrations in DART

    Beginning with the 2009/10 academic year DART students choose to pursue their studies in one of five concentrations: Applied TheatreDrama in EducationPerformanceProduction and Design, and Theatre Praxis.

    The previous streams of Dramatic Literature, Drama in Education and Society, and Theatre will be concluded over the next few years.

    Please see the Academic Calendar for more details.

    Tags: , , , , ,
    Categories: Announcements, News

  • The Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts

    Our Department is proud to be a key recipient of the generosity of our local patron, renowned Canadian fibre artist Marilyn Walker. On November 5, 2008 the university announced that she has donated $15 million to Brock’s School of Fine and Performing Arts — the largest donation the University has ever received. With gratitude our School has been renamed the The Marilyn I. Walker School of Fine and Performing Arts. Please see here for more information about this ground-breaking and future-building event. Thank-you, Marilyn!

    Tags: , , ,
    Categories: Announcements, News