{W5H} Tracey Erin Smith

Tracey Erin Smith is one of those people you meet and it feels like you've known each other since high school. Or are currently in high school together.  She has such a contagiously positive vibe about her, but with a tinge of that all refreshing bite that you need in a good high school buddy. If we were in high school together, I imagine that we would be those two girls in the back of Period Three World Issues, who would diligently take down notes and participate in important World Issues debates, but would also spontaneously giggle and be caught many-a-time for passing notes to each other in class [like "Tretorns are soooo 1988"].


It's this quality that makes Tracey the best kind of teacher. She's been igniting creativity in people of all ages for the past decade as founder and creator of soulOtheatre - an exciting program that designed to help people create their own one-person show. 


And you can sure as hell bet that in her class, spontaneous giggles and passing notes would be encouraged, if not required.

Who was your favourite teacher(s)?
Mr. Moses.  He was my English teacher at Claude Watson High School for the Performing Arts in Toronto.  Mr. Moses had a white beard and rode a motorcycle.  One day I gave him yet another baloney excuse why my English homework wasn’t done. He looked me straight in the eye and said: “You know Tracey, every time you lie, you give a piece of your soul away.”  

When did you discover your identity through art ?
When I wrote my one-woman show, “The Burning Bush!”  It was autobiographical in a fantastical kind of way.  I made my main character over come my worst fear of having to do a strip tease in front of the audience. In rehearsal I pretty much had a panic attack when it came time to rehearse that scene and we incorporated that panic attack into the show.  The character hyperventilates and makes sounds like a sick animal right before she runs on stage and takes off most of her clothes.  So the process of creating a solo show that was loosely based on my childhood dreams of becoming a Rabbi and my fear of getting naked taught, me a lot about myself.  The identity it helped me discover is that I hover somewhere between being a Rabbi and an exotic dancer.

Why do you feel it would benefit artists to collaborate?
Creative collaboration is definitely an inspiring equation of the sum being bigger than it’s individual parts.  I have seen in solo show classes I lead that working in a group helps creators come up with ideas they may not have got to on their own.  It’s such a cool moment when a class mate says just the thing you need to hear to put that missing piece in place for you that takes your show to the next level.  It’s awesome when that happens. Everyone wins.  The creator has a breakthrough and the classmate that gave the idea gets the instant satisfaction of helping someone in a creative and meaningful way.  
 
Where is it that you find, are the most valued elements in art?
What I most value is when someone reveals a truth about him/herself and therefore shares with us what it is to be human. I am so moved by honesty. It takes courage to be honest. It can be the hardest and the most freeing thing to reveal the truth, your truth.    
 
What is your artist style?
I asked my fiancé to answer this question and he said:  My artist style is compassionate, humanistic, loving and passionate.  (He may be a little biased)  I would add that my style to use what ever means are necessary to help others find their authentic style.  I try to bring all of who I am to my teaching and hope that that give those present the permission and safe environment to let all of themselves come out and play. I have noticed when people feel free to be themselves, they create more material for their show and the more they can connect with the beauty, humour and the absurdity of the human experience.
 
How do you share your style?
Recently some fellow theatre artists and some of my class participants said they see me as:  a Sassy Mystic, a Soulful Sh*t Disturber, a Vixon Superhero Teacher and a Mind Reading Stripper!  It came out of a writing exercise we did to identify who you would be if you were to be a ‘character’ in a play.  Because when you do an autobiographical one-person show, you are a character, the main character!  So it is extremely helpful in the writing to take a step back and see yourself as a character.  I would call this sharing your soul-style with the audience, hence the name soulOtheatre.  

[L'il Tracey]

Tracey is founder and creator of soulOtheatre, and an award-winning solo performer and playwright. Her hit one-woman show The Burning Bush! has been performed Off-Off Broadway in New York City, Toronto, Vancouver, Edmonton and Halifax.

Tracey will be teaching her weekend workshop in New York City, April 15-17 at The TheaterLab.

Thanks Frost for the wonderful set of W5H Questions.

{fieldnotes} : the paprika festival

I had the pleasure of taking in a wonderful reading this past Saturday of a splendid new play, Henry and Lucy, by Rosamund Small.  Bravo Rosamund on your beautifully crafted play, filled with insight, humour, wonderful characters and kinetic dialogue.

Congratulations to The Paprika Festival and ten years of championing emerging young artists!

[The beaming Artistic Producer, Rob Kempson]

{omb} vintage - 5 simple rules for romance

January 1, 1988

twelve-years old

Note: bubble-style exclamation marks = severity and utmost importance.

{friday classics} - year of the pig

february 2 2009
bisogno

darrel said to me
"you're not 12 years older than i am. that would make you a pig"

{dressing room essentials} keith barker

As I mentioned earlier, I was doing a show at LKTYP [soon to be changed back to YPT in July] at this time last year. I loved my little dressing room - the temperamental dimmer on the lights, well-used chairs, the utilitarian hooks. In between scenes, I used to go into that little room and imagine how casts-gone-by would personalize this blank-canvas of a space for themselves. 

In this new feature, I've asked friends in shows to take a picture or two [or in Keith's case, four] of their dressing room spaces and send me a list of 5 things they consider essential for their space and why. 

First up, Keith Barker. Ask anyone about Keith and undoubtedly they will say "he's one of the nicest guys I've ever met". So true. He's also a wonderful photographer. Keith is currently acting in Tombs of a Vanishing Indian by Marie Clements at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre.  

1. script.  i like to have it on hand so i can look at my notes, to run lines, to check beats, blocking and other such things.
2. smudge kit.  in the last few years i've been in several plays that dealt with some very difficult material.  smudging grounds me, and clears my head and heart.
3. valor.  it's an essential oil i use during shows.  some wise women gave it to me during a show once and i've used it ever since.
4. water bottle. nothing like keeping hydrated.  especially when i start getting the nervousness.
5. coffee.  i like a little java before a show.  my mom likes a cup of coffee at night and i like that she is part of my preshow ritual.   

Tombs of a Vanishing Indian is on stage until March 27th. 

Keith's debut play The Hours that Remain will have a public reading on March 28th, 2011 as Part of Foundry Theatre Company's current season.


ps. I love that valor is essential.

{lost and found} cbc's outfront

In the fall of the 2007, I travelled to Saskatchewan for the first time and took my mom with me. It wasn't mom's first time. She lived there from 1967 to 1969. But she hadn't been back there in forty years.

[mom in front of training hospital, Prince Albert Saskatchewan 1967]

Mom immigrated from rural Philippines to rural Saskatchewan in 1967. She responded to an ad in a Filipino newspaper saying Canada was recruiting nurses. A letter and a few documents sent and received, soon she was on a plane to Canada, where, in exchange for nursing, she would become a Canadian citizen*.


That trip in 2007 was overwhelming, wonderful and emotional. Not only was it a homecoming of sorts, it was also the first time I'd travelled anywhere with just my mom. This trip was research for a play I am writing inspired by her first to years in Canada [more on that later]. As an added bonus, I successfully pitched the trip to CBC Radio's documentary program Outfront. The resulting piece, Yellow Rubber Boots, aired on the CBC in March 2008 and lived in what I believed was podcast perpetuity on the Outfront CBC Website. I was wrong.


In March 2009, as part of sweeping cutbacks at the CBC, Outfront was cancelled. I naively believed that despite the cut, the Outfront archives would still exist on the CBC website. Nope.


I am sure you can imagine my delight when a recent google search discovered a website called Methings.com had archived all the episodes of The Best of Outfront. And lo and behold, I found my piece, mislabeled in the week of of March 12, 2006, but who cares!


So, in the spirit of lost and found, here's the link to the radio documentary Yellow Rubber Boots. Have a listen if you have the time. And rummage through the rest of the archives to listen to more buried treasures.

[mom in front of training hospital, Prince Albert Saskatchewan, 40 years later]

*I've been ruminating a lot over the past few days on this article published in this past Saturday's Globe and Mail. Moreover, I have been upset over the comments online and feeling rather helpless about it.  Instead of adding to the comments, this blogpost is my Playwright-Daughter-of-a-First-Wave-Filipino-Canadian response.

{W5H} Marcelino DaCosta aka. Frost

There are some people you meet who just resonate. Marcelino, aka Frost, is one of those people. We met at the Canadian Stage intensive. I was struck by his passion, curiosity, vulnerability and wisdom. On the first day of the intensive, he said something that had such an impact on how I view our work as Artist Educators. He said "We are meant to serve. We are servants"; a concept that I find full of both humility and purpose. 


He's the kind of person that you want to walk into your classroom, community or studio, because he is there to learn as much as he is there to teach. 

Who first gave you the confidence to be an artist? Who first gave you the confidence to be an educator?

I'd say, that I’ve always been drawn to art, pardon the pun. I'm originally a visual "artist" and became a street dancer in 98' focusing on original Hip-Hop style of "B-Boying" which I am still a practitioner of today.  Through training and growing with my crew, performing, winning competitions, meeting comrades around the world and learning from pioneers as well as true students of the art and culture, I began to form more confidence. After graduating from Sheridan College studying community outreach and development, I met one of my first educator/producer inspirations, Beth Gignac who is well known in the City of Mississauga, is currently an Arts Manager for the City of Calgary. She inspired me to think bigger and not be afraid of producing compelling ideas that could bridge gaps between people or arts and culture, as well as encourage my perspective around social justice.


What inspires your work as an artist educator? What feeds you? 
Life inspires my work, learning more wisdom from living- doing things right or making mistakes. Education, I'm currently working on my degree at York University doing Fine Arts & Cultural studies.  Growth in my craft, learning more history for sharing material that's based on experience, understanding relationships between people and how they interact also inspire me. Another thing that feeds me is when I create or learn more techniques to apply along with my experimentation. I make it my signature to never teach the same class twice, you never fully know what you'll get, except that either way it's gonna be quality and something to grow with and discuss.

When did you first feel like an "artist"? 
Been trying to be careful with that term "Artist" it has a lot of social constructs attached to it that may imply a level of supremacy.  I was ok with that for awhile? *laughing* cause I've been used to feeling that what I do makes me a like a superhero! and why not? like others who do what I do - I have an alter ego, a performance character and have supernormal abilities.  However I think a term like practitioner would better define and represent how I feel about Hip-Hop culture and my role within it. I began to feel like a true practitioner after I started teaching what I do, learning from pioneers locally and developing my own theories around creating original concepts. I think also when you learn to know your worth and make your exchanges the way you want (whatever those may be) then you're on the right track in my opinion. 

Where do you "work"?
That depends on the context, if I'm professionally doing "work", then it's in studios, community centres, drop-ins, schools, public and private venues, other communities. Some of my most favourite and full filling work is with my crew "Ground illusionz", a community Hip-Hop Group I formed in 1999. "G.I." works on an informal grassroots level for the purpose of training young practitioners of hip-Hop culture to professionally develop, compete, perform and teach and gain life skills. I also work as a facilitator with UNITY Charity, which is a not-for-profit public health organization. We offer alternative arts education and opportunities using Urban Non-violent Initiatives Through Youth. And finally, the work I've gained some my most relevant experience, is being a senior facilitator for the world renown "BluePrintForLife- Social Work through Hip-Hop" organization. BluePrint works with various indigenous communities across Canada's remote Arctic with the intentions of fostering the sharing of traditional culture & promoting healing.  Other stuff I consider "work" would be on myself (if there is really a self) I'm always trying to grow professionally and personally.


Why do you think arts education is valuable in today's capital-based world?
I'll make this one simple. Humans encouraged to learn and practice the arts, in short - is like creating and maintaining the most amazing custom vehicle of your dreams. If one learns and practices the arts, they travel more freely on the map of life, by evolving their perspective and problem solving skills, learn to have stronger values and cultural sensitivity, direction and aesthetic sensibility, formulate an opinion with facts and reason, promote healing, develop a sense of identity and imagination, unify with a community and think critically.  Problem is that most people in positions of power don't like their people getting smarter and/or having their own voice.  I don't need to explain why, the rest is 'his'tory.


How did you come to your first experience with the professional arts?
Probably at the same time in my development when I cognitively understood the concept of "performance" and the level of skill it takes to accomplish things that seem so simple, powerful or didactic. I would witness this at rock concerts, underground Hip-Hop shows and seeing my heroes based out of the Toronto scene like "Bag of Trix", "Intrikt", & "Boogie Brats" doing their thing in 99'.   After that, my personal history in growing as an artist/practitioner lead me to experience performing, competing and teaching, one understands "professional arts" more when they actually live life that way. It's different when you're on the inside actually bleeding for what you do, that's when your perspective can't be contested.

[vintage Frost]

Marcelino is a Professional Street Dancer and Community Outreach Worker. He has worked with people of all ages in Mississauga, Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Whitehorse and Halifax. 


Thanks Rob Kempson for this great set of W5H questions.

{speed date} : locavore edition - byron abalos

A stones-throw to the east of where I live is The Distillery, which is home to, among other things, The Young Centre for the Performing Arts. Tonight David Yee's play Paper Series, opens there. And in the cast is Byron Abalos.


Byron is like family. The kind of family that you may not see very often, even though you live in the same city. But when you see him, it's pure joy. He's the kind of family that you love to tease and also beam with pride about [ie. named one of NOW Magazine's Top 10 Theatre Artists for 2010, and his play Brown Balls is premiering at the Factory Theatre in May]. By wears his heart on his sleeve in everything he does. He's the kind of person that once you get to know him, you'd say, yeah, that guy's family.


Among the many things on By's resumé is the comedy troupe Asiansploitation. In this Speed Date, Byron answers questions from fellow Asiansploit-er, Gene Abella*. 

So what do you do?
I act, write, produce and play. Oh and I like to dance.

How long have you been a cop?
Shhhh, I'm undercover. I do have a Chicago Police t-shirt that I like to use when I'm in the US.

What made you want to come to something like this (Because there is a surprising amount to eligible and attractive women that go to these things.)?
My wife and I always wanted to go to speed dating thing together. When we finally came to each other, we were planning to start making out vigorously and storming out together in a passionate embrace. But we thought it might be too mean a prank.

When was the last time your were on a date?
This past Monday. My wife and I found that Plaza Flamingo has an $8.99 buffet! Fried plantains...yum.

What do you do for fun?
Play basketball, do crosswords, watch movies, karaoke and play games - lots and lots of games. Of either the electronic or the board variety, not the ones involving hearts.

So the Leafs are 4 points away from the playoff spot do you think they have a chance?
Shouldn't they be the Toronto Maple Leaves?

Do you live downtown? Do you live in the city?
Yup. Why? You looking for easy access?

What's your favorite band?
I don't really do bands. I'm not cool enough. I'm more of a solo R&B crooner kind of guy.

Do you have any brothers and sisters?
2 younger sisters.

What's the last good movie you saw?
It's sad but I don't remember thinking anything I've seen lately was good. But some of my favourites are Three Amigos, Singing in the Rain and Shawshank Redemption.
________________________________
Ding!

*when I called up Darrel to give me Speed Date questions, he was hanging out with Gene. Being a speed-dating veteran**, Gene graciously provided his list of tried and true questions. 


**veteran = one speed date event

{omb} vintage

October 8, 1985

ten-years old


In grade five I was in French Immersion.
And a fan of the Toronto Blue Jays.
And adorably lame.

There was no one named Brett in my class.
I have no idea who Brett is. 

Was he a baseball player on Kansas City?

A few days later...

This post is for dearest Julie.
who has become the Queen of Hard Core Blue Jays Fans.
Welcome back from Dunedin.
Happy Spring.

temporary office and office supplies

When I am writing, I usually write in my home office or my other office. But sometimes, one just needs a change of scenery to spice things up. Yesterday I visited my dear friend AGR at her place of work - The John W. Graham Library at Trinity College, University of Toronto. It's a gorgeous library, with fireplaces, lofty chairs and heavy dark wood desks. I did my best "why-yes-I'm-a-U-of-T-Global-Affairs-or-Theology-Student" impression, and parked myself at a great desk nestled in the third floor stacks, with a great view of the courtyard. [It was very Felicity Season 1, episode 12]. 

After a day productive week of writing, I rewarded myself with a trip to Midoco. Kid. In. A. Candy. Store.

{friday classics} - latte nostalgia

I'm currently reading You Couldn't Ignore Me If You Tried: The Brat Back, John Hughes and Their Impact on a Generation by Susannah Gora. In the spirit of 80s nostalgia and great soundtracks [March Violets anyone?], I'm posting this gem from my latte collection. 

friday jan 18 2008

first Dark Horse latte of the New Year
morrissey played
the guy beside me swooned back to his youth during "heaven knows i'm miserable now"
and said that he firmly believed that the music one listens to between the ages of 14 and 17 stay with you forever

_________

What were you listening to between the ages of 14 and 17?

Here's some March Violets via Somekind of Wonderful for you this morning [for some reason, the dialogue has been sped up so they sound like the Chipmunks]. I have been known to sneak a Watts-ism or two into my plays. 

{W5H} Rob Kempson

Rob Kempson is a stylin', sartorial wunderkind in our little Arts and Education Community. We were introduced a couple of years ago when I was on a playwright guest panel [along with the wonderful Marjorie Chan] for The Paprika Festival, of which Rob was in his first season as Artistic Producer. But it wasn't until the Canadian Stage intensive that I was able to get to know him. Busy as ever, he is still the Artistic Producer of The Paprika Festival, sits on the board of PAONE, just wrapped up his three-year tenure as Education Manager at Canadian Stage and is now the new Associate Artistic Producer at Theatre Passe Muraille. Phew! 


A splendid feature of the W5H series, is that each featured Artist Educator generates a new set of questions for a yet-to-be-determined next artist. So, these questions for Rob come courtesy of Cathy Nosaty:

Where were you when you first heard music that made a huge impact on you?
That's almost impossible to say. The story goes that I asked my mom for piano lessons when I was five. We didn't have a piano in the house so I'm not sure how or why it occurred to me. Either way, she said no--largely because I was the type who wanted to try/do/make/eat/play something different everyday. As it turns out I kept on asking and she finally gave in when I was seven. That's also the year when I joined the church choir as a Boy Soprano (sexy, I know). After me, the youngest member in the choir was my dad. So I guess if I had to pick a place it would be my parents' church.
 
What was your first favourite music?
My first favourite music was undoubtedly The Phantom of the Opera. I liked lots of music at that time, but nothing else impacted me in the same way as that show. During recess--EVERY recess--my friend Kathryn and I would kick people out of the tube slide so that we could sing through the entire show from the little lyric books that came with the cassettes. We thought the acoustics were best in the tube slide and we were in Grade 6, so no one else really had a chance at the slide. I can still remember arguing over who got to sing Christine's part in Angel of Music. Sometimes I wish my life were more like that still. Or maybe I just wish that I could still sing that part.
 
When did you realize that there were songs out there that expressed feelings and ideas similar to yours?
Shortly after I fell in love with Phantom, I fell in love with Musical Theatre in general. I think that the lyrical content of musicals, the emotion that they evoke, the stories that they tell always mean more than the verse and chorus of a hit pop song. When I found musicals, I found myself unable to separate the song from the story and the music took me away on a complete journey, rather than providing background entertainment. I think that's why kids connect with Disney movie musicals. Everytime you hear the song, you are transported. As much as Gaga makes me want to dance, she has yet to transport me.
 
Who was your favourite musician/band?
Jann Arden. Without a doubt. Something about her three-chord compositions and nasal voice made my pre-adolescent self shudder with excitement. I think I've seen her upwards of five times to date, and I would still go see her again if the opportunity presented itself. One time, my friend and I drove to Massey Hall (from Kingston) to see her, and we had won backstage passes because we were "Jann's Fanns" online. That's real dedication--becoming a fan long before facebook redesigned the meaning of that term. Even though her new stuff isn't that great I still have every album.
 
How did you feel listening to your favourite music?
All of my playlists are labelled by feelings, not categories. Music has always gotten under my skin and made me feel physical impulses--to dance, to sing-along, to write, to compose. It's not uncommon to see me bounce to the beat while riding the subway, or full-out tap on the platform. It's also not uncommon for me to miss my stop because I'm involved in a song that I'm listening to (although sometimes it's just because I love the Tetris app). I think my connection with music is best described by when/how I listen to it; when I'm listening to music, that is my primary activity. I cannot listen and work, listen and write, listen and anything. It consumes my whole feeling. Now doesn't that sound all artsy... sheesh.

[young Rob and friends]

You will find Rob at the helm of The Paprika Festival, running March 18-26th, at the Tarragon Theatre. The festival is celebrating it's 10th Anniversary this year. It features incredible, original performances by young people and it's absolutely free.

{speed date} : locavore edition - stephen colella

Just about this time last year, I was acting one of the most fun shows I've ever done - The Monster Under the Bed, by Kevin Dyer, directed by the splendid Nina Lee Aquino - at Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People [LKTYP]. I loved loved loved the character I was playing - well, three characters as I played all the women in the play - but the precocious little girl, Celine, was my favourite. The not-so-secret was I wasn't acting. That's me. Not as a kid, but in real life. 


LKTYP is but a hop, skip and a jump from where I live. On my first day of rehearsal for Monster, I clocked my commute - 6 minutes from my front door to the stage door. Lorraine Kimsa is chock full of wonderful people and fantastic artists, one of which is Company Dramaturg, Stephen Colella. 


For this feature, I asked my friend Darrel Gamotin to give me a list of speed date questions. In the play, I was Darrel's teacher, girlfriend [8 years old -um?] AND mom [wha?]. And Darrel used to be my neighbour.  So in the spirit of good neighbours and the good times we all had during Monster, I sent his questions to Stephen.

How do you feel about food? What do you like to eat? What do like to cook?

I love food.  It tastes good and it sustains me.  I’m a vegetarian so that factors into what I like to eat and it is all too long to list (Recent indulgence: vegetarian poutine from Poutini’s).  I like to cook soups.  I also make a decent fajita.

What do you like to do on your spare time?

Bike, sleep, volunteer, read, answer speed dating surveys.

What do you do otherwise?

As in, not in my spare time?  That would, I imagine, be my work time.  I’m a dramaturg.  I work mainly at Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People, but I also freelance.

Where did you grow up?
Bucks County Pennsylvania, which is just northeast of Philadelphia.

What's your family like?
I’m an only child, so my immediate family was always just me, Mom and Dad (and lots and lots of pets).  I’ve got extended family on both sides as well as my Dad was one of six and my Mom one of four.

Who is your dream guy and why?
Darrel Gamotin.  Except maybe taller, smarter, sassier, richer, funnier and more handsome.  Oh, and the why would be because he picked these questions for me.

Do you watch sports? If not can you name any teams you may know just for fun?
I watch hockey and I’m a Philadelphia Flyers fan.  You may boo now if you wish.

Do you have any feelings about Radiohead, Jay-Z or Justin Bieber?
I got 99 Problems and Thom Yorke ain’t one.  I have no feelings about the Bieb, especially not the Bieber Fever.

If you were writing a profile on a dating site how would describe yourself?
I quickly checked a dating site I was on and I said “While I enjoy tacos, I’m more of a fajita fan”.  This not only corroborates my answer to question one but explains my lack of success with online dating.

If your life could be a movie for a day what movie would it be and why?

Monty Python and the Holy Grail so that I could have an excuse to have an outrageous French accent.

________

DING!

Darrel and Stephen, I think you are a perfect match! You're welcome.

{omb} vintage

January 26, 1988

twelve-years old

Before 680News, CFTR 680AM used to be a pop-radio station in the 80s. 

It had a call-in request show called "Love 'Em or Leave 'Em"

And I had something called speed dial.

Does anyone else remember that show?

{fieldnotes} : the national ballet of canada

As part of the Canadian Stage Intensive, I had the pleasure of visiting The National Ballet of Canada to observe their rich and exciting Education and Outreach Programs. On a snowy day at the end of February, I joined a tour of the Walter Carsen Centre, home of the National Ballet of Canada, along with a rambunctious group of grade two students from a downtown public school. 


The best part of the entire tour: after auditing a twenty-minute rehearsal of Themes and Variations, a rough and tumble seven-year old boy walked out of the studio, dragging his feet, stopped and exclaimed:

"That. Was. Awesome!"

Tours are absolutely free; a splendid thing to do for March Break. Click here for more information.


Thank you to Sharon Vanderlinde, Senior Manager of Education and Archives, and Adrienne Nevile, Archives for Coordinator generously letting me be a fly on the wall. 

{friday classics}

I've taken over 300 pictures/self portraits [quantity not quality] of latte sipping over the past 4-ish years, complete with date and what I overheard at the time. It began as a distraction while I sat at my "other office" writing my plays. And then it just evolved into a thing. I've decided to pull favorites and post them on Fridays. Here we go.

march 12 2008
HAPPY LATTE ALBUM ANNIVERSARY!
Darkhorse

Rock with You by Michael Jackson playing on the stereo, everyone rockin' their heads at the table, and the fellas beside me discussing their coworker:

"He's gay. His home is immaculate and he tucks in his shirt. I'm lucky if I do that 4 times a year"

october 15th [2007]
darkhorse

i sat beside a couple of people
who reunited after 20 years
they were high school sweet hearts
catching up
and she remembered what he wrote in her yearbook
"you have really crappy taste in music"

{speed date} : locavore edition - jordan tannahill

In terms of artists in my neighbourhood, you can't get more locavore than Jordan Tannahill. I met Jordan in 2009 when I produced a play reading series for Roseneath Theatre and was immediately smitten with this vibrant playwright and his play Get Yourself Home Skyler James. We reconnected again in August 2010 when we discovered we were both participating in Project Humanity's new project. One day as we were chatting in the lobby of Covenant House, we talked about our short bike ride to Yonge and Gerrard, only to discover that our commute was the same. Exactly the same. Turns out we live five floors apart in the same building.


It was the best discovery ever. We share a Bodum of coffee, a fruit salad and toasted muesli bagels at least once a week. Suddenly playwriting isn't so lonely anymore. 


Here's a three minute date with Jordan:

What are you most proud of in your life?

Being a good brother.

Where do you see yourself in five years' time?

Drinking coffee with you at Dark Horse.

What 3 words would your best friend use to describe you?

Full of vigour.

If you had only six months to live, what would you do first?

I’d stop working on this Ontario Arts Council grant.

Are you an outdoor or an indoor person and what do you enjoy about that?

Outdoor for sure. I feel best when I’m in the woods, camping, exploring something.

What would you prefer, a day at the races or a night at the theatre?

A day at the races! With my friend Mike. I spend all my time at the theatre anyway. 

What do you do for fun?

My boyfriend.

Who was your hero as a child?

My grandpa.

Do you believe that the cup is half empty or half full?

Half full. Preferably of red wine.

If you could have lunch with any person, living or dead, who would it be and why?

I would have lunch with Jesus because I like fish and there’d be lots of it (and I probably wouldn’t have to pay).

If you could time travel to the past to correct any mistakes you feel you've made, would you?

If I could travel to the past I’d be too busy warning people not to invest in Lehman Brothers to bother.

If you won the lottery, how would you spend your millions?

I would buy a theatre and program a season of Daniel Karasik’s work.

If you were an animal in the wild, what would you be?

I’ve thought about this a lot. I think I’ve finally decided upon ocelot.

What was the first record you ever bought?

The first CD I ever bought was Ace of Base. I was rather obsessed with ‘The Sign’.

Where in the world would you most like to be this weekend and why?

Right where I am: at my grandparents’ cabin, eating turkey pot pie and writing a new play.

What luxury item would you take on a desert island?

My boyfriend. 

__________

Ding!


Jordan is Artistic Director of Suburban Beast and my little brother from another mother.

Who are the artists in your neighbourhood that you have coffee with?