PAST PRODUCTIONS
PROXIMITY: THE SPACE BETWEEN US
Amidst the improbability of connections forming around us, "Proximity: The Space Between Us" , co-created by an all-abilities cast, delves into the delicate balance of distance and connection.
Through a series of interconnected narratives that open into a realm of infinite possibility, this physical theatre piece embraces the emotional and physical complexities that define our shared humanity, inviting audiences to reflect on the threads that unite and separate us.
Key Themes: Connection, Distance, Fate, Relationship, Possibility
Presented at Vancouver's 2024 Fringe Festival
Artists:
Alex Edwards
Andy Wise
Emily Brook
Leith Harris
Lianne Crowe
Shannon Emeruwa
Taninli Wright
Teresa Ngan
Willow Eady
Chorus:
Dakota Best
Elizabeth Perron
Gudrun Sabrina Hirt
Kai Hirano
Kody Hirt
Tyson Aubin
Crew:
Laen Hershle (co-director/artistic director)
LSusan Bertoia (co-director)
Angelo Moroni (sound design/composer)
Bill Beauregarde (technical director)
Christian Ching (production manager)
Madeleine Polak (stage manager)
Kevin Jesuino (movement director)
SURVIVING SAMSARA
(SUSPENDED DEVELOPMENT)
December 15th 2021, artists Kagan Goh, Susanna Uchatius and Jay Hirabayashi presented a workshop version of Kagan Goh's Surviving Samsara.
Surviving Samsara spans two decades as Kagan Goh struggles to survive the highs of mania and the lows of depression, tossed up and down on the restless seas of Samsara. Kagan exposes the damaging effects of the stigma of mental illness, and explores manic depression not only as a disorder, but as a spiritual emergence -- a vehicle for personal growth, healing, and transcendence. Kagan’s deeply personal stories illustrate his transformation from victim to survivor to activist.
ZOETIC
Zoetic: a lost word, seldom heard! Meaning "to live" or "life."
July 2022, the Theatre Terrific community of artists came together in person for the first time post-pandemic.
Arriving disconnected, lost and often alone, they decided that their theatre creation was to honour the journey to reconnect: “...to ourselves, to each other and to all living beings of Mother Earth”.
ZOETIC is the result of this journey.
Presented and filmed at the Vancouver Fringe Festival in September 2022. The Heart of the City Festival featured the film in the On Demand series on the Festival website.
Enjoy the film and celebrate reconnection with Theatre Terrific!
Artists:
Alex Edwards
Andy Wise
Andrew Fyvie
Calum Bente
Claire Brown
Craig Muirhead
Candice Larsheid
Daryl Dickson
Jan Mareels
Lianne Crowe
Nelly Jo Kurta
Priscillia Tait
Robin Holmes
Sarah Brown
Tyson Aubin
Willow Eady
WINDOWS
WINDOWS is an original multimedia theatre work created through a comprehensive community-engaged process, by, with and for community artists of all abilities. The show's roots grew from the seeds of ongoing online workshops (October 2020-June 2021) that transitioned into an ensemble of artists of all abilities committed to a rigorous composition and rehearsal period (June-August 2021.) The initial workshop training series included acting classes (lead by Susanna Uchatius, Angelo Moroni and Laen Hershler), choral class (lead by Cheryl Olvera), dance workshops (with Ashlee Davidson), a puppet making workshop (with Randi Edmundson and Stephanie Elgersma) and a drumming workshop (with Indigenous artist Kat Norris).
WINDOWS.
What is a window?
Many things...particularly in this year of being "locked in."
What do we see, think of, feel, remember, cherish...if we are looking OUT through our personal window... and in opposition...what do we see, think of, feel, remember, cherish if our window is looking INTO ourselves?
WINDOWS is a shared collaborative musical gaze INTO and OUT through windows revealing funny, sad, surprising, cherished stories expressed in poetry, movement, song, puppetry, imagery of all shades and rhythms.
Crew:
Susanna Uchatius (co-director/artistic director)
Laen Hershler (co-director)
Angelo Moroni (co-director and composer)
MariFer Rios (stage manager)
Julia Siedlanowska (producer/managing director and associate artistic director)
Digital Fracture: VOICES
There is a crack in everything
That's how the light gets in. -Leonard Cohen
What is our universal language at this time? How are we a part of mother earth and what is our responsibility to mother earth and to each other? Covid has put us in a deeper awareness of ourselves. Through gesture, recorded audio, and visual media, Digital Fracture: VOICES asks us to step away from the screen and transition into a deeper self-awareness and connection. The Fringe was one of the first festivals to embrace our inclusive theatre company so many years ago, and we are overjoyed to join again at this time.
Digital Fracture: VOICES
There is a crack in everything
That's how the light gets in. -Leonard Cohen
What is our universal language at this time? How are we a part of mother earth and what is our responsibility to mother earth and to each other? Covid has put us in a deeper awareness of ourselves. Through gesture, recorded audio, and visual media, Digital Fracture: VOICES asks us to step away from the screen and transition into a deeper self-awareness and connection. The Fringe was one of the first festivals to embrace our inclusive theatre company so many years ago, and we are overjoyed to join again at this time.
WORKIN'
“Workin’” – this large cast musical play will be part of the Vancouver Fringe Festival in September 2019 and also the Heart of the City Festival Oct/Nov 2019. It will be performed in the Woodwards Heritage Building Atrium a major city centre crossroads. The question always asked is; “What do you do?” Workin’ will address the personal and public value of work, the hierarchical status of different types of work, who works where and why. What defines ‘something’ as work and ‘something else’ as NOT work?
"I long to accomplish great and noble tasks, but it is my chief duty to accomplish humble tasks as though they were great and noble. The world is moved along, not only by the mighty shoves of its heroes, but also by the aggregate of the tiny pushes of each honest worker."
~ Helen Keller
HELLO
HELLO is a story built on the bones of factual truth. The facts are:
World famous playwright Arthur Miller and his last wife, Austrian photojournalist Inge Morath, married in 1962 and had a beautiful daughter. In 1966 they had a son who was born with Down Syndrome. They named him Daniel. Daniel never lived with his family. Instead, he was shut away in an overcrowded, understaffed institution akin to bedlam. For over forty years the general public never knew there was a Daniel Miller.
Why did Mutti say nothing? Why did nobody, including the powerful cultural and artistic community that surrounded the Miller family, say anything? Does this matter?
What if Daniel could step back in time, before he was born, to his birth and onward? What if Daniel could watch the family story unfold? What would Daniel see, what would he say and what might have happened?
HELLO is a work of intimate family discovery through the eyes of Daniel. There is singing, dancing, family feuds, friends, food, and furniture moving, all woven together with moments of astounding truth paired with equally astounding denial. Ultimately, when all is said and done, the final questions are:
Does this matter?...and if so why?
Or
Does this not matter...and if so why not?
BREATH-AHHH
CREW
Director/Collaborative Creator: Susanna Uchatius
Stage Manager: Kathleen Gordon
Music Director/Composer: Angelo Moroni
ASL Theatre Interpreter: Landon Krentz
Poster Design: Bebe Zhang
Costumes, lighting, marketing and technical aspects are a combined crew effort.
CAST
BREATH-AHHH:
Tyson Aubin
Caroline Hebert alternating with Susanna Uchatius
FEAR:
Daryl Dixon
Alex Edwards
Ryan Ollis
Edna Rendaje
ANGER
Katrina Costello
Robin Holmes
Jonah Killoran
JEALOUSY
Lianne Crowe
Shannon Emeruwa
Simran Gill
SORROW
Calum Bente
Willow Eady
Patti Palm
DIRECTORS NOTES
Breath-Ahhh. What is breath?...something that we do every living minute of our life... and yet pay little attention to. We are born and our first breath opens the world to us. Everything is wondrously new. We breathe with wide-eyed joyful gusto. As we grow, life takes sharp turns igniting fear, anger, jealousy and sorrow, all of which causes us to tighten, quicken and abandon the full breath we were born with.
This amazing group of artists of difference dove into physically exploring the essence of breath. How we use it, lose it and why we should embrace our breath fully. BREATH IS FREEDOM!
“We live in an ocean of air like fish in a body of water. By our breathing we are attuned to our atmosphere. If we inhibit our breathing we isolate ourselves from the medium in which we exist.” – Alexander Lowen, The Voice of the Body
BEING WITH ELDERS
THE ELDERS VOICES PROJECT looks to theatre and the art form in a way that brings the “art” to those who may never have had the opportunity to participate, meaning the elderly who are marginalized due to age, physical and mental health challenges in residential homes where they are often isolated from community interaction.
This project will bring the audience into a space that is often thought of as a place of waiting, non-contribution, burden and death. Audience, including relatives, family and the general public, if not already aware, may come to see it as a rich depository full of life, purpose, relationship and meaning.
Elders have decades of experience in family, relationships, love, home and the life issues we all struggle with. That said, this is not a theatre project about educating the public; rather it is about welcoming inclusiveness, connection, interaction, sharing, questioning, imagination, creation, recognition and value for the immense life treasures our elders have to share.
Above all, the purpose and reason that Theatre Terrific wishes to pursue this project is the building of relationships, respect and connection between our elders, family, friends, the younger generation and perhaps those who do not have the connection to elders from which to benefit.
We seek to stitch together a quilt of many textures, colors, movements, voices, writings, art and song. We will collaboratively create with Elders, family and actors seeking to celebrate, honor and publicly present within the Elders home, the riches of our shared humanity.