Pat the Dog Playwright Centre’s piece/meal sessions played to full houses during the recent Magnetic North Theatre Festival. Our audience members aren’t the only ones to take notice. Four piece/meal scripts have made their way to theatre festivals in Toronto, Hamilton and Winnipeg.

• Aftershock by Evan Tsitsias is playing at Summerworks in Toronto from August 7 to the 14. Check the website for dates and times.

• Northern Daughter by Donna Creighton will be appearing at  THIN AIR (Winnipeg International Writers Festival) in September 2010.

• An extended version of Bungalow by Vern Thiessen played to rave reviews at the Winnipeg Fringe Festival. Joff Schmidt gave it five stars in his CBC review saying, “Thiessen chooses details with an expert writer’s attention to detail, teasing at times, revealing just enough to engage us, breaking off at just the right points. What’s revealed is funny without being hammy; touching without being cloying.”

• A Message to Alex Moore by Trevor Copp is playing August 14th at the Tottering Biped’s 2010 Wobbling Ink New Play Event.

Photos courtesy Mark Walton Photography.

It begins with  Shawn DeSouza-Coelho as “The Man in the Window,” performing magic and conjuring the playful spirit that drives the creativity behind piece/meal. Stay for a bite and enjoy a series of thought-provoking excerpts. Intimate and playful, these fresh new works-in-development will breath life into the deserted Artery space.  The line-up includes a mix of pieces from up-and-coming local voices, as well as established artists, including Governor-General-award-winner Vern Thiessen and award-winning singer/songwriter Donna Creighton.

Magnetic North runs June 9 to 19th. See their website for details.

piece/meal runs
June 14 – 16 from 11am-1pm
The Artery at 158 King Street West, Kitchener (map here)
Admission: $15. Free to Industry Series participants. Brunch included.

MONDAY, JUNE 14, 2010

You Know I Love You Still by Maggie Clark

After being held captive for 16 years in her kidnapper’s basement, Eleanor ventures into her first relationship with a man haunted by his own recently ended 15-year marriage. With humour and warmth, the play unravels the story after the story.

Poet/playwright Maggie Clark was full-time Editor-in-Chief of Imprint, UW’s official student newspaper. Her poetry has been published in RATTLE, The Pedestal and ditch magazine.

In the remote New Mexico community of Gehenna, the citizens are spontaneously combusting. In another world, a devastated family searches for missing pieces of their son, after his body returns from war.  Gehanna is a story told in two parts, two worlds, the dreamscape of a hidden, unknown world and the hyper-realism of a world known too well. Hearts escape from mournful chests, angles lose their way, and people disappear with the final telling of their stories.

Adam’s first play, Headache Grey, was produced by Theatre & Company in 1999 and was produced the following year at Buddies in Bad Times. then she was presented in 2003 by Rumble Productions and produced by Shifting Point. Other credits include A Cloudless Sky and Alone, both produced by REIRart. In June, A Map of Somewhere Only We Know will be produced in Toronto as part of the InspiraTO Festival.

Northern Daughter is a one-woman musical sprung from the song of the same name. Liz is from up north: She hasn’t been home in 30 years. Northern daughter comes home.

Donna is a Canadian-acclaimed singer/songwriter. Nominated form a Canadian Fold Music Award, she has won the London Music Award for Folk/World/Celtic 4 times and twice been awarded the Jack Richardson Award. Over the past 10 years she has toured North America with Sirens, sharing the stage with countless talented musicians, including Bruce Cockburn, Philosopher Kings and Lisa Loeb.

TUESDAY, JUNE 15, 2010

Aftershock by Evan Tsitsias

Anna has returned from a reality makeover television show. Back in the trailer she shares with her family, she finds them shocked at her transformation.

Evan recently produced Bagged, a short film he wrote for the CBC, airing later this year and screened in March at WIFT. He has also produced the Canadian Premiere of Homebody/Kabul (Dora Nomination) at Berkeley St. Theatre. Evan is a member of the Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab in New York City.

In 1942, The Government of Canada forced 100 families off 17,500 acres of farmland in the St. Vincent Township of Southwestern Ontario. The reason? The land was needed as an Armored Vehicle Fighting Area to train troops for the war effort overseas. The Tank Range Project explores the farmers’ sacrifice and relevance of the land’s use.

Founding members of the Grey-Bruce Arts Collective, Roger Shank and Jamie Robinson have worked with companies across the nation, such as: The Stratford Shakespeare Festival, Canstage, the Lorianne Kimsa Theatre for Young People, the Citadel Theatre and Neptune Theatre. They are based out of Meaford.

Considered the bible of international-style ballroom, Alex Moore’s Ballroom Dancing contains all the steps and elements essential to that art form. There are no new steps and no new conventions. Period. What happens when two gay men question why? An examination of partner dancing: How it works, how it feels and what it says through the eyes of two men who enjoy dancing together and are inquisitive enough to try to figure out why.

Jeff Fox is a professional ballroom dancer, choreographer and author living in Kitchener. Trevor Copp is an actor, mime and ballroom dancer.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 16, 2010

The Maple Leaves by Heather Debling

Based upon the true story of the Maple Leaves, a WWI concert troupe formed to boost the morale of the men on the front lines, Deblings’ play considers where duty really lies.

Heather Debling is a writer based in Stratford, Ontario.

A man returns to his childhood home searching for secrets buried in the backyard of his parents’ bungalow. A haunting story of a father, his son, and the mystery that lies between them, this new work is the latest from one of Canada’s most produced playwrights.

Vern Thiessen has written for stage, radio and television. His stage plays have been seen across Canada, the US and Europe, including Shakespeare’s Will, Apple, Einstein’s Gift, Blowfish, The Resurrection of John Frum and Vimy. Thiessen is the recipient of numerous awards including the Governor General’s Literary Award, Canada’s highest honour for playwriting.

Pat the Dog Playwright Centre is pleased to announce we’ve been chosen to present the playwright reading series for this year’s Magnetic North Theatre Festival.

piece/meal is a brunch-time series providing an intimate, playful introduction to fresh new plays in development from intriguing new theatre artists. All excerpts are from full-length plays currently under development at Pat the Dog Playwright Centre.  Come taste our spicy, innovative, invigorating new work served up with a soupcon of style, brioche and caffeine.

piece/meal takes place at:

The Artery
158 King Street West
Kitchener, ON (click here for the Google Map)
June 14, 15, 16, 2010
11 AM – 1 PM

Admission is free to Magnetic North Theatre Festival Industry Series participants.  For everyone else, it’s PWYC with a suggested donation of $15. Brunch is included on a first-come, first-served basis so arrive early.