PERSISTENCE THEATRE ANNOUNCES 2020-2021 DIGITAL SEASON “IT’S WOMEN’S PLAY”
Four one-woman shows to be recorded live in St. John's for later broadcast worldwide.
(September 11, 2020 – St. John’s, NL) Today at The CLB Armoury, just prior to the special live performance of Sharon King-Campbell's play ORIGINAL, PerSIStence Theatre announced its plans for to produce, perform, record, and broadcast four one-woman shows for its 2020-2021 season, entitled “It’s Women’s Play”.
In attendance at today's event were St. John's East MP Jack Harris with the Government of Canada; the honourable Bernard Davis, Minister of Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation and MHA for Virginia Waters-Pleasantville with the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador; Deputy Mayor Sheilagh O'Leary with the City of St. John's; and Gina Pecore, CEO of keystone sponsor Genoa Design International, along with other guests and attendees.
“The impact of the pandemic has hit the performing arts especially hard,” said the company’s producing artistic director Jenn Deon. “It definitely took us a while to figure out how we could continue safely in the new reality.”
The solution for this company came from the idea to minimize in-person contact by the production of four one-woman plays:
“Without having to block movement or touch with another actor, that will really help us practice our art in a way that can be socially distanced and safe,” said Deon.
“With the conditions of the pandemic so changing and variable, it was challenging to plan ahead,” said board chair Sylina Jones.
“But we’re not called “PerSIStence” Theatre for nothing – we knew there had to be a way!”
In addition to socially distanced rehearsals, the shows will be performed live for an audience of crew and cameras only, with plans for broadcast at a later date.
“This is really where we started to see the opportunity of broadcasting the shows on the internet,” continued Jones.
“It allows us to present the amazing work being produced in Newfoundland and Labrador to the rest of Canada and the world.”
The company has hired an Outreach Coordinator, Tiffany Martin, who will be working to connect the broadcast with other theatre companies across Canada, as well as with public audiences.
“In Toronto or Montreal or other large centres, artistic directors from other theatre companies have many opportunities to scout plays and talent that they may wish to hire for the own companies,” said Deon.
“This is our chance to showcase playwrights, directors and actors to the rest of Canada that they may not otherwise see.”
PerSIStence Theatre Company is a non-profit organization in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada that uses professional theatre and related initiatives to respond to the persistent and universal need for promoting, understanding and embracing the core beliefs of #feminism. Learn more at www.persistencetheatre.com.
The 2020-2021 season of PerSIStence Theatre is made possible with a generous sponsorship from Technology NL's Closed Doors, Open Hearts program and their member Genoa Design International.
PerSIStence Theatre also values the support of the Government of Canada, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, ArtsNL, and the City of St. John's.
(September 11, 2020 – St. John’s, NL) Today at The CLB Armoury, just prior to the special live performance of Sharon King-Campbell's play ORIGINAL, PerSIStence Theatre announced its plans for to produce, perform, record, and broadcast four one-woman shows for its 2020-2021 season, entitled “It’s Women’s Play”.
In attendance at today's event were St. John's East MP Jack Harris with the Government of Canada; the honourable Bernard Davis, Minister of Tourism, Culture, Arts and Recreation and MHA for Virginia Waters-Pleasantville with the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador; Deputy Mayor Sheilagh O'Leary with the City of St. John's; and Gina Pecore, CEO of keystone sponsor Genoa Design International, along with other guests and attendees.
“The impact of the pandemic has hit the performing arts especially hard,” said the company’s producing artistic director Jenn Deon. “It definitely took us a while to figure out how we could continue safely in the new reality.”
The solution for this company came from the idea to minimize in-person contact by the production of four one-woman plays:
- ORIGINAL, written and performed by Sharon King-Campbell and directed by Bernardine Ann Teraz Stapleton
- OFFENSIVE TO SOME, written by Bernardine Stapleton and performed by Miranda MacDonald and directed by Ruth Lawrence
- I AM A GENUIS – DOES ANYONE HERE KNOW ME?, written and performed by Lois Brown and directed by Andrea Cooper
- WHAT HANGS IN THE BALANCE, written and performed by Petrina Bromley and directed by Christine Brubaker
“Without having to block movement or touch with another actor, that will really help us practice our art in a way that can be socially distanced and safe,” said Deon.
“With the conditions of the pandemic so changing and variable, it was challenging to plan ahead,” said board chair Sylina Jones.
“But we’re not called “PerSIStence” Theatre for nothing – we knew there had to be a way!”
In addition to socially distanced rehearsals, the shows will be performed live for an audience of crew and cameras only, with plans for broadcast at a later date.
“This is really where we started to see the opportunity of broadcasting the shows on the internet,” continued Jones.
“It allows us to present the amazing work being produced in Newfoundland and Labrador to the rest of Canada and the world.”
The company has hired an Outreach Coordinator, Tiffany Martin, who will be working to connect the broadcast with other theatre companies across Canada, as well as with public audiences.
“In Toronto or Montreal or other large centres, artistic directors from other theatre companies have many opportunities to scout plays and talent that they may wish to hire for the own companies,” said Deon.
“This is our chance to showcase playwrights, directors and actors to the rest of Canada that they may not otherwise see.”
PerSIStence Theatre Company is a non-profit organization in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada that uses professional theatre and related initiatives to respond to the persistent and universal need for promoting, understanding and embracing the core beliefs of #feminism. Learn more at www.persistencetheatre.com.
The 2020-2021 season of PerSIStence Theatre is made possible with a generous sponsorship from Technology NL's Closed Doors, Open Hearts program and their member Genoa Design International.
PerSIStence Theatre also values the support of the Government of Canada, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, ArtsNL, and the City of St. John's.