The Tempest Orion Project
Phoenix Theatre
March 20 – 24, 2017
Panel discussion on
March 24 @ 1pm
As the academic semester draws to a close in April, the Department of Theatre invites the public behind the scenes to experience not the product, but the process of theatre-making as part of The Tempest Orion Project. Internationally renowned acting, applied theatre, designing, directing, and theatre history experts will explore unique ways to approach the same piece of theatre — in this case, Shakespeare’s The Tempest — and make it resonate with today’s audiences.
They will present their ideas and discoveries at a public panel, concluding a week of interactive workshops where theatre students will have the opportunity to engage directly with five specialists from around the globe. When the students’ workshops are over, the public is welcome to join the visiting artists as they share the week’s explorations and discoveries, compare and contrast their experiences, and answer questions from the audience.
The Visiting Artists
Dr. Ralph Alan Cohen
To call Dr. Ralph Alan Cohen a Shakespeare expert seems almost an understatement. Based in Virginia at Mary Baldwin University where he is the Gonder Professor of Shakespeare and Performance, he co-founded the American Shakespeare Center and is the Director of Mission there. Dr. Cohen was also the project director for building the Blackfriars Playhouse – an authentic recreation of Shakespeare’s 17th century indoor theatre – in Staunton Virginia.
David Ferry
Ontario-based Phoenix alumnus David Ferry brings his extensive experience in theatre as an actor, director, and dramaturge to the project. Internationally, Ferry has performed Off-Broadway as well as in Los Angeles, Australia, and England, and his performances have received accolades across Canada at major venues including Stratford, the National Arts Centre, Centaur Theatre, and the Vancouver Playhouse. His work as a theatre director has taken him across Canada, to Los Angeles and Florence, Italy.
Dr. Alison Jeffers
Applied Theatre expert Dr. Allison Jeffers joins the project from the University of Manchester. An associate of the “In Place of War” project, which explores theatre in places of conflict, Dr. Jeffers’ focus includes using participatory theatre with refugees, community arts history and practice, performances of citizenship and belonging, and storytelling in performance.
Dr. Jeffers was also a mentor to our very own Dr. Kirsten Sadeghi-Yekta! The two travelled through Rwanda and Congo for a conference and Dr. Jeffers was Dr.Sadeghi-Yekta’s examiner during her PhD defense.
Eloise Kazan
Eloise Kazan, a renowned designer based in Mexico, has worked internationally on more than sixty productions including theatre, dance, opera, interior architecture and film. With a portfolio of fantastical and ambitious designs – including a wedding dress made entirely of real bullets courtesy of the Mexican military – her extensive experience designing for theatre and opera in particular has taken her around the world to places such as Bristol, Croatia, Spain, and New York.
Meg Roe
UVic Theatre alumna Meg Roe is an acclaimed actor, director, and sound designer. Roe has received critical acclaim with companies such as the Shaw Festival, the Canadian Stage, Quebec’s Centaur Theatre, Canada’s National Arts Centre, Bard on the Beach, and Arts Club Theatre, where she recently won a Jessie for her outstanding lead performance in a new musical version of Onegin. Internationally, she’s been featured at the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco, Center Theater Group in Los Angeles, and Kidd Pivot Frankfurt RM in Germany.