Rachel Peake welcomed as Associate Artistic Director

Artistic Director Daryl Cloran is thrilled to announce the appointment of University of Alberta graduate Rachel Peake as the new Associate Artistic Director of the Citadel Theatre.

Peake is a two-time Jessie Richardson Award winner, and is a recipient of the Ray Michal Award for Outstanding Body of Work by an Emerging Director. She has directed at theatres across Canada, including: Persephone Theatre, Globe Theatre, Théâtre la Seizième, Western Canada Theatre, Caravan Farm, Belfry, Firehall, and Pacific Opera Victoria, and was the coArtistic Director of Vancouver’s Solo Collective Theatre. Peake has spent four seasons as resident stage director of Dark by Five at Gros Morne Summer Music in Newfoundland, where her work has focused on the intersection between music, theatre, literature, and visual art. She is a graduate of Stratford’s Michael Langham Workshop for Classical Direction, the Shaw Festival’s Neil Munro Directing Internship, the University of Alberta, and Studio 58.

“Rachel is one of the most exciting directors in Canada today,” said Cloran. “Her work is innovative, visionary and full of heart. I am thrilled to have her as an artistic partner as we plan the future for this amazing company.”

“While a student at the UofA I won the Citadel Theatre Award which included a pair of season tickets to the Citadel: it felt like winning the lottery,” says Peake. “Now, returning to Edmonton after working in Vancouver and nationally, I continue to be inspired by the work happening on the Citadel’s stages and am thrilled to work with the team to bring the future into focus, and into reality.”

Peake will lead the Citadel Theatre’s New Play Development initiatives, working closely with Cloran in commissioning, developing and workshopping new work by Canadian playwrights for the Citadel’s stages. She also will take a lead role in developing the Citadel’s new digital storytelling strategy, developing new works created specifically for on-line and virtual reality environments.

Peake will take over the New Play Development initiative from veteran Canadian actor and director Brian Dooley, who is stepping down as the Citadel’s Director of New Play Development at the end of this summer’s Playwrights Forum. Dooley created the Citadel’s Playwrights Forum, and has championed new plays at the Citadel Theatre for the past seven years. During that period, Dooley has mentored 26 playwrights, including such artists as Beth
Graham, Collin Doyle, Karen Hines, Trina Davies, Mieko Ouchi, Meg Braem and Ken Williams, among many others whose work is produced nation-wide.

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