TO OUR MEMBERS:
 On Wednesday, November 18, more than 500 theatre companies from around the world, including many from Alberta, celebrated the second annual #LoveTheatreDay. Theatre makers tweeted out more than 90,000 messages to each other and their audiences. The campaign's goal is to spread awareness of and build support for the vast array of theatre-making activities that exist in our communities. The response was overwhelming!
In the spirit of the holiday season, and with yesterday's Giving Day for Giving Back still fresh in our minds, Theatre Alberta encourages you to support the growth and continued vitality of theatre in our province!
Our annual Gift-a-Play campaign uses an Amazon.ca "Wish List" to identify specific items that will help us to grow and maintain our enviable Library. These donations ensure that theatre enthusiasts across Alberta are able to access the best plays available.
During this time of giving, financial contributions to Theatre Alberta are also gratefully accepted. As a registered charity we are able to acknowledge donations worth $20 or more with a tax receipt. Please click here to give.
On behalf of the Board and Staff of Theatre Alberta, our very best wishes for a fun and safe holiday season shared with family and friends!
~ Keri
Executive Director, Theatre Alberta
“... in short, I should have liked, I do confess, to have had the lightest license of a child, and yet to have been man enough to know its value.”
~ Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol
WHAT'S NEW AT THEATRE ALBERTA
Gift-a-Play:
Our fourth annual Christmas donation campaign, Gift-a-Play to Theatre Alberta's Library, is in progress now!
 We have created a "Wish List" on Amazon.ca with more than 150 titles that we would like to add to our Library's catalogue. We are hoping the theatre community is as generous this year as they have been during past holiday seasons.
For all the details on our Gift-a-Play donation campaign, as well as additional information on how to get involved, visit our Gift-a-Play webpage. Gifts worth more than $20 are eligible for tax receipts. In order to receive yours, please forward your Amazon.ca receipt to theatreab@theatrealberta.com.
By donating books to the Theatre Alberta Library, you are giving to the entire Albertan theatre community! Thank you so much for your support!
Artstrek 2016:
New York City, the neighbourhood corner store, teenagers, and hip hop infused with Latin-inspired musical arrangements...
From the creator and star of the hit broadway musical HAMILTON...
Artstrek enthusiastically presents, for its 2016 play of study...
Music and Lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda
Book by Quiara Alegría Hudes
Conceived by Lin-Manuel Miranda
Winner of the 2008 Tony Awards for Best Musical, Best Score, Best Choreography, and Best Orchestrations, In the Heights tells the story of three generations of Washington Heights residents over the Fourth of July holiday, as events conspire to change all of their lives.
Each summer Artstrek features a different play of study based on a three-year cycle of musical theatre, contemporary drama, and classical drama. This July, join a talented team of theatre professionals and educators at Red Deer College for a challenging curriculum centered on the hugely popular, musical In the Heights!
Attend Artstrek 2016 at RDC's state-of-the-art performing arts facilities during the following dates:
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Exploration I | 12 - 14 years old | July 3 – 8, 2016
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Exploration II | 14 - 16 years old | July 10 – 15, 2016
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Exploration III | 16 - 18 years old | July 17 – 23, 2016
The Artstrek 2016 website is now online at theatrealberta.com/artstrek! Visit regularly to view updated program information as it comes in, including instructor profiles and application procedures. Registration will be open online April 1, 2016.
#artstrek2016 #intheheights
Workshops by Request:
The first master class of our new Workshops by Request: Rocky Mountain Series is just days away! Darren O’Donnell of Toronto’s Mammalian Diving Reflex will lead 20 participants in an exploration of Mammalian’s ‘social acupuncture’ method of creating site- and social-specific performances. The master class was requested by Calgary's Swallow-a-Bicycle Theatre and is hosted by the The Banff Centre.
With this first master class under way, we are now eagerly encouraging groups to initiate their own Rocky Mountain Series master classes at The Banff Centre for the 2016/2017 season. If your company has a specific area of your craft that you would like to develop, or has a great artist or educator that you would love to work with, fill out an application to the Rocky Mountain Series here. Group members of Theatre Alberta OR ad hoc groups of Individual members may apply.
Groups with selected proposals will pay a $1,500 fee (subject to change), and receive presenting partner recognition and four registration spots for the workshop (a $1,400 value). Some promotional and administrative duties will be shared by presenting partner groups.
The deadline for applications is January 29, 2016.
Questions about the program? Have a rough idea for a class but need some help shaping a proposal? Contact Morgan Norwich at morgan@theatrealberta.com.
Workshops by Request: Hometown Series brings adult education on the theatrical topic of your choice to your community! All Theatre Alberta Group Members can initiate up to three days of workshops each season.
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Let us know what you need, whether it's a stage combat or directing workshop, a lesson in stage make-up application, tips on sound design, or something in between.
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We'll hire a professional whose area of expertise is in that subject and send them to your community for a 1, 1.5, or 2 day workshop.
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The cost to you is only a fraction of what the workshop will cost us!
For more info on Workshops by Request: Hometown Series, click here, or email Patrick Beagan, Program Coordinator, at patrick@theatrealberta.com.
Picks of the Edmonton Fringe:
We spent the first two weeks of November on the road with Rapid Fire Theatre's Off Book: The Improvised Musical. Audiences in each city were able to direct the course of action by choosing the musical's location and theme. Swamp: The Musical! was presented in Edson, Football Field: The Musical! in Grande Prairie, Siberia: the Musical! in Peace River, Sinking Ship: The Musical! in Fort McMurray, and Salem Witch Trials: the Musical! in Medicine Hat. Audiences were thrilled to have these professional artists visit their communities, and we look forward to seeing them again, too. (Pictured: The cast of Off Book: The Improvised Musical in Peace River with MLA Debbie Jabbour.)
The cast and crew were honoured to be welcomed in Peace River by MLA Jabbour, and by a member of MLA Wanner's team in Medicine Hat, on behalf of the Honourable David Eggen, Minister of Culture and Tourism. Thank you for your support!
 Bookings for February 2016 are still available for SodHouse Theatre's Shangri-La. More specifically, we are available to communities in the Edmonton area and further north on February 2, 4, and 9, and we are booking for central and southern presenters for the 11, 12, 14, and 15. For more information about the production, please visit theatrealberta.com/tour.
Picks of the Edmonton Fringe is presented by Theatre Alberta, Arts Touring Alliance of Alberta, and Fringe Theatre Adventures with support from Alberta Culture and Tourism's Community Initiatives Program.
Celebrating the Life and Work of Michael Green:
 Theatre Alberta and Metro Cinema are thrilled to announce that acclaimed Canadian film and television actor Michelle Thrush will emcee the February 8, 2016, tribute to Michael Green.
Ms. Thrush has won multiple awards for her work in Blackstone and has toured extensively throughout North America with her one-woman shows. As a board member, writer, cast member, and co-director, Michelle has been integral to the continued development of Making Treaty 7. Michael Green was the founder of and visionary behind the interdisciplinary project that outlines the history of Alberta from an aboriginal perspective.
 To submit a proposal for a performance, visual art component, or written work inspired by or celebrating Michael Green, please include a one-paragraph biography of yourself or your organization, and a one-paragraph description of what you would like to contribute. If you wish to be involved, and would volunteer to be a part of a work initiated by another individual, simply send a brief biography.
Submissions may be sent to pamela.i.anthony@gmail.com. The deadline is December 31, 2015. Click here for more information.
THEATRE ALBERTA LIBRARY
Please note Theatre Alberta's Library and office will be closed for the Holidays from December 21 - January 3 inclusive. The Drop Box will only be available on December 21, 22, & 23 from 8:15 am - 10:30 pm.
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indicates production was written/collectively created by an Albertan artist/group
indicates production was written/collectively created by a Canadian artist/group
