Wow! I’m amazed it’s been just over a since my last blog post. Time flies… And, so a brief update!
The last year has been a grand adventure working in the United Arab Emirates and Canada at Sharjah Performing Arts Academy, (Sharjah, UAE). At the moment, I am here working on Pericles, the Shakespeare project with year two acting students. Working on Shakespeare here has radically expanded my approach to the language and directing this work. (More on that another time…). At the same time, I’m also developing the first masters level degree in theatre and live arts creation, (with concentrations in choreography, design, directing or creative producing). With students from over 40 countries, the academy is a vibrant theatre school with intersectionality and diversity of experience and practice in all we do. Offering BAs in Musical Theatre, Acting or Production Arts, or a Diploma in Dance, SPAA is the only theatre conservatory in the Middle East North Africa region. Our closest theatre school neighbours are in Cairo and Barcelona.
Looking back into the second half of 2022, August included spending time in Summerland, BC realizing the Ryga Arts Festival. Amidst the uncertainty of audiences returning, Covid experiences and venue renovations, we presented and produced a dynamic range of events: fantastic Juno-award winning artists Celeigh Cardinal and Catherine MacLellan; Jane Miller and Brian Quirt’s intimate theatre piece, These Are the Songs I Sing When I’m Sad; Made in Canada, the agricultural song cycle by Rice and Beans (from Vancouver, BC); our Theatre Trail (celebrating local writing and actors); Outspoken! (an evening of spoken word); author readings, workshops and more. It was a joy to return to Summerland after running the festival remotely in 2021 and I’m grateful for the strong support from the community that keeps the festival thriving.
On returning to Sharjah, I had the opportunity to direct the first group of 4th year actors at Sharjah Performing Arts Academy in the stage adaptation of Ray Bradbury’s precient novel, Fahrenheit 451. It was a pleasure to work with the students who will, (in June 2023), become the first graduating class from the academy. The themes within the play: the love of story/literature, community, critical reflection, and the ‘disconnected and distracted’ society, are even more relevant today than when the book was first written over 50 years ago. With projection, video and audio storytelling embedded throughout the story, it was fantastic to dive into this theatrical, physically challenging production with both the acting and production arts students.
And now, looking ahead, the summer approaches, with workshops and creative projects on the horizon. I’ll share more about those another time…
And!
Thank you for stopping by. Full disclosure, my LinkedIn pages are more up-to-date than my dear website. If more information is needed, please head to this page: https://www.linkedin.com/in/heathergdavies/
Until next time… Best wishes, Heather