Theatre St. Thomas Presents: The Plain Site Theatre Festival, Oct 2-5
Theatre St. Thomas in partnership with Solo Chicken the coop is thrilled to announce the opening act of their 2019/2020 Season, The Plain Site Theatre Festival running October 2-5 2019. This new initiative, which aims to bring LGBTQ2+ visibility front and center by fostering the development of LGBTQ2+ playwrights, performers and directors will kick off with workshops, panels and staged readings. The festival, which is curated and directed by STU alum and local theatre artist, Alex Rioux, offers opportunities for emerging LGBTQ2+ artists to develop, craft and share their work.
Fostering emerging LGBTQ2+ talent and carving out space for the stories and voices of those artists is at the heart of this festival, which drew Alex Rioux to the project. "In my time at STU I noticed there are so many amazing LGBTQ2+ artists hiding in plain sight, and I wanted to allow those creatives space to shine and to be given something that really speaks to them and their experiences."
After an open call for submissions, Alex Rioux selected two plays written by current St Thomas University students that will receive professional dramaturgy by Rob Kempson, will be workshopped with LGBTQ2+ artists and given a final performance in the form of a staged reading. With an eye to making this festival a more permanent fixture the festival will also be offering a creation workshop designed to foster future festival artists, as well as hosting a public panel about the importance of providing platforms to queer artists.
PLAIN SITE FESTIVAL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Wednesday October 2 and Thursday Oct 3 2019 – PLAY DEVELOPMENT/WORKSHOPS
Director Alex Rioux will workshop the festival scripts with a cast of STU performers and provide live feedback to the festival playwrights.
- Directed by Alex Rioux
- 7PM – 10PM
- Ted Daigle Theatre
- CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC
Friday October 4 2019 – PROVIDING PLATFORMS FOR LGBTQ2+ ARTISTS PANEL
Moderated by Alex Rioux, this panel will consist of participants of the Plain Site Theatre Festival and local LGBTQ+ artists to discuss the importance of providing opportunities and platforms to aspiring queer artists to present their stories.
- Moderated by Alex Rioux
- 7PM – 8PM
- Ted Daigle Theatre
- PWYC
Friday October 4 2019 – THE PLAIN SITE FESTIVAL STAGED READINGS
Directed by Alex Rioux, a cast of LGBTQ2+ performers will deliver a staged reading of:
- How the Night Sky Looks 80km Away from Civilization by Noah Deas
- Lesbians: A Review by Charlotte Simmons
- 8:15PM – 9:00PM
- Ted Daigle Theatre
- PWYC
Saturday October 5 2019 - CRAFTING QUEER NARRATIVE WORKSHOP
Alex Rioux and McKenna Boekner lead a discussion and workshop for aspiring LGBTQ2+ creators on how to merge their queer experiences with their creative processes. This workshop will give aspiring artists the tools to go forward and create new and innovative work that reflects their identity and experiences.
- 10:00AM – 11:30AM
- Ted Daigle Theatre
- FREE – Please email alexander.rioux94@gmail.com to sign up. (Space is limited.)
Plain Site Festival Press Contacts
Festival Director – Alex Rioux - alexander.rioux94@gmail.com
Theatre St. Thomas Student President – Ben Smith - hmfcw@stu.ca