Well, the Magnetic North Theatre Festival likes to end things on a high note apparently. Yesterday was the very last day of the Industry series and things were off to a very good start with the Pitch Sessions. Eight theatre companies from across the country gave ten minute pitches to a room filled with Industry delegates and the general public. I was incredibly keen on seeing this as I have never had to pitch my show for future presentation before and I definitely learned a lot. The best part was that each show pitch was different from the last and yet I wanted to see every single show that came up. It's hard to pick a stand-out show, because they all looked amazing, but I think I'm going to have to tip my hat to Rick Miller for Boom, which is going to premiere at the High Performance Rodeo in Calgary in January, because I'm really interested in the use of multi-media and performance. He is going to be doing things that I never thought were possible on stage.
Check it (and someone please produce it in a town near me):
Another Industry lunch (which BTW, thanks for feeding us!), a quick chat with my wonderful director, Tania Levy, updating her on Broken Turtles' progress so far at the festival, a panel, a quick detour for an Ottawa Fringe rehearsal & interview with Rogers TV... Then back for another event, this one pairing Industry delegates with Compass Point students so we can learn from each other... More food... And finally SubDevision! SubDevision was so much fun. And since I spent the whole night running around with my pal Kevin at The Visitorium, I recommend you head over and read what he had to say about it now. (And yes, Kevin, you got the order right ;)
Folks, though the Industry series came to a close last night, the festival is still going strong until Saturday, so be sure and catch some of it while you still can. I'll probably be stopping by the festival bar in the evenings and, of course, I'll be there for the closing night festivities this weekend.
A huge thank you to Patrick Gauthier and Emily Pearlman for producing such a wonderful series. I've made some really great connections that will serve me well going forward. This series feels like it was a real stepping stone in my professional theatre career and for that I am incredibly grateful.
Now, I feel like I'm supposed to be working on something... Oh right: next stop, Ottawa Fringe!