
After offering emergency financial support to emerging artists affected by the coronavirus crisis, the National Theatre School (NTS) is proud to announce the next phase of its Art Apart initiative. Online classes for theatre artists, an exhibition of set and costume design artworks will be presented online for the first time, as well as two performances by graduating students.
FREE ONLINE CLASSES
In keeping with its mission to provide incomparable theatre training delivered from artist to artist, NTS will provide 10 online training programs covering all the theatre disciplines. Professional actors, directors, designers, composers and theatre makers, artists who are part of the teaching team at NTS, will offer free online classes available to all artists, to support the deepening of their craft during this time of isolation. This is another way to continue sharing knowledge and having a dialogue among artists across Canada. “We have a responsibility to constantly interrogate ourselves on how best to meet the needs of our community,” says Alisa Palmer, Artistic Director of the English section. “In the current context, it’s more important than ever to foster a sense of community and to provide creative work opportunities for artists.”
Here are the teaching artists who will be leading conferences, conversations and classes online in the coming weeks:
- Tamara Marie Kucheran, Stand Back! Physical Distance and Fashion: from Paniers to Punks to Pool Noodles – A brief history of “physical distancing” inspired clothing
- Brenda Bazinet
- Debashis Sinha, Peripheries: The Hidden Considerations of Sound in Theatre
- Dean Patrick Fleming, Writing for Young audiences
- Arianna Bardesono, Brewing ideas on scenic space : the director’s prep up to meeting the set designer
- Dany Boudreault, Initiation à la poésie pour les acteurs (3 séances)
- Xavier Huard (2 entretiens en baladodiffusion)
- Daniel Canty (2 conférences : la mise en ligne et le théâtre des éloignements)
- Monument-National Campus : Caroline Ferland et Julie Marie Bourgeois, Réflexion, Réflexion
- François Vincent et Stéphane Longpré, Conversation
More details will be announced soon.
NEW WORDS FESTIVAL
The New Words Festival is the culminating project of the graduating class of the English Section. This year, social distancing measures have forced our campuses to close and students to stay home. But we’ve decided that the show must go on – online that is. We are so proud to share these plays with you, albeit in a different environment.
In only a few short weeks, the Directing, Acting and Playwriting students have boldly explored what it means to stage these plays in a virtual setting, adapting quickly and creatively to a challenging situation. We invite you to experience these innovative new plays and explore what intimacy, spontaneity and togetherness mean in a lockdown digital age.
- The Game, May 1st and 2nd, on Zoom, live with audience interaction
by Gillian Clark (Playwriting 3, Halifax, NS), directed by Angelica Schwartz (Directing 2, Winnipeg, MB), performed by graduating students from the Acting program
- i am entitled to rest, May 5 to 7, on youtube
by Kalale Dalton-Lutale (Playwriting 3, Toronto, ON) and directed by Murdoch Schon (Directing 2, Montreal, QC), performed by graduating students from the Acting program

DIGITAL EXHIBITION
Each year, 2nd-year students in Set and Costume Design present works created in the first two years of their training: costume sketches, set models, life drawings, paintings, etchings, and more! This virtual event is part of their exhibition design class. In the current situation, the exhibition has been transformed into a website, which is an equally relevant learning experience in their training.
Don’t miss expo-pigments.ca starting May 1st.
For more information about NTS’ Art Apart initiative, visit:
https://ent-nts.ca/en/art-apart
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