Empower the Artist in Brantford, ON

FREE DRAMATIC WRITING & THEATRE SKILLS WORKSHOPS
For Persons With Lived Experience of Substance Use
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Taught by theatre industry professionals
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Held free of charge with a $100 honorarium for participants, in the form of cash or gift card to a local small business (of participant's choice)
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No previous theatre or writing experience necessary
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Registration open to anyone (18+) who self identifies as a person with lived experience of substance use
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Limited capacity to ensure a quality learning experience (10 participants for dramatic writing workshops, 20 participants for theatre skills workshops)
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Participants will be registered on a first-come first-served basis, so register early to avoid disappointment!
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For all workshops, there will be an on-call Crisis Counselor available through St. Leonard's Community Services, should anyone need this
Registration will remain open until October 1, 2020 or until participant spots are full. To register fill out the form at the bottom of this page.
ONLINE DRAMATIC WRITING WORKSHOPS
hosted by Grandview Theatre Company
with assistance from Off-Key Productions
October 3 - November 7
GROUP A: Saturdays from 11AM - 12:30PM
GROUP B: Saturdays from 1:00PM - 2:30PM
with an optional presentation November 28
Two groups of five participants will each develop a character who has experience of substance use. Each group will write five short monologues (one per participant) that provide an insight into the character’s life. These monologues will then be performed by a professional actor and shared on a project instagram page. On November 28, the instagram page will be shared through an online presentation, which participants will be invited to speak at.
To provide an insight into the issues surrounding substance use, we will also explore and generate creative responses to questions like “what is well-being?” and “what is a safe space?”. These creative responses might consist of poetry, photographs, drawings, or videos. This material could be used at a later stage to start developing a fuller script.
Workshops will delievered online. If you do not have access to regular internet/a computer, we can provide you with this thanks to the Brantford Public Library.
These workshops have been made possible thanks to support from
IN PERSON, PHYSICALLY DISTANCED
THEATRE SKILLS WORKSHOPS
hosted by Brant Theatre Workshops
October 3 - November 28
GROUP A: Saturdays from 1:00PM - 2:30PM
GROUP B: Saturdays from 3:00PM - 4:30PM
workshop location & optional presentation date to be announced
Two groups of ten participants will have the opportunity to learn theatre skills through a series of workshops led by theatre industry professionals. Participants will learn stage basics, characterization, various acting techniques, comedy, mask, mime, voice and text. Each workshop will be held outdoors, or in a physically distanced indoor locations with masks provided to participants.
The workshops may culminate in a short presentation for invited guests. The content of the presentation could include original skits or performances of published pieces, depending on participant preferences.
These workshops are hosted by Brant Theatre Workshops.
These workshops have been made possible thanks to support from
Dramatic Writing Instructors
to view the Theatre Skills instructors, visit Brant Theatre Workshops' website
Thank You to Our Partners
This project has been nearly a year in the works, and it couldn't have happened without the insight and resources provided by our community and artistic partners. A big thanks goes out to the following organizations:
Brantford Substance Users Network, Brant County Health Unit, Brantford Public Library, Brant Theatre Workshops, Canadian Mental Health Association Brant-Haldimand-Norfolk Chapter, Grand River Community Health Centre, Off-Key Productions, St. Leonard's Community Services, Wesley