CO TENTSSEPTEMBER 2003

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Credits

Series Synopsis

Episodic Synopses

1113 Who's Who Actors' Bios

16 Who's Who Filmmakers' Bios

Behind The Scenes:The Making of Slings & Arrows

Directing a Cast ofWriter/Director/Actors

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MAKING YOURSELF HEARDIN NEW BURBAGE:A profile of Geoffrey Tennant

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Don McKellar Mark McKinney Stephen Ouimetteas Darren Nichols as Richard Smith-Jones as Oliver Welles

Michael Polleyas Frank

NEW 131LJIRI3,AGE FESTIVALTHE SWAN THEATRE

STARRINGPAUL GROSS

STEPHEN OUIMETTEMARTHA BURNS

RACHEL MCADAMSLUKE KIRBY

JENNIFER IRWINSUSAN COYNE SEAN CULLEN

MARCIA BENNETT SABRINA GRDEVICHGRAHAM HARLEY MICHAEL POLLEYCATHERINE FITCH MATT FITZGERALD

withDON MCKELLAR

andMARK MCKINNEY

as RICHARD

SPECIAL APPEARANCES BYLance Chilton Jonathan CrombieJayne Eastwood Karen HazzardTom McCamus Albert Schultz

Patrick Watson

THE ENSEMBLEAaron Abrams, Damir Andrei, Bob Bainborough, Boyd Banks,

Neil Barclay, Milton Barnes, John Bayliss, Jeff Berg, Martha Ferguson,Caroline Gillis, James Gilpin, Eduardo Gomez, Rothaford Gray,Marvin Ishmael, Nick Johne, Melody Johnson, Derek Keurvorst,Kirsten Kieferle, Lisa Lambert, Chas Lawther, Billy MacLellan,Bob Martin, Rosalba Martinni, Ross McKie, Brendan Murray,

Alon Nashman, J.D. Nicholsen, Sean O'Hara, Robert Persichini,Julian Richings, Martin Roach, Alan Rosenthal, Craig Richard Snoyer,Jane Spidell, Alec Stockwell, Maya Toman, Rob Trick, Stella Walker,

Matt Watts, Clyde Whitham, Karen Woolridge, Jeremy Wright,Tracey Wright, Malcolm Xerxes, Timm Zemanek

STUNTSCoordinators - John Stoneham Jr., John Stead

Performers - Erin Jarvis, Ron Van Hart

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TI-1E CCMIDANY(In Alphabetical Order)

Marcia Bennett Martha Burnsas May Silverstone as Ellen Fanshaw

Susan Coyneas Anna Conroy

Sean Cullenas Basil

Catherine Fitchas Maria

Matt FitzGeraldas Sloan

Sabrina Grdevich Paul Grossas Claire Donner as Geoffrey Tennant

Graham Harleyas Cyril

Jennifer Irwinas Holly Day

Luke Kirbyas Jack Crew

Rachel McAdamsas Kate McNab

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SERIES SYNOPSIS

In the folklore of the NewBurbage Theatre Festival,Geoffrey Tennant, Ellen Fanshaw andOliver Welles were a force to bereckoned with: Geoffrey and Ellen werethe darlings of the stage and Oliver wasthe director who knew how to orchestratetheir talents. But just as the treachery inHamlet's court drove him to madness, so,too, did the uncertainty of love andloyalty at the New Burbage TheatreFestival cause Geoffrey Tennant tobecome unhinged. An artist to the last,Geoffrey departed from sanity in themiddle of a performance of Hamlet. Notonly was it his best performance, it wasalso his last.

Fast forward seven years to theTheatre Sans Argent where Geoffrey hasresurfaced as Artistic Director. Down onits Shakespearean heels, under-financed,under-attended and under the gun, he isfailing in his struggles to make endsmeet. Meanwhile, at the New BurbageFestival, Oliver Welles is faring muchbetter financially as the Festival's ArtisticDirector who is mounting a soullessproduction of Midsummer Night'sDream where actors are actors and stagesheep are nervous. Ellen, Geoffrey'sformer paramour, is also comfortablyensconced in her role as the prima donna.Ellen is still talented enough to hang ontothe 'prima', but the passing years aretaking their toll on the 'donna'.

In a freak accident where a pork truckmeets the pavement, Oliver Welles dies.As the grief-struck theatre troupe adjuststo Oliver's death, Geoffrey quicklydiscovers he has to adjust to theoccasional reappearance of Oliver'sghost offering the kind of sage adviceonly dead men with an axe to grind canbring. It's like Hamlet therapy - free ofcharge.6

Oliver Welles' memorial service quicklydissolves into chaos. The next day,thanks to May Silverstone, Chair of theBoard of Directors and chance favouringthe demented mind, Geoffrey isembraced as the prodigal son and madeInterim Artistic Director. That is whenGeoffrey and May make a new enemy -Holly Day, of Cosmopolitan-LenstrexCorporation, the Festival's biggestsponsor. With visions of a Shakespeareantheme park dancing in her head, Holly, ahuman raptor disguised as an executive,recruits the assistance of Richard Smith-Jones, New Burbage General Manager-turned-corporate boy toy.

Geoffrey balks at directing theFestival's upcoming production ofHamlet. Refusing to face yet anotherghost from his past, Tennant yields to theappointment of Darren Nichols, adirector who embodies the Siegfried andRoy theory of Shakespeare. Ellen is toplay Gertrude when she isn't playingMrs. Robinson to Sloan, her new dirt-biker enamorata, holding him up as ashield to protect herself from lettingGeoffrey get too close. Claire, an actressof negligible talent but with an influentialfather on the Board of Directors, buddiesup with her understudy, Kate who, inaddition to having legitimate actingtalent, also has the attention of JackCrew, a most un-princely Hamletplucked from Hollywood by RichardSmith-Jones and dropped onto theFestival like a slacker bombshell.

Geoffrey soon learns that you can runfrom your past, but you can't hide.Despite a bitter leading lady, a cluelessleading man, and a scheming GeneralManager, he is forced to overcome hisfears, and manages to stage a remarkablypersonal production of Hamlet; the playthat drove him mad in the first place.

EPISODIC

Part IOli^er's Bream

Theatre Sans Argent is in deepfinancial trouble. Former actor andnow Artistic Director Geoffrey Tennant(Paul Gross), is forced to give hisgreatest performance since walking offstage in the middle of a production ofHamlet seven years before. He has topretend the rent cheques won't bounce.Meanwhile, his former best friend andcolleague, Oliver Welles (StephenOuimette), Artistic Director of TheNew Burbage Shakespearean Festival,has sold his artistic soul forcommercial success. Ellen Fanshaw(Martha Burns), his aging leadingactress and Geoffrey's formerinamorata, reluctantly takes on the roleof Oliver's nagging conscience. Aftercelebrating the Festival's openingnight with a production of MidsummerNight's Dream, a heavily inebriatedOliver sees Geoffrey on the televisionnews playing Custer to the SansArgent's Alamo. Drunkenly calling tocommiserate from a phone booth,Oliver passes out on the road and theNew Burbage Festival loses its leaderto a pork truck.

Part 2Geoffrey Returns

Richard Smith-Jones (MarkMcKinney), the Festival's GeneralManager, meticulously orchestratesOliver's memorial service. In actualfact, Richard is auditioning for thevacant artistic director role, whilevisiting dignitaries (Albert Schultz andPatrick Watson) confuse the memorial

SYNOPSESwith a Friar's Roast. Kate (RachelMcAdams), a wide-eyed actingapprentice, sneaks off to Toronto for acommercial audition and meets JackCrew (Luke Kirby), Hollywood-star-cast-as-Hamlet, on the bus back toNew Burbage. When Geoffrey pays hisrespects to Oliver, he discovers deathhas given his old colleague a newloquacious vitality. Ellen takes up withSloan (Matt FitzGerald), a local stud-muffin, but is less than delighted withGeoffrey's reappearance, especiallywhen it's announced that he has beennamed the Festival's new InterimArtistic Director.

Part 3Madness in Great Ones

Geoffrey's first official act as InterimDirector is to pass the helm of theFestival's flagship Hamlet productionover to show-dog Stage Director,Darren Nichols (Don McKellar). Inorder to ease into his new duties, heelects to supervise the "Shakespeare inBusiness Seminar" – the Festival'snew cash cow scheme. Kate and Jackspend an afternoon at the movieseating popcorn and feeding the rumourmill, as ambitious board member HollyDay (Jennifer Irwin) spirits Richard offto Toronto for a performance ofMamma Mia followed by alcohol-inspired scheming for a new Festivalbusiness plan. Geoffrey alienateseveryone by giving a scathinginterview to veteran theatre critic Basil(Sean Cullen) and then, after a boozyconfession of love, crashes a party atEllen's and challenges Darren to asword fight of honour.

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BEHIND THE SCENESEPISODIC

Part 4Outrageous Fortune

In the wake of Ellen's party, Geoffreybides his time in jail where Oliver'sspirit drops by to counsel him on thedangers of suppressing his pastfeelings for Ellen. Kate and Jack'sfriendship develops well past the pointof friendship. As Holly and Richardwork toward realizing their dream of aShakespearean-themed retail village,Sloan, Ellen's dirt biker/knight inshining armour, rides off to defend herhonour against the invading hordes -Geoffrey and Darren. Unable to avoidthe inevitable, Geoffrey fires Darren, aturn which reassures the cast, butworries the Board of Directors andplays into Holly's hands. Board ChairMay Silverstone (Marcia Bennett),Geoffrey's only champion, sees theoncoming corporate storm, butcollapses under the strain of Holly'splotting and ends up in the emergencyward.

Part 5A Mirror tip to Nature

Now that Geoffrey has ousted Darrenand taken up the reins of Hamlet, theonly thing stopping Richard andHolly's corporate wet dream is thepossible success of the production. Atfirst it seems that problem will takecare of itself with Jack Crew'sunavoidable butchering of the text, butafter a lot of hard work by Geoffrey,and when things finally start lookinghopeful, Richard and Holly takematters into their own hands. The onlything they didn't count on was Ellen'spet chameleon who inadvertently ends

SYNOPSESup saving the day. Ophelia, played byan overly ambitious but well connectedClaire (Sabrina Grdevich) breaks herleg after being scared by the waywardlizard, clearing the path for Kate totake over the role just prior to the oneand only dress rehearsal.

Part 6Playing The Swan

It's high noon in the ShakespeareanCorral. The opening day of Hamlet andJack has disappeared. This inspiresOliver to question Geoffrey'sdirectorial skills. Ellen comes cleanabout what really happened that fatefulnight seven years ago, and Richard,now labeled as a traitor, suspects hehad been duped into loin-dancing withHolly just to facilitate her corporatemaneuverings. Kate rescues Jack fromthe abyss of low self-esteem, andOliver, a man of seemingly infinitejest, makes his last stage appearance.As Frank Sinatra said, the best revengeis massive succe,

"Better a witty fool then afoolish wit."--William Shakespeare in Twelfth

Night

"Slings and Arrows is a natural for usand if we can't do it, then no one can"explains Niv Fichman, ExecutiveProducer and founding member ofRhombus Media, renowned as one ofthe world's most important producersof films on the performing arts. "Wehave been developing this project forfour years and it started out becauseRhombus does a great deal of work inthis area. We wanted to do a twist onthat, to explore the humour and thecomedy in what goes on behindperformance."

"We haven't had this much fun castingin a long time," Fichman says. "We'veassembled the best cast possible in thiscountry. It's a combination of moviestars like Paul Gross, television starslike Mark McKinney, and theatre starslike Susan Coyne, Stephen Ouimetteand Martha Burns, plus up-and-corners like Rachel McAdams andLuke Kirby. Throw in Sean Cullenand Jennifer Irwin for good laughs,and then there's Don McKellar! Youknow, it's so great, it's ridiculous."

"It's exceptional to have suchwonderful scripts and then to see therushes coming in and find they'reeverything you imagined," saysProducer Daniel Iron of Rhombus."What makes these a rare find is thatthey are comedic with a largeensemble cast of characters, each one

being fully formed and complex.Combine that with a clear and concisestory and you have a series which iscompelling and surprising and nevermurky."

"This was an innovative and ambitiousproject," explains Producer SariFriedland who put all the piecestogether, literally pulling a rabbit outof a hat. "Our Swan Theatre was acomposite of three theatrical locationsover two different cities, because rightnow in Canada, theatre is alive andthriving and none could afford thetime to completely close down forseveral weeks to provide us with asingle location. In addition to a largeensemble cast, we also had achameleon as Ellen's pet that wasabsolutely essential to the plot. Unlikeactors who can change their colours atwill, our Panther Chameleon got stagefright which caused it to change itsblue and turquoise colours into timidbrown."

The idea was brought to Rhombus byTecca Crosby, a freelance producer,who has since moved on to work for arival network. "Watching these scriptsgrow and become deeper emotionallyand funnier at the same time was athrill," says Fichman. "The writingteam was fantastic. Tecca first broughtin Susan Coyne who knows this worldso well because she is from Stratfordand Soulpepper. We then teamed herup with Mark McKinney, from Kids inthe Hall, who is one of the greatcomics in the country; and BobMartin, one of the leading comicwriters in the industry."

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BEHIND THE SCENES DIRECTING A CAST OFWRITER/DIRECTOR/ACTORS

"Only actors could have writtenthis," says actor/writer Susan Coyne."Actors always sit around,complaining and telling war stories.Slings and Arrows comes from alifetime of listening to thesecomplaints. The germ of the ideawas the contrast between theperfection on stage and the chaosbackstage; the difference betweenthe actor backstage trying toremember his lines and thenstepping out looking incrediblyconfident." The challenge was tododge the cliches. "Ellen wasn't justan aging diva, she is an actress whoreally does care about the work,"details Coyne. "Sloan is, yes a boy-toy, but he really does love Ellen,and Geoffrey is a mad genius, but hereally does make a positivedifference to the life of Terry, theaccountant from the CorporateWorkshop. And Jack, the movie star.You'd expect that he'd be a terribleactor, but in the end, he does havethe chops to deliver. The basis forthe clichés are there, but reversed.It's always more interesting to set upan expectation than to feed it inunexpectedly."

Mark McKinney, co-writer of theminiseries and the actor playing thepart of the Festival's GeneralManager, Richard Smith-Jones, is ata loss to explain why Slings andArrows has attracted such a stellarcast, "There are a surprising numberof writer/director/actors on this set.It must be something going around.It must be a virus." McKinney is thesource of many of the strong

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character studies in the script and hisinspirations were varied, but headmits one, "Jack Crew is modeledon Keanu Reeves playing Hamlet inWinnipeg."

The third of the screenwriters is alsothe Creative Producer, Bob Martin,whose strength is comedic writingfor stage and television. He is proudof the quips imbedded into thescripts and woven between theculture of theatre and the lore ofShakespearean performances.Incorporating bon mots like"Theatre is a well-lit hell" makeMartin feel like he has raised thelevel of play on television.

"I believe you shouldn'tunderestimate your audience andwrite for the lowest commondenominator because it just isn'tgoing to work here," says Martin,who is seemingly mild-manneredbut carries a sharp wit. "Many ofthese characters are extremelyintelligent and are very aware of it.Oliver and Geoffrey parry and thrustwith an encyclopedic knowledge ofShakespeare and theatre and sayviciously intelligent things. Everyreference about staging andinterpretation of the text, even if it'sa one line toss, took an enormousamount of time to research." As forhis role as Terry the accountant inthe "Shakespeare in Business"workshop, Martin sheepishly admits,"I just realized I represent broadcomedy with my costume (avoluminous pair of velvet pumpkinbreeches)."

"Comedy is about hitting a bulls-eye,"states Director Peter Wellington onorchestrating all the elements to producethe exact timing, pitch and tone of humour."And it's remarkably easy to do with thiscast. Some of these actors, Paul, Stephen,Martha, Susan, Rachel, Luke and Sabrina,come with exceptional Shakespeareanexperience. Others like Don, Mark,Jennifer and Sean come from a comedicbackground which means they have noproblem acting undignified. If you wantmore 'weasel', they'll give it to you."

The story begins with a friendship betweenGeoffrey Tennant played by Paul Gross,Oliver Welles played by Stephen Ouimette,and Ellen Fanshaw, played by MarthaBurns. Modeled loosely on the plot ofHamlet, Oliver dies and returns to haunt theconscience of Geoffrey.

"It's got hi-jinks," asserts Paul Gross whois a qualified member of the 'Hamlet club'(the small group of actors, which includesOuimette, who have been cast in theillustrious role of the Prince of Denmark)."And swordplay! I think primetimetelevision could do with a little moreswordplay, you know, shows like West

Wing or 1 I th Hour." Gross pauses as hesearches for the secret that explains whySlings and Arrows has such immediateappeal. What he finds is that theatre, as thepublic sees it, is always what goes on infront of the curtain, but this series goesbehind the curtain, into the wings and intothe dressing rooms. "It's the backstageworkings of a Shakespearean theatrefestival where the characters are moreflamboyant than you'd ever find in abrokerage firm."

The spectre of Shakespeare has a peculiareffect on people. In some, it inspires awe

and in others, terror. "Fear of Shakespeare,"Gross says, "is a function of seeing badproductions. The language just becomes animpenetrable mush. But these playssurvived 400 years for a reason. They'regood. And even though Slings and Arrowsis funny, it's also a balls-out torch song totheatre."

"If I was slightly madder," Gross confessesabout his demented character, Geoffrey, "I'dbe just like him." As for working oppositehis wife, Martha Bums, for the first time inyears, he turns mischievous, "Her characterhates my character for most of the six hoursand my character doesn't like her. So itworks out just fine." However, thecomfortable chemistry they display in theswan boat ride towards the end of the seriestells the truth about their relationship -working and otherwise.

Stephen Ouimette has a different challenge -he plays a dead man and finds a certainfreedom in the experience. "Only after deathdoes Oliver really come alive. After he isdead he's just sarcastic as opposed to thegrumpy mess he was before he died. Andthen there's my timing. This role has taughtme that without timing, there is nothing.You don't need a Shakespearean vocabularyto watch this," explains Ouimette, who doesspeak the Bard fluently. Slings and Arrowsis, for Ouimette, a glimpse backstage thatfew ever get to see and most find irresistibleto pass up.

Martha Burns was the first to be cast inSlings and Arrows because the part of EllenFanshaw was written specifically for her."Ellen is the senior actress at the NewBurbage Festival, ever since Geoff left, andshe's been struggling to keep her dignitysince then. I already love theatre and to havethe knowledge of that experience, to have it

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DIRECTING A CAST OFWRITER/DIRECTOR/ACTORS

WHO'S WHO ACTOR'S BIOSright at my fingertips is helpful. Taking thisrole was an immediate yes for me. It'sappealing, these little human moments, thetension, the hierarchy, it all works together."

Luke Kirby returns to work with PeterWellington after shooting his feature Luck

the previous spring. Kirby is cast as theHollywood action star, Jack Crew, who iscalled up to tackle Hamlet. In preparationfor the role (Jack, not Hamlet) Kirbyacquired a trainer and hit the gym. "I'm anactor playing an actor. How many pushupsdo I do? None, Jack Crew does them," hesaid with a dissociative grin. "This role andthese scripts are good because they're full ofgreat notions. Maybe I say that because ofmy days in the theatre and it's childish andidyllic of me, but it parallels Shakespeareand it honours Shakespeare and Shakespearehonours life. It reminds me of the goodthings in my own life."

For Jennifer Irwin, the role of Holly Day,the corporate vixen who seduces GeneralManager Richard Smith-Jones, is like areunion. On hiatus from shooting her sitcomStill Standing in Los Angeles, Irwin says,"This show is a blast. It doesn't feel likework. I know Bob and Mark and a lot of thepeople working here, plus there are actorsI've admired for years and haven't had thechance to work with before." Irwin, whosebackground is improv and sketch comedy,knows a good mix when she sees it. "Thesepeople are great actors as well as beingfunny. And that's a good combination."

Sean Cullen, who plays Basil the unctuoustheatre critic, is another one who took thepart because of the scripts. After reading thetext, he built Basil into the sumptuouscreature he is today. "Basil's an amalgambased on Lloyd Grossman, a British cookingshow host (often referred to as a 'smug

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git')," Cullen says as he constricts his voiceinto a post-nasal drip. "Theatre critics are aninteresting breed: some are failed actors whodidn't have the courage or the talent, andthis job puts them in close proximity to theirfailed dreams. I think a lot of them lose theirobjectivity. They want to be loved by theactors, but they also want to have life-and-death power over them."

"This series will shock and appall peopleand confirm their suspicions about whatgoes on behind the curtain in the theatreworld," states Don McKellar who charitablysupplied his own leather pants for hischaracter Darren Nichols – still, he claimshe has never worn them ... off screen.

For McKellar, like Gross, just being an actoris a bit of a holiday from writing anddirecting. Like going to a spa, Gross says.McKellar took this part because "I look forroles where I don't have to shave. No, really,it's a fun script and people have told me I'ma natural for Darren, the obnoxious directorwho comes in, causes trouble and thenleaves in humiliation. Besides, I've beenshot at before, stabbed, torched, but this isthe first show where I get punched."

There is something about the majesty ofShakespeare that begets dignity. But theactors who perform Shakespeare are oftenless than dignified and that makes for goodcomedy. The secret can be found 'in frontof the curtain, behind the curtain,' and in theadministrative offices of a ShakespeareanFestival. Oh yes, and in the giftshop. "It'simportant that the Producers of this showhave a reverence for the arts," explains NivFichman. "It's all about reverence. In theend, art triumphs. Ultimately, it's a lovingtribute."

PAUL GROSS plays Geoffrey

Tennant. His career began in theatre asa playwright. The Deer and theAntelope, his first play won criticalacclaim with Gross being awarded theClifford E. Lee National PlaywritingAward and the Alberta CulturalPlaywriting Award. He has appeared inmany stage productions, most recentlyplaying the title role in Stratford's 2000production of Hamlet. His televisioncareer has included writing for theseries In This Corner and GrossMisconduct. However, Gross isprobably best known for his actingwork on the television program DueSouth for which he earned two GeminiAwards for acting and one for writing.Recently he wrote, directed and starredin Men with Brooms, the highestgrossing English Canadian movie ofthe past twenty years.

STEPHEN OUIMETTE plays OliverWelles. Stephen Ouimette began hisprofessional career working forWilliam Hutt's Young Company at theGrand Theatre in London, Ontario. Onstage he has completed nine seasonswith the Stratford Festival, whichincluded lead roles in Hamlet, RichardIII, Amadeus, Waiting for Godot, andJulius Caesar; five productions of theinternational hit comedy B-Movie: ThePlay; three stints for MirvishProductions: Three Men On A Horse,Art, and most recently Flea In Her Ear,a co-production with SoulpepperTheatre. Mr. Ouimette has workedextensively across Canada, at theatresincluding the Citadel, Tarragon,National Arts Centre, and PasseMuraille, as well as appearing in

Endgame at the Yale RepertoryTheatre. He has played leading roles inmany television and film productions,including: Heater, After Alice,Conspiracy of Silence, The Adjuster,and Firing Squad and can be heard inmany animated cartoons, including:Babar, Maggie and the FerociousBeast, Dog City, Bob and Margaret,and was the voice of Beetlejuice in thelong running series.

MARTHA BURNS plays EllenFanshaw. Martha Burns has adistinguished career on stage as well ason screen. Ms. Burns has performed atthe Royal Alexandra Theatre, Stratfordand the Shaw Festival in addition tobeing one of the founding members ofthe Soulpepper Theatre Company. Onthe stage she earned her first DoraMayor Moore Award for herexceptional performance in Trafford

Tanzi at the National Arts Centre andher second Dora Mayor Award for herperformance in The Miracle Worker.She starred in Our Town, The Memoryof Water, Sweet Bird of Youth, TheStillborn Lover as well as King Lear, AWinter's Tale, Pericles, Cymbeline andCyrano De Bergerac. In film, Ms.Burns won the 1996 Genie Award forBest Supporting Actress for LongDay's Journey Into Night. Additionalscreen credits include Storm of theCentury, What Katy Did, Harry's Case,Justice and Marie Curie: More ThanMeets The Eye.

MARK McKINNEY and SUSANCOYNE (SEE ABOUT THEFILMMAKERS)

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WHO'S WHO ACTOR'S BIOS WHO'S WHO ACTOR'S BIOSRACHEL MCADAMS plays KateMcNab. Just a year ago, RachelMcAdams was in Perfect Pie, a featurefilm, also produced by Rhombus, basedon the stageplay by acclaimedplaywright Judith Thompson, for whichMcAdams earned a Genie nominationfor Best Supporting Actress. She alsoappeared in Guilty By Association withMercedes Ruehl. But it was whenMcAdams landed the lead in thecomedy, The Hot Chick opposite RobSchneider that she captured theattention of Hollywood. Following thatsuccess, she was cast in the leadopposite Ryan Gosling in TheNotebook, directed by Nick Cassavettes,also starring Gena Rowlands, SamShepard and Joan Allen.

LUKE KIRBY plays Jack Crew. LukeKirby has been performing in theatressince his teen years after which he wasaccepted at Canada's most respectedconservatory, the National TheatreSchool. After graduation, he foundhimself with major roles in two separateprestigious projects: the CBS/Allianceminiseries, Haven, and Director LeaPool's award winning, Lost andDelirious. This was followed byHalloween 8: Resurrection and the soonto be released Shattered Glass, the leadin Mambo Italiano and again the lead inLuck, directed by Peter Wellington. Onthe stage, he performed in the FactoryTheatre's production of Geometry InVenice, which garnered him anomination for Best Actor at the DoraMayor Moore Awards. This was quicklyfollowed by the role of Patroclus inTheatre for a New Audience'sproduction of Troilus and Cressida14

directed by Sir Peter Hall in New YorkCity. He returned to act in JudithThompson's premiere of Habitat atCanadian Stage followed by DanielBrook's premiere of The Good Life atthe Tarragon Theatre.

DON MCKELLAR plays DarrenNichols. To connoisseurs of Canadiancinema Don McKellar is best known forhis collaborations with Francois Girardand Bruce McDonald. For McDonald,McKellar wrote Roadkill and Highway61, co-wrote Dance Me Outside, andappeared in Roadkill and Highway 61.For Girard, he co-wrote the Genie-winning Thirty-Two Short Films AboutGlenn Gould and The Red Violin.McKellar is a prodigious writer for thestage (The Drowsy Chaperone, 86, AnAutopsy) and television (Twitch City).His role in Atom Egoyan's Exotica wonhim a Best Supporting Actor Genie andhis directorial debut, Last Night, earnedhim the Prix de la Jeunesse at Cannes.He has also appeared in The Event, Rub& Tug, The Art of Woo, Waydowntown,and David Cronenberg's eXistenZ, aswell as Peter Wellington's Joe's SoMean To Josephine and PatriciaRozema's When Night Is Falling.

JENNIFER IRWIN plays Holly Day.Toronto-native Jennifer Irwin beganacting in the horror feature The Gatebefore joining the Second City comedytroupe. A graduate of Montreal's McGillUniversity, Irwin worked with SecondCity from the mid-1990s, appearing indozens of improv-based comedic stageperformances which lead to supportingroles in Mrs. Winterbourne and BluesBrothers 2000.

Her performance in Superstar, the 1999feature adaptation of Molly Shannon'sSaturday Night Live character MaryKatherine Gallagher, merited aCanadian Comedy Award nomination.Other credits included leads in thebiopic, Gilda Radner: It's AlwaysSomething, Harlan County War andWhite Lies for Showtime, the StevenSeagal action feature Exit Wounds andthe Second City 25th AnniversarySpecial. On series television, Irwin didtwo pilots with Ellen Degeneres and wasa series regular on both as well as beinga series regular on NBC's sitcom InsideSchwartz, and is in her second season asa series lead on CBS' sitcom, StillStanding.

SEAN CULLEN plays Basil. SeanCullen has been touring and performingas a comedian for the past fifteen years.A member of the Canadiancomedy/musical group, Corky and theJuice Pigs, he made his ninthappearance at Just For Laughs this year.In 1998, Cullen struck out on his own,wrote and mounted a one man televisionshow called SEAN CULLEN: Wood,Cheese and Children which wasnominated for a Gemini Award, andappeared on The Ellen Show with EllenDegeneres, Payne with JohnLarroquette, CBS's The Late, Late Showwith Craig Kilborn and NBC's LateFriday and The Tonight Show with JayLeno. Cullen also released a CD, SEANCULLEN LIVE! The first season of TheSean Cullen Show aired on CBC inJanuary 2003 to great acclaim. Laterthis year, Sean Cullen will be headliningthe Canadian Premiere of TheProducers.

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WHO'S WHO FILMMAKERS' BIOS WHO'S WHO FILMMAKERS' BIOS

PETER WELLINGTON, Director.Peter Wellington is an accomplishedwriter/director who has recentlycompleted Luck, his second featurefilm starring Luke Kirby, SarahPolley and Jed Rees. His firstfeature, Joe's So Mean To Josephine,won the Claude Jutra Award for BestFirst Feature Film at the 1996 GenieAwards and was an audiencefavourite at the SundanceInternational Film Festival as well asnumerous other festivals around theworld. He recently completed twoscreenplays for the highly successfulCTV/Alliance Atlantis series, TheI I th Hour. In 1996, he wasnominated for a Best ScreenplayGenie for The Boys' Club, apsychological thriller produced byAlliance Communications starringChris Penn, directed by JohnFawcett. As well, Wellington wrotethe short film, Scratch Ticket, whichwon Best Short Film at the 1994Montreal World Film Festival. Hehas directed episodes of theacclaimed series Traders, The City,Blue Murder and Exhibit A.

NIV , FICHMAN, ExecutiveProducer. Niv Fichman is afounding partner of Rhombus Media,renowned as one of the world's mostimportant producers of films on theperforming arts. In recent years, thecompany has collaborated with suchrenowned artists as Yo-Yo Ma, LordYehudi Menuhin, Dame Kiri TeKanawa, Charles Dutoit, Sir NevilleMarriner, Valery Gergiev, DmitriHvorostovsky, Joshua Bell, SeijiOzawa and many more.16

Mr. Fichman has produced most ofRhombus' output, which nowamounts to almost a hundred filmsover the past twenty-five years. He isresponsible for several highlyrenowned feature films; theAcademy Award winning The RedViolin, Last Night, Long Day'sJourney Into Night, Thirty-Two ShortFilms About Glenn Gould andSeptember Songs. Mr. Fichman alsoproduced Yo-Yo Ma: Inspired ByBach, a six part television series,which was broadcast around theworld to great acclaim. Over the pasttwenty-five years Rhombusproductions have received literallyhundreds of awards including severalInternational Emmys, PrimetimeEmmys, numerous Geminis, Genies,a number of Golden Pragues, and aGolden Rose.Aside from his producingresponsibilities, Niv Fichman hasdirected a number of Rhombusproductions including CrossingBridges, Struggle For Hope,Marcelo Alvarez: In Search ofGardel and World Drums. Morerecently, he co-directed andproduced the performance specialfeaturing up and comingInternational singing sensationAselin Debison.This fall marks the release of severalnew projects including GuyMaddin's feature film The SaddestMusic In The World, Barbara WillisSweete's Elizabeth Rex and TheFirebird as well as Rhombus Media'sAn Idea of Canada, a documentaryabout Governor General AdrienneClarkson

SARI FRIEDLAND, Producer. SariFriedland has been integral in theproduction of some of Canada's mostsuccessful series television during thepast two decades. She produced the onehour pilot, An American in Canada, forCBC, which took top honours at the2002 Geminis for Best ComedyProgram or Series, setting a precedentfor the first pilot to ever win in thatcategory. Friedland was involved in themulti-award winning original Degrassitelevision series (90 1/2 hour episodes),which was one of the highest-ratedshows in Canada and has been sold tomore than 70 countries, including theUnited States, Isreal and Australia.After a very rewarding relationshipwith Executive Producer/Creator LindaSchuyler on the Degrassi series,Friedland went on to work withSchuyler as the Supervising Produceron 26 1/2 hour episodes of LibertyStreet and 42 hour episodes ofRiverdale, the first prime time soapopera in Canada. Friedland volunteersa great deal of her time to the CanadianFilm and Television ProducersAssociation (CFTPA) sitting on theindustrial relations committeerepresenting the interests of smallindependent producers. She has beenpart of the CFTPA Producers' team thatnegotiates various union and guildagreements including ACTRA and theDGC and has chaired the committeethrough the last two WGC negotiations.In 2001, Friedland produced her firstfeature film, the Genie-nominated RedGreen comedy, Duct Tape Forever.

DANIEL IRON, Producer. Aftergraduating from Osgoode Hall Law

School in Toronto in 1987, Daniel Ironbegan his career as legal counsel atTelefilm Canada. After five years atTelefilm, he moved to Rhombus Mediawhere he currently heads business andlegal affairs. While at Rhombus, he hasbeen involved in over twentyproductions, including producing theGrammy nominated Satie and Suzanne,the Gemini winning Dido and Aeneas,and the acclaimed feature film LongDay's Journey Into Night, directed byDavid Wellington.Iron co-produced The Red Violin, theOscar winning, international featurefilm from Francois Girard, starringSamuel L. Jackson and Greta Scacchiamong others, and produced the award-winning Last Night, a feature filmdirected by Don McKellar. He has alsoproduced The Four Seasons and DonGiovanni Unmasked, two performingarts films for television as well asproducing the six part series ForeignObjects, written and directed by KenFinkleman.Most recently, Daniel produced PerfectPie, the gripping feature film directedby Barbara Willis Sweete and based onJudith Thompson's play of the samename. He also produced WillisSweete's one-hour dance specialFirebird as well as Elizabeth Rex,which is an imaginative adaptation ofTimothy Findley's Governor-GeneralAward winning play of the same name.Daniel also was the Executive Produceron The Saddest Music In The Worldand on Peter Wellington's Luck.

BOB MARTIN, Writer, CreativeProducer, and plays Terry. Bob Martinhas been working as an actor and

17

WHO'S WHO FILMMAKERS' BIOS WHO'S WHO FILMMAKERS' BIOSwriter in theatre, film and televisionsince 1981. He is a fixture at SecondCity in Toronto, having co-written andperformed in four Main Stage revues,and directed the criticallyacclaimed revue Sordid() Deluxo.Recently, he was appointed ArtisticDirector of Toronto's Second City. Heco-wrote the hit musical The Drowsy

Chaperone, which set box officerecords at the Fringe of TorontoTheatre festival before it was pickedup by Mirvish Productions andincluded in their 2000/2001 season.His sketch comedy group Skippy'sRangers has performed extensively onCBC Radio, CBC Television, CTVand The Comedy Network. Recenttelevision writing credits includeTwitch City (two seasons), Made inCanada (three seasons), andSketchCom. A Gemini- nominatedwriter, Martin has also beennominated for a total of elevenCanadian Comedy Awards in the areasof acting, writing, and directing. Hehas won four.

SUSAN COYNE, Writer and playsAnna Conroy. Susan Coyne'sacclaimed childhood memoir,Kingfisher Days, was published in2001 by Random House Canada, andwill be published in the U.S this fail.She later adapted the book for theTarragon Theatre, where it had a soldout run this spring. Coyne is afounding member of Toronto'sSoulpepper Theatre, for whom sheadapted (with Laszlo Marton) AntonChekhov's Platonov, and co-wrote TheOld Business with Jason Sherman. Heradaptation of Chekhov's Three Sisters18

was produced by the Shaw Festivalthis summer. She is a playwright-in-residence at the Tarragon Theatre.As an actor, Coyne has appeared attheatres across Canada, including theStratford Festival where her rolesincluded Juliet, Portia, Regan, andLaura in The Glass Menagerie. At theTarragon, her credits include An Acreof Time and Patience; (Doranominations for each); A Woman'sComedy; Waiting for the Parade;Albertine in Five Times; and Aunt Dan

and Lemon (Dora nomination). Otherrecent stage credits include A Chorusof Disapproval; The Winter's Tale; AChristmas Carol; Betrayal; Platonov;and Don Carlos, all for Soulpepper.She was a lead player in CBCtelevision's The Broad Side, and aseries regular on CBC radio's weeklysatire, National Affairs.

MARK MCKINNEY, Writer andplays Richard Smith-Jones. MarkMcKinney is a founding member ofKids in the Hall, the Canadian comedytroupe with Bruce McCulloch, ScottThompson, Kevin McDonald andDave Foley. The troupe is one of themost successful in Canadian historyhaving a five year run on televisionwhich has aired all over the world, aswell as numerous live appearancesincluding two major North Americantours. Stage credits include The UglyMan in the One Yellow Rabbit Tour atEdinburgh Festival and Glasgow'sTron Theatre, A Flea in Her Ear at theRoundabout Theatre, NYC, The Rivalsat the Williamstown Theatre Festival,Fuddy Meers at the Manhattan TheatreClub and most recently the Canadian

productions of Fully Committed inToronto, Vancouver and Montreal.McKinney's screen credits includeSpiceworld, Brain Candy, Dogpark(Genie 2000 Award for Best SupportingActor), Superstar, The Out-of-Towners, New Waterford Girl,Toothpaste, Jacob Two-Two Meets theHooded Fang, This Might Be Good andPassion of John Ruskin. Most recently,McKinney is featured in two films atthe upcoming 2003 Toronto filmfestival: Falling Angels, directed byScott Smith and the lead role in SaddestMusic in the World, directed by GuyMaddin and co-starring IsabellaRossellini. Aside from Kids in the Hall,McKinney's television credits includeSaturday Night Live (1995 - 1997),Twitch City, and Made in Canada.

RUDOLF BLAHACEK, Director of

Photography. Rudolf Blahacek'sability as Director of Photographyspans feature film, television anddocumentary shooting styles. He hasrecently completed production on theDaniel Maclvor feature, WilbyWonderful. His credits also includeDeath and The Maiden starring TomMcCamus and Michelle Monteith,Cyberman, the documentary on SteveMann, directed by Peter Lynch, Do orDie, the sci-fi thriller directed by DavidJackson, The Pilot's Wife and The BigHeist, both television movies directedby Robert Markowitz. His feature filmcredits include Daniel MacIvor's PastPerfect, The Herd and Garage.

KATHLEEN CLIMIE, ProductionDesigner. Kathleen Climie served asArt Director on Atom Egoyan's multi-

award winning The Sweet Hereafterand again on his most recentproduction, Ararat. She has alsoworked in television for Chasing CainI, The Defenders: Taking The First, MyOwn Country, and Rocky Marciano,Climie was the Production Designer onThe Impossible Elephant which openedthe 2001 Sprockets Children's FilmFestival, Patricia Rozema's short, ThisMight Be Good, The Daniel HuffmanStory, the Emmy-winning televisionmovie Finding Buck McHenry, starringOssie Davis, the award-winning shortfilm for BRAVO, Dinner at the Edge aswell as Peter Wellington's soon to bereleased feature, Luck.

LEA CARLSON, Costume Designer.Lea Carlson has worked extensivelywith maverick director BruceMcDonald on the feature film PictureClaire and also on both seasons of thetelevision mini-series, Twitch City aswell as his live-to-air television feature,American Whiskey Bar. Her effortswere rewarded with Gemininominations for Best Costume Designin 1998 and 2000. Other CostumeDesigner feature film credits includeJohn Fawcett's Ginger Snaps, DonMcKellar's Last Night, and AssistantDesigner on John L'Ecuyer's Curtis'Charm, and Patricia Rozema's WhenNight Is Falling. For television Carlsonhas costumed the cast of The BowenMurder Mysteries and External Affairs,as well as the series, The Rez, The NewGhostwriter Series and GroundlingMarsh. On the stage, her designs forKen Gass' Claudius earned a DoraMayor Moore Award nomination forCostume Design in 1994.

19

Making Yourself Heard in New Burbage:

A profile of GeoffreyTennant

Geoffrey Tennant makes his triumphant return to the highly acclaimed NewBurbage Theatre Festival as Interim Artistic Director at The Swan Theatre, bringinghis genius to the production of "Hamlet." Seven years ago, the world knew atheatrical virtuoso was in their midst and with this new production, they will know itagain.

At one time, Tennant was a familiar face at The Swan Theatre. He was theGeoffrey Tennant: inamorato of the divine Ellen Fanshaw; prodigy of the nowdeceased Oliver Welles. But his reign ended when he self-combusted during thegrave scene in a production of "Hamlet." In the intervening years, he attempted torise from the ashes of his career as the Artistic Director of the Theatre Sans Argent inToronto with a production of "The Tempest", but that effort was aborted due toquestionable financial practices. It was Tennant's unexpected appearance at OliverWelles' memorial which inspired May Silverstone, Chair of the New Burbage FestivalBoard of Directors, to put his name forward as Interim Artistic Director. On a personalnote, we all send May our best wishes and hope she gets out of the hospital soon.

For years now, Tennant has been the talk of New Burbage, although it's mostlyhearsay concerning the state of his sanity. In returning to The Swan, he can takecomfort from Lewis Carroll's Cheshire Cat who counseled Alice with this advice,"We're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad. You must be or you wouldn't have comehere." As for stepping into the position recently vacated by Oliver Welles, Tennantsays, "For all his faults, Oliver has amazing staying power."

And yet, Tennant inspires comment. His assistant, Anna Conroy thinly disguisesher admiration,"He lives on a different plane than the rest of us. Sometimes I don'tknow what he's saying." Kate McNab, a newcomer to The Swan stage, has heldTennant up as the source of her inspiration ever since she watched his Hamlet whenshe was 12 years old. But it is Darren Nichols, the man briefly at the helm of"Hamlet", who offers candid insight on Tennant's psyche, although he could well bespeaking about himself (an activity he excels at), "Theatre is the only professionwhere medical obnoxiousness, technical insanity and multiple personalities can beseen as a virtue."

Tennant, a man whose opinions are not always confined to the facts, believesDarren Nichols would find greater fulfillment directing music videos for BritneySpears. About Ellen Fanshaw, he says: "Fine actress; terrible human," a remarksomewhat tainted by their history, and about Jack Crew, he says, "Good actor; betterKung Fu artist."

In the course of the struggle to mount the current production of "Hamlet", Tennantbattled over budget with General Manager Richard Smith-Jones ("Now there's a manwho should be selling used cars in another country") and his compadre-in-crime, HollyDay, the representative from the Festival's most generous sponsor, Cosmopolitan-Lenstrex. Holly, ever the woman to let someone else take a bullet for her, neatlydodged discussing Tennant's ability by commenting on Oliver Welles' passing, "Artistsaren't really appreciated until they're dead, are they?" When asked if she meantTennant should search out a pork truck of his own, she briskly replied, "Did I say that?No, I don't think I said that. Are you listening to me? If you listened carefully, you'dhave known that's not what I said."

Trust the veterans of the theatre to offer the most illuminating perspective. Frankand Cyril, the old curmudgeons of The Swan, agree that Tennant's madness is arelative point. "This director is the mad one, the one before was even madder and thefirst one is dead," says Cyril.

"That's the only kind of director I can really work with - the dead one, notes Frank."Rather like your performance," suggests Cyril.Oliver Welles, the man whose death brouaht Tennant back to life, is not one to let

dying muzzle him."Geoffrey has becomethe son I never had,"explains Welles fromthe other side. "And I'vebecome the father henever wanted. As anactor, he wasincandescent. As adirector, he's inspiredAs a human being, well...he really iswonderful director."

In closing, it is safeto say Tennant remainthe enfante terrible. Heis the Odysseus of

Canadian theatre: he':spent a long time rope(to the mast, but novhe's come home. Intheatre, there arfrogues and there angentlemen and Geoffreyis both, but never at thesame time.

Photography: Ben Mark HolzbergUnit Publicist: Cynthia AmsdenPress Book Designer: Arlene Lott

Proud supportersof the

New BurbageFestival

2003 Season

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Sheena MacdonaldToronto, CANADAPh: 416 971 7856Fax: 416 971 9647

Email: smacdonald@rhombusmedia.com