ROCK.PAPER.SISTAHZ DEVELOPMENT SERIES
“I would not be the artist I am today without my rock.paper.sistahz residency. For an intense two weeks, I ventured to deep and complex places in order to tell this story, and I felt completely safe and supported. The trust, enthusiasm, space, respect, clear communication and the reminders both in words and actions that Our Fathers... is my piece and that I should create it as I see fit, have changed me. Not only was I thrilled with the draft of Our Fathers... that emerged during this time, I also now know that I am a powerful creator who can own her full intelligence, heritage, and instincts in a professional theatre environment, and I'd never had that before."
- Makambe K Simamba, about her residency with b current performing arts
rock.paper.sistahz festival has been reimagined into an in-depth development series where curated artists are invited to explore, play and present their work throughout the season, all within our newly renovated 50 seat studio theatre. This year’s rock.paper.sistahz artist in residence is:
Andrea Scott is an actor, playwright & producer whose play, Eating Pomegranates Naked, debuted at rock.paper.sistahz in 2012. Accepted into SummerWorks the following year, it won the RBC Arts Professional award, and was named Outstanding Ensemble, and Outstanding Production. Two years later Better Angels: A Parable won the SummerWorks award for Production and was recognized as Outstanding New Play, Outstanding Ensemble, Outstanding Direction and Outstanding Production by NOW Magazine. It had its US debut at the Athena Festival in Chicago and was produced by Rumble Theatre in their Tremors Festival in 2016. Don’t Talk to Me Like I’m Your Wife, won the Cayle Chernin Award for theatre in 2016, followed by a successful run at SummerWorks (Outstanding Performance – NOW Magazine). Andrea is a CAEA, ACTRA, PGC, DGA member and graduate from the Artist Producer Training Program run by Generator/Theatre Ontario. Better Angels: A Parable and Eating Pomegranates Naked will be published this Fall by Scirocco Publishing.
Project Description:
On November 8, 1946 Viola Desmond started a revolution without taking off her white gloves. The first Black woman to fight a court conviction in Canada she shook up the establishment when she refused to accept overt racism and discrimination as normal. Controlled Damage takes an unconventional view of how her resistance affected those around her, for better and worse. Sometimes you have to plant trees under which you’ll never sit, and for that, we thank her.
Photographed above: Andrea Scott
Big thanks to Martingale Vintage, Beth Russell and the Stratford Festival for helping us with wardrobe and props for this image.
- Makambe K Simamba, about her residency with b current performing arts
rock.paper.sistahz festival has been reimagined into an in-depth development series where curated artists are invited to explore, play and present their work throughout the season, all within our newly renovated 50 seat studio theatre. This year’s rock.paper.sistahz artist in residence is:
Andrea Scott is an actor, playwright & producer whose play, Eating Pomegranates Naked, debuted at rock.paper.sistahz in 2012. Accepted into SummerWorks the following year, it won the RBC Arts Professional award, and was named Outstanding Ensemble, and Outstanding Production. Two years later Better Angels: A Parable won the SummerWorks award for Production and was recognized as Outstanding New Play, Outstanding Ensemble, Outstanding Direction and Outstanding Production by NOW Magazine. It had its US debut at the Athena Festival in Chicago and was produced by Rumble Theatre in their Tremors Festival in 2016. Don’t Talk to Me Like I’m Your Wife, won the Cayle Chernin Award for theatre in 2016, followed by a successful run at SummerWorks (Outstanding Performance – NOW Magazine). Andrea is a CAEA, ACTRA, PGC, DGA member and graduate from the Artist Producer Training Program run by Generator/Theatre Ontario. Better Angels: A Parable and Eating Pomegranates Naked will be published this Fall by Scirocco Publishing.
Project Description:
On November 8, 1946 Viola Desmond started a revolution without taking off her white gloves. The first Black woman to fight a court conviction in Canada she shook up the establishment when she refused to accept overt racism and discrimination as normal. Controlled Damage takes an unconventional view of how her resistance affected those around her, for better and worse. Sometimes you have to plant trees under which you’ll never sit, and for that, we thank her.
Photographed above: Andrea Scott
Big thanks to Martingale Vintage, Beth Russell and the Stratford Festival for helping us with wardrobe and props for this image.
Image Description: A Black woman wears a 1940s dress. She sits on a stool confidently eating popcorn.