As many arts companies are enjoying a quiet summer, Downstage is just heating up. This month their professional development program invites two new creator-producer duos into the building. During the 2022-23 season, each Stage It participant will have the chance to work closely with Downstage staff and guest artists as they develop their project and learn more about how to produce their own work. This season, Downstage has selected participants who are using humour to investigate important social issues.

Read on to learn more about these aspiring theatre professionals.

Meet Stephanie and Keith

Stephanie Alexandre is a hockey player-turned-theatre-nerd. As a recent graduate from the University of Calgary with a degree in English in Drama, she is passionate about storytelling in all of its forms— whether through music, on the page, stage, or over cup of tea and some good conversation.

Keith is a queer Filipinx artist who is studying theatre at the University of Calgary! He loves to mix movement and dance with his passion for theatre. Keith is also passionate about exploring stories from marginalized communities.

What is it that drew you to apply?
We were ecstatic about this opportunity, as the program will allow us to foster not only our creative goals as artists, but our professional development as well. We are so grateful to Downstage for offering their mentorship in this way to emerging artists, and we can’t wait to work with their amazing team on this journey. We also loved that we could apply as a team, as we wanted to share in this experience together!

What is it about Downstage and the type of stories that they tell that really resonates with your work?
Downstage’s mandate to produce theatre that creates meaningful conversation aligns with our desire to be community-oriented artists. We want our work to inspire togetherness, and be an invitation to gather, learn, and benefit from each other as a community. As we both come from immigrant families and are passionate about sharing both the joys and the difficulties of our stories, we are honoured to have spaces like Downstage that encourage this kind of work.

How does your project bring together social change and humour?
We were interested in exploring the concept of grieving as a community. In many forms, the last two years have greatly brought this to our attention. While we cannot ignore the resulting pain, what we can do is highlight joy, and encourage the seeking of it. What we hope our work inspires is that social change does not need to be sought out individually, but can be pursued and fostered in community.

Meet Islay and Ciaran

Ciarán Volke (he/they) is an actor/writer/filmmaker/alien based in unceded lək̓ʷəŋən Territory. He is interested in the surreal and the heartfelt, often tackling truths that are otherwise kept unknown. His mission in life is to make people feel good about being silly. He has a BFA in acting from the University of Victoria, and has recently collaborated with Intrepid Theatre, Paper Street Theatre, the Greater Victoria Shakespeare Festival, and Theatre SKAM.

Islay McKechnie (she/they) is a theatre artist/improviser/cowboy/music man. She was raised on the unceded territory of the Semá:th First Nation and the Mathxwí First Nation. Islay is greatly interested in collaborating with other artists to skill-share, blend mediums, and create original, hybrid works. She is fueled by a love of mischief, whimsy, music, and dark humour. Islay trained at Rosebud School of the Arts, specializing in acting. Past theatrical adventures have included collaborations with Paper Street Theatre and Downstage.

What is it that drew you to apply?
We were looking for a safe and encouraging space to gain mentorship and camaraderie within the Calgary theatre community and abroad, and a way to learn about self-produced work. The Stage It Program was the perfect place for our particular stories to thrive and blossom.

What is it about Downstage and the type of stories that they tell that really resonates with your work?
Our project works with people where they are at. We interview them as part of the performance and create meaningful stories from it. Downstage encourages the exploration of heart and soul onstage and off, and so it was a perfect match for us.

How does your project bring together social change and humour?
Our project is about building a community of queer artists together and celebrating their lives through improv, music, and humour. We want to bring their stories to the spotlight and confront the hardest thing of all: love.

You will have a chance to see their new play creations in spring of 2023 as part of Downstage’s Stage It Festival of New Works, May 11 – 14. Learn more at downstage.ca.