>>PREVIEW
THEATRE CALGARY 2006-07 SEASON
It’s the day before Theatre Calgary’s announcement of their upcoming 2006-07 season, and new creative director Dennis Garnhum can barely contain himself.
"I’m probably not going to sleep tonight," he says.
The 38-year-old has been building an impressive resumé, working across Canada with everyone from the Shaw Festival to Stratford. His love of the classics is tempered with a keen eye for modern, substantial productions. Taking the helm at one of Calgary’s most established theatre companies may bring a bounty of challenges, but Garnhum appears to be taking it in stride.
"It’s a logical progression of where this theatre group should be going," he says.
Featuring acting heavyweight Martha Henry in The Retreat from Moscow, and the international smash The Overcoat, the new lineup ventures from the tried-and-true musicals and standbys of the company’s past.
Starting with the Steinbeck classic Of Mice and Men – which Garnhum will direct – the new season is an eclectic mix, but don’t expect a bounty of expletives or nudity.
"They’re pretty gentle," Garnhum says. "It’s intellectually pleasant. Not taxing at all," he says of the new picks.
Given his relative youth and multifaceted background, there has been some speculation he will take the company into a more cutting-edge realm. Not so, he insists.
"My goal is not to have group nudity on stage at Theatre Calgary," he says. "I’m actually a bit conservative. I love the classics."
The second show of the season will feature audience favourite Nicola Cavenish, known to many as Shirley Valentine, playing Florence Foster Jenkins, or the Worst Singer in the World, in Glorious!
Theatre Calgary’s holiday favourite A Christmas Carol remains, but with a fresh look, new costumes and some script updates.
Another new facet Garnhum has implemented is an international selection each year. This year’s choice, The Cripple of Inishmaan, is an absurd comedy that plays on unique Irish sensibilities.
Garnhum is also bringing The Guys to town, written by Anne Nelson and done as a reading. The idea arose from Nelson’s own experience telling the tales of firefighters who lost their lives in the World Trade Center. It will play on September 11, 2006.
In addition to the mainstage productions, there will be cowboy poetry and an international reading series as part of the new second stage.
Coming from a three-year stint in New York, Garnhum feels Calgary is at an exciting time in the arts.
"Theatre and the arts are going to match the economic growth and vibrancy in Calgary," he says. "The artistic community is going to rise to the incredible opportunity it’s been presented. The fact we have all these theatres operating at the same time is fantastic," he says, adding that theatre-goers are more cosmopolitan than they think.
A few eyebrows have been raised at the lack of a Shakespeare production this year, but he says it’s not worth doing unless it’s "done spectacularly."
With his first season as creative director nearly completed, how does Garnhum feel?
"This has surpassed all of my wildest hopes. I feel fully expressed." |
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