| "There’s an excess of theatre companies in this town," says Ground Zero Theatre’s artistic director, Ryan Luhning, "vying for the same audiences, fighting for the funding to get their productions up and to do them really well."
Luhning isn’t complaining – far from it. In fact, a quick glance at his company’s 11 Betty Mitchell Award nominations reveals that Ground Zero is benefiting in no small way from other companies – every single one of the 10-year-old company’s nominations carry a co-production slash.
With one co-production nomination with One Yellow Rabbit (A Fabulous Disaster), another two with Firebelly Theatre (John Doe/Jack Rabbit) and the remaining eight with Vertigo Theatre for the production of the noir musical Little Mercy’s First Murder, the value of those other companies, even those competing for the same audiences, seems obvious.
Having coined his company’s past season "The Calgary League of Theatrical Superheroes," boasting such members as "The Rabbit" (OYR) and "Toros" (The University of Calgary), Luhning points out that the pooling of resources not only afforded his company the financial means to produce larger shows, but also inexorably tied the company’s rising star to the names of some of the city’s most recognizable companies. That’s recognition that can translate directly into theatre’s lifeblood: ticket sales.
"Well-established companies have a built-in subscriber base that helps expose their audience to a vast audience in this city, whereas smaller companies, when you put the show up you’re hoping for walk-ups to come and take an interest in the product," says Luhning. "By teaming up with companies like One Yellow Rabbit, they already have a subscriber base who will come up and see that work.
"We have to work show by show, so it helps bring those audiences to our shows, so they walk away in the same breath saying ‘I saw a Theatre Calgary show, an ATP show or a Ground Zero show,’ so it does become a viable commodity for theatre patrons."
Certainly, the draw of a larger name is an appealing quality for any theatre company, especially in an increasingly competitive market. Both of Calgary’s largest theatre companies, Theatre Calgary and Alberta Theatre Projects, are products of small companies growing and evolving – TC was once the amateur group known as Workshop 14 and ATP began catering to young audiences. But despite the drawing power of larger companies, Luhning says that his company has no interest in becoming a larger entity itself.
"I have no interest in being a large company that has a subscriber base," he says. "Am I interested in getting as many to see my shows as possible? Of course. But there’s not an administration in place to foster a subscriber base that needs time to develop."
Luhning’s reluctance to emulate the city’s larger players is understandable, given that Ground Zero has remained more mobile and flexible than a larger company can afford to be. Since 1996 with its inaugural production of Eric Bogosian’s suBurbia, Ground Zero has played venues including the Pumphouse Theatres, the University of Calgary and (for this year’s production of Little Mercy’s First Murder) Vertigo’s Studio Theatre. While this dynamic leaves the company perpetually hopping between venues, it also affords staging possibilities that are simply not possible for larger companies.
"We’ve always been nomadic," says Luhning. "Some shows work best in a studio theatre where you have 130 to 135 people. Some, like Drunken Fucker (presented as part of GZT’s Groundbreakers series) work best in a small environment that only fits 50 people.
"I’ve always been more excited about having 50 to 60 people, elbow-to-elbow, watching a performance," he adds. "That’s the dynamic of Ground Zero, having the actors right in front of you, almost sitting right in your lap."
Whether Ground Zero Theatre (a company that was founded modestly enough by Luhning, C. Adam Leigh and Lester Fong as a means to generate work beyond the unpredictable source of the larger houses) will be able to continue as a company with an actor for every audience member’s lap remains to be seen. With its season opening with the ambitious musical Urinetown, a co-production with Hit and Myth Productions that will also take Vertigo’s Studio Theatre, and a continually growing profile in the local theatre scene, Luhning is certainly cognizant of the need to continually evolve the company.
"There are still conversations to be had about where (the company) will lie going into season 11," says Luhning (Ground Zero’s 10th season has already been announced). "Everything should always be a step forward. Going from this season with big productions, coming out next season and maybe doing smaller shows, things that aren’t as challenging as (next season’s) Pillowman might be a step backward. It’s a very exciting time for GZT to see what our next phase will be." |
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