So Proud...

I awoke this morning at 5:55am. I picked up the Ipod and began leafing through Facebook updates. An article/review posted by Howard Van Schaick about Rebecca's show - now running in NYC - got me thinking about some wonderfully talented (all younger than me) people in my life that I have had the good fortune to share some time with.

Rebecca Northan

I first met Rebecca as she completed high school. She wanted to be an actor. I was a veteran actor of 10+ years (Ha!), and I was going to help her choose audition pieces. She was young and beautiful and oh so talented, and I knew instantly that she was already an actor. She didn't need theatre school. A few years later she was a working actor in Calgary. She even played my daughter in a truly horrifying script/production during the playrites festival at Alberta Theatre Projects. Through the years, I have watched from afar as Rebecca continued to grow as an artist. And now she's in NYC... wowing them in her collaborative show Blind Date.  So proud, Rebecca.

Peter Oldring

I met Peter in Winnipeg during rehearsals for a co-production of "Crackpot" at Prairie Theatre Exchange and The Belfry Theatre in 1996. Peter had just graduated from the National Theatre School of Canada. Young and full of energy. He is pictured between Brian Linds and I (81 & 83 graduates). Peter was the next generation. His boundless energy and devilishness kept the entire company entertained. "Crackpot" was a straight ahead drama, set in Winnipeg before and after WWII, chronicling the life of a Hoda - an impoverished Jewish girl who struggled to earn a living and support herself, her father, and her son. Not a lot of laughs in the show. In lieu of laughs on stage, Peter took to lightening the mood with his wicked improvisational skills at the lunch table and later from the bathroom located at the back of the small dressing room we guys shared. I could go into details, but the humour is lost in translation to the page. Peter was a whirlwind. When Pat Kelly visited him during the Victoria run of the show, more hijinks ensued. How I enjoyed being the third wheel! I don't think I have ever laughed so hard. After the show closed in Victoria, Peter and Pat turned up in Calgary - where I was living at the time - and put together their first of many two-hander's. I offered to watch a couple runthroughs and offer some advice. It wasn't necessary. These guys knew what they were doing, and cobbled together a funny, strange piece and took the show on the road. They haven't stopped. You can hear Peter and Pat on CBC's This is That. I've listened to every episode like a proud older brother.

Bruce Dinsmore

Dearest Brucey. Older, greyer. He was a tender 16 year old and I was a grizzled 25 year old when we met during rehearsals of the second season of the Vancouver Shakespeare Festival. What a kid he was! Talk about talent and energy. Bruce had a beautiful singing voice, and I remember how blown away I was at the sound he made. Some of the seasoned members of the company would get together and sing acapella tunes. Bruce fit right in. At the end of the season - which ended unceremoniously - Bruce told me he wanted to go to the National Theatre School, and wondered if I would help him with audition pieces. I did and - a year or so later and no surprise - Bruce was accepted at NTS. I remember how proud I was that he got in. Several years later I went to Montreal to do a show, and Bruce was living and working there. He came and saw my show, and I went out to see him in Billy Bishop Goes to War. I remember thinking before the curtain went up that Bruce was too young to play Billy. How wrong I was: Bruce was spectacular as Billy. His youth actually made the show better, more profound. I cried as he stood at attention and sang "We were off to fight the Hun..." flooded with memories of my grandfather who went off to war at 17. Seen many productions of Billy Bishop but none could touch Bruce as Billy.

And last, but not least...


Greg Spottiswood

And, Greg. Beautiful, charming, wise Greg. We met at the National Arts Centre. This was my second professional show - way over my head as Orestes in Orestiea - and I was surrounded by an amazing cast that included Kate Reid, Roland Hewgill, Neil Munro, Martha Burns, Diane D'Aquila (to name just a few) and Greg. Greg was just 4 years younger than me, but 10 years wiser. I wasn't ready to play such a mammoth role, and I struggled during the entire process. If it wasn't John Wood getting in my head, or Kate Reid drinking too much, it was me getting in my way. Greg was a friend. He listened to me, offered support, and shared some of his own struggles. I remember his kindness. Greg went on to graduate from NTS as well. And, happens to share his life with the truly stunning Tracey Ferencz (who I worked with years after Greg and I had met)! I haven't seen Greg in years, but see Greg's updates on Facebook, read that his career has taken him on a different path - that of writer and producer. And, I'm so proud of him.


To you, talented friends - Rebecca and Peter and Bruce and Greg - I salute you. So proud that I could share but a bit of time with each of you.