IT MAY BE COLD AND DARK OUTSIDE,

BUT IN THE BARN AT WOODLAND FARM WE CREATE IN WARMTH AND LIGHT

ADVANCED THEATRE CREATORS STUDIO 2025

With Gwenyth Dobie and William Mackwood at Woodland Farm Artist Residency, Salt Spring Island.

Guided by the founders of Out of the Box Productions, participants of the Advanced Theatre Creators Studio (ATCS) 2025
will experience 5 weeks of advanced devised theatre creation practice, culminating in live performances of an
original fully realized creation for an invited audience.

Who are you?

  • You are a theatre, music and/or dance artist with some training and experience.
  • You are keen to immersive yourself in more detailed learning and engagement of the devised theatre creation process.
  • You desire to collaborate with other artists in a beautiful and supportive environment.
  • You are hungry to work with leaders in the field of creation to build something original.
  • You are over the age of 18.
At ATCS 2025 you will:

  • Receive over 40 hours of experiential learning in devised theatre practices such as physical theatre and immersive staging techniques.
  • Bring your voice, your thoughts and ideas to a collaborative creation process
  • Explore staging with integrated projections and advanced lighting technology.
  • Collectively devise and present a new work.
  • Collaborate in a healthy and positive environment.



Who are we?


Picture
Gwenyth Dobie is Co-Artistic Director of Out of the Box Productions, a company that creates original works integrating spoken text, dance, music and interactive technology.  Her most recent immersive, site specific work A Criminal Waste of Time premiered at Woodland Farm on Salt Spring Island in July 2023.

Other directing credits include the Canadian premiere of the Danish opera On this Planet by Anders Nordendoft, the world premiere of the opera Eyes on the Mountain, composed by Christopher Donison and Handel’s Oratorio Solomon for Toronto’s Pax Christi Chorale. For York University, she directed two pan faculty productions: Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas and John Gay’s The Beggar’s Opera.

Gwenyth Dobie is a certified F.M. Alexander Technique Teacher. She has taught movement for actors and singers and Devised Theatre in the Department of Theatre at York University, at the University of Victoria, Camosun College and the Banff Centre. She is now Professor Emeritus at York University, Department of Theatre & Performance.


DATES AND SCHEDULE

Dates:

    * January 24, 25, 26
    * January 31, Feb 1, 2
    * February 7, 8, 9
    * February 14, 15, 16
    * Performances February 21, 22, 23


Schedule:

* Friday evening 7-9pm
* Saturday 10-1pm
* Sunday 10-1pm

Attendance at ATCS is necessary for all dates and times.

 Picture
William Mackwood is Co-Artistic Director of the innovative, multi-disciplinary company, Out of the Box Productions. Over the last twenty years he has co-created and lead the design team for productions of Opera Erotique, The Third Taboo, Prior Engagement, Sound in Silence, Bugzzz~ a cautionary tale and A Criminal Waste of Time.

Professor Emeritus at York University, in the Department of Dance, William's research pursues a rigorous investigation of digital-based visual design, with a focus on developing and illuminating ‘emerging interactive modalities’ for live performance, through his teaching and interactive projects ‘Chromesthesia’ (2018), ‘Disrupting Solitude’ (2017) and ‘Rallentando’ (2015-16), with co-creator Gwenyth Dobie.

As a designer William focuses on lighting and projection design for dance, including the dance creations of Roberto Campanella, Holly Small, Julia Sasso, John Ottman, Paul Destrooper and many others.

​William is a member of the Associated Designers of Canada.​


FEES AND APPLICATION



Application Deadline- January 3rd 2025
See application below

Fees for ATCS 2025: $825
*This fee covers all potential production costs.

Maximum 6 participants

    ATCS 2025 APPLICATION FORM