Life in Stages with Joel Greenberg

Among the country’s most versatile actors, Nora has performed in every style, just  about everywhere in Canada.  

Listing many of her theatre credits will illustrate her range: Measure for Measure  (Arts Club, Vancouver), John (Company Theatre, Toronto), For the Pleasure of  Seeing Her Again (Persephone Theatre, Saskatoon), The Matchmaker (Stratford  Festival), The Heiress (Shaw Festival), The Stone Angel (Canadian Stage), Hello,  D...

Matthew has worked in both opera and theatre for the past 20 years. Born in  Canada, Matthew has spent much of his professional life in Europe, where his  theatrical work includes the French-language premieres of Dancing at Lughnasa,  by Brian Friel, Nightingale and Our country’s Good, by Timberlake Wertenbaker.  His translation of Fernando Krapp Wrote Me This Letter, by Tankred Dorst, was  among his first projects as Artistic Dire...

Multi award-winning actor, Rosemary’s resume is its own mini-series. The range of  her theatre, television and film credits is more than this brief snapshot can fairly  provide. 

I first saw Rosemary at the Centaur Theatre, in Montreal, where her performance  in Wit stays with me still. Raw, uncompromising, visceral — all these words barely  convey the power she brought to the stage. Additionally, she has performed in  Long Day’s Jo...

Ronnie is one of Canada’s foremost theatre artists, credited with creating some of  the world’s most elaborate and provocative puppetry. Ronnie Burkett Theatre of  Marionettes was formed in 1986, continuously playing to great critical and public  acclaim on Canada’s major stages, and as a guest company on numerous  international tours abroad. 

Among Ronnie’s many awards as playwright, actor and designer, are the 2009  Siminovitch Pr...

Thanks to Zieglerwealth.com -- and continued thanks to all those who help, and have helped, to keep Life in Stages moving forward since our launch exactly one year ago, I'm thrilled to introduce you to this season's sponsor -- and Life in Stage's first season sponsor, in fact: http://Zieglerwealth.com, owned by Tim Zeigler, contacted me during Season 2 with his generous offer to support the podcast. That he found me wit...

Introducing each of my guests is one of the challenges coordinating the roster for  Life in Stages. The artists who accept my invitation to sit down and talk about their  professional and personal stories represent the finest artists in the country. Each  background is rich, varied, intriguing. 

Jimmy Mezon is no exception — in fact, his depth and range are nothing short of  intimidating. And I’ve had the good fortune to see him pla...

Welcome to the final episode in Series 2 – but please note that Series 3 is on  its way. 

This week, our guest host is Jody Howze. I met Jody in the mid-80’s when she  was a student in the Theatre Programme at Humber College and I was the  Programme Director. After graduating from Humber, Jody performed in several  professional productions that I directed. 

Our friendship has continued as we’ve followed different paths, and since  la...

Robert Thomson may be among the busiest and most sought-after actors in  the country. “May”? Change that to ‘Is”. 

His list of accomplishments is as long as it is varied, which is to say that it’s  mighty long. Theatre, film, television – he has mastered them all, and his  commitment has taken him behind the scenes of projects that are fueled by a  passion with no restraint. 

In our conversation, you’ll also learn that Robert’s caree...

Seana is yet one more guest whose professional resume approaches the  magnitude of an anthology. It’s entirely accurate to say that she has done just  about everything that one can imagine an actor accomplishing. Trained at the  National Theatre School, Seana has played every major theatre in the country,  has added film and television to her credits, and has achieved star status in a  country that too often prides itself as a coun...

I’ve known Allen for more than 20 years, but until we met recently, I had no  idea that, in addition to being Artistic Director at both Young People’s Theatre,  Toronto, and the Prairie Theatre Exchange, Winnipeg, his career as an actor  was his principal focus. 

As another guest who came up through the Vancouver Playhouse Theatre  School, Allen reinforces the fact that this was a first-rate training ground. And  as he discusses the...

Anyone fortunate enough to have seen “Blind Date” has already met Rebecca  Northan, although speaking with her is an altogether calmer experience than  watching her interact with an audience. Speaking with her from Edmonton,  where she was on tour with “Goblin: Macbeth”, I learned that clown work is  merely one of many skills that Rebecca has developed throughout her career.  

Second City, in Toronto and on tour, was her opportunity...

Tom has as varied a resume as any actor you are ever likely to encounter. In  fact, when we first started our conversation, I said that I felt an urgency to  cover enough ground to fairly represent him. Tom’s easy manner removed any  concern I may have had. 

We talked soon after he had returned from Ottawa, where he was performing  in “Salesman in China”, the same production that premiered at the Stratford  Festival this past season...

Maria began her career (and her life) in the United States. But once she had a  taste of life in Canada, both personal and professional, Toronto soon became  her home base. And I met Maria when we worked together on a production of  “Lend Me a Tenor”, at Theatre Aquarius – and that was probably about 30  years ago. Maria has worked in every medium and she has criss-crossed the  performing landscape with an enviable agility.  

Our co...

Nancy is originally from Winnipeg, studied at Queen’s University and then  trained at The National Theatre School, in Montreal. She was among the first  members of the Young Company at the Stratford Festival, which soon led to  the creation of Soulpepper Theatre Company, of which Nancy is a founding  member. (She continues to represent the Founding Members on the  Soulpepper Board.) 

Nancy has worked across the country, although her...

Jonathan and I met at an audition. I didn’t cast him, but I knew that I wanted to  work with him one day. Before I had that opportunity, I saw My Own Private  Oshawa, his revelatory solo play about his escape to Toronto and his life as a  young gay man finding his way. 

The Normal Heart and My Night with Reg are recent plays that, finally, allowed  us the shameless pleasure of working together. Jonathan has much more to  fill in bet...

Morris’s recollection of how discovering theatre transformed him is both  moving and chuckle-worthy. Like so many of my guests, he underlines that, for  him, the work is a necessity. For survival, sure, but much, much more than  that: Morris makes it clear, without having to say it literally, that he cannot be  doing anything else with his professional life. 

Playwright, director, actor – Morris works, and has worked, across the cou...

Jessica is my older daughter, so let’s get that on the table and move on.  

Jess discusses her college years at McGill, where she focussed on Political  Science and Women’s Studies. But it was her passionate involvement with  both theatre and music – strictly extracurricular – that defined four years  spent on a student-driven campus, where she was inspired by like-minded  friends.  

Theatre school in New York followed and the exploi...