Shakespeare Ensemble

We began our journey in September 2008 with a commitment to 26 local actors, ranging from Stratford Festival veterans through a ‘middle range’ of experienced professional Ottawa actors, to young, emerging artists who had recently completed theatre training, either here or elsewhere in Canada (such as Studio 58 in Vancouver). Every Saturday for 7 months we met to find a common approach to Shakespeare and verse-speaking in masterclasses, and scene study led by Charles McFarland.

We started with a question: “Why is it that we have yet to develop our own ‘voice’ in producing Shakespeare? And that we have yet to present Shakespeare as our contemporary to Canadian audiences?”. Over the past 50 years, we’ve appropriated and inherited a number of models.

We are asking what’s that got to do with our audience’s thinking and feeling lives? About as much as it did to Shakespeare’s first audiences, who saw, and expected to see, treatments and reinterpretations of stories from sources of varying familiarity which explicitly or implicitly made direct connections with their daily lives. In which any ‘historical’ or mythical setting was represented, primarily, without a ‘design concept’ and in contemporary dress, with elements of ‘otherness’ suggested on top.

So, we have started the process of developing our own voice in connecting the greatest illuminator of the human condition to Canadian audiences, in a company that seeks to ‘engage in the present through the classics’ – just as Shakespeare did every time he appropriated existing narratives and made them into a new play and the culmination of this saw 10 of the ensemble engaged in the production of Henry V in May 2009.

With the production, which gave our designers great challenges and excitement working with moving lights, moving scaffolding, we were able to create a spectacular production. Ottawa finally has a company dedicated to producing relevant and engaging productions of Shakespeare that work from an understanding that dumbing down is not necessary, nor is edifying the bard. In our way we are creating a Canadian approach to Shakespeare and giving local artists a chance to hone their skills throughout the year. This year we are working with a slightly smaller group of 20 artists, a mix of returning and new members.

Why is this project so important for culture in Ottawa? Ottawa is a growing city theatrically, however there are still few opportunities for local artists to work on stage. This means that in the intervening time between shows they can become rusty and so we are left with a pool of artists not always at the ready. By providing a place where each week a group of artists can learn a new approach to Shakespeare, but more importantly a place where they can keep active the Ensemble is keeping a pool of actors "at the ready" and with their instrument sharp. All of this will lead to a more dynamic and vibrant theatrical and cultural landscape in Ottawa.

If we win, funds would go towards providing adequate artist fees for those involved in our 2nd Annual Shakespeare Project - As You Like It which happens in February 2010. The better we can make this production the more we can use it as a launch pad for making the impact of the ensemble even stronger in the community. This is the only ongoing project by a local Ottawa theatre company that is dedicated to developing local artists. We hope to keep it ongoing for a long time to come.