Springfest

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Performers and Presenters

Our Eliza

We're so lucky this year to host the local debut of Megan Coles' play, Our Eliza. Check out her star-studded cast and crew:

Greg Malone/Loomis Hodges

Greg Malone is probably best known for the WGB and CODCO TV shows and his wicked impersonations of political icons, like the Queen and Barbara Frum, for which he has received many awards. In 2011 Greg played Shylock in Merchant of Venice and Miss Hannigan in the smash hit Annie. Besides releasing The Best of WGB Vol 3 and 4 in 2012, Greg directed Cod On A Stick for GMTF and also played Prospero in NWTP’s The Tempest and Madame Parnell in Tartuffe. His first book You Better Watch Out – a memoir, was published by KNoph Canada in 2009 and his latest, Don’t Tell the Newfoundlanders, the story behind Newfoundland’s Confederation, was released in November 2012.

Renee Hackett/Eliza Joan Campbell (nee Hodges)

Renee Hackett is so happy to be home and a part of this lovely play. Selected theatre credits include Tempting Providence,Of the Fields, Lately, 1949 and Leaving Home with Theatre Newfoundland Labrador, Flowers and A Christmas Carol with A.C.T Theatre, The Devil You Don’t Know, Those Who Wait and Top Girls with Redwatch Theatre (also Co-Artistic Producer), Power of the Unemployed for RCA Theatre, Waiting For Lefty with The Co. and Even Burning and Savage Love in the Toronto Fringe Festival. Selected film and TV includes Republic of Doyle and Those Who Wait. This one’s for sweet Agatha whom I had the privilege of meeting…something tells me she can relate to Eliza.

Steve Lush/Hank Campbell

Steve Lush has worked in Newfoundland as a writer and actor for over twenty years. He has created roles for many of the province's theatre companies including: Rising Tide Theatre, The Elysian Theatre Company, RCA Theatre, The Newfoundland Shakespeare Company, Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland, She Said Yes!, and the Stephenville Festival. Steve performed the roles of Bruce/Phillips in Poverty Cove's production of The Battery by Megan Coles. He is best known throughout the province as creator and voice of Sunday Dinner with Briany Newell (aka Monday Hash) which aired on CBC Radio One NL from 1998 to 2008.

Megan Coles/Playwright/Co-Producer

Megan Coles is a graduate of Memorial University of Newfoundland and the National Theatre School of Canada. She is co-founder and co-artistic director of Poverty Cove Theatre Company. Megan is currently working on a trilogy of stage plays titled The Driftwood Trilogy: Falling Trees, Building Houses and Wasting Paper. She is a member of the Writers' Alliance of Newfoundland and Labrador, Playwrights' Guild of Canada, Playwrights' Atlantic Resource Centre (NL Rep) and Playwrights' Workshop Montreal. Her completed work include the plays Our Eliza, The Battery and Bound. Megan, originally from Savage Cove on the Great Northern Peninsula, currently resides in St. John's, NL.

Lois Brown/Director

Born in Corner Brook, Lois Brown is a seventh generation Newfoundlander. Educated in Drama at The University of Alberta, Lois returned to St. John’s, where she has maintained a cross-disciplinary practice ever since. In 2007, she won several awards for Bingo Robbers, her first feature, including Best Original Screenplay at The Atlantic Film Festival and Best Feature at the Toronto International DV Festival. In 2004, she was one of five Canadian directors short-listed for the Elinore & Lou Siminovitch Prize. The following year she received The Victor Martyn Lynch-Staunton Award from The Canada Council for achievement by an outstanding mid-career Canadian theatre artist. She has also been recognized for her contribution to the arts in Newfoundland and Labrador with an Artist Achievement Award. She lives in St. John’s with her daughter Olivia, and is currently a full time dramaturge at Playwrights Workshop Montreal.

Shannon Hawes/Tour Manager/Co-Producer

Shannon Hawes is a graduate of the technical production program at the National Theatre School of Canada in Montréal. Over the past 10 years she has done both production and stage management as well as sound and lighting design for several theatre companies including, RCA Theatre, TNL, C2C, and White Rooster. Shannon has worked as an Assistant Director on Republic of Doyle for the past 4 years. As well as being co-founder and co-producer of Poverty Cove Theatre Company, she has also produced the films Kathy and Better People with her company Let’s Just Say Films Inc.

Matthew Crowe/Stage Manager

Originally from Newfoundland, Matthew currently resides in Halifax, Nova Scotia and has been working in the Film and Television industry for the last 8 years. Recent Film/TV credits include: Trailer Park Boys Feature III, Mr. D Seasons I & II, Copperhead (feature), Roaming (feature), and Republic of Doyle Season II. Our Eliza will be his first theatre tour and he is both excited and eternally grateful for the chance to be working with Poverty Cove!

Crew

Sound Designer Stephen Lilly

Costume Designer Megan Coles

Lighting Designer Brian Bishop

Set Designer Karl Simmons

Production Manager Shannon Hawes

 

Iceberg Jubilee

Come see Katie Baggs at the Iceberg Jubilee on June 8th. She's one of Newfoundland's most beautiful and skilled songwriters, and the winner of the MusicNL's 2012 Female Artist of the Year. Here's what a record store, Fred's Records, said about her first solo album:

"Katie’s star is definitely rising provincially and Home Again, Home Again has been met with much critical and popular praise. Paired down, stark and hauntingly beautiful acoustic folk with accents of violin and wistful harmony and minimal percussion are married with Katie’s strong and naturally imagistic lyricism. Her voice is airy and ethereal, her performance; understated and delicate. This is a quiet and contemplative jewel of a record."

Katie Baggs is truly a talent that is not to be missed. You can check out some of her work here: http://www.heavyweather.ca/artists/katie-baggs.html