Have you wondered what types of tactics, strategies and wellness tools other artists use?
About
Do you struggle with positive well-being practices during the theatrical process? Are you looking for tips, tricks and warms up to keep you healthy from rehearsals to closing night? You have come to the right place. Ask An Artist: Self Care in Theatre is a virtual offering exploring safe theatrical practices during the production process. Our panel of industry professionals discusses topics such as dealing with burn-out, stress management, regaining confidence and staying motivated and inspired. Learn from our panel of multi-disciplinary artists featuring Indrit Kasapi, Yasaman Nouri, Kevin A. Ormsby and Renée Salewski.
Want to go deeper? You can post additional questions to the artists until the conclusion of the virtual offering on August 21, 2022. All registrants will receive answers to all additional questions posed to the artists by September 2022.
Facilitator
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Indrit Kasapi
Born in Albania, Indrit has made Tkarón:to his home since 2000. He is the Founding and current Artistic Producer for lemonTree creations and Interim Managing Director for Theatre Passe Muraille. lemonTree creations focuses on queer works, and Indrit has produced, acted in, choreographed and directed several critically acclaimed and award winning productions, including a national tour for MSM [men seeking men].
As the Interim Managing Director of Canada’s original alternative theatre, Theatre Passe Muraille, Indrit continues to develop exciting new theatrical voices while also focusing on national and international touring for the company.
As a performer, Indrit has had the privilege to work with many talented writers, directors, designers and companies in a myriad of projects that more often than not are interdisciplinary in nature making use of both his ability with movement and text. Most notably he is a company member of the award winning dance theatre company CORPUS. Through Corpus, he has helped develop and premiere two new works (Machina Nuptialis, House Guests) and continued touring other repertoires to North America, Europe and Asia. He’s an Acting graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada, a 2018 Harold Award Winner and a 2020 Dora Nominated performer.
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Yasaman Nouri
Yasaman Nouri (یاسمن نوری) is an interdisciplinary artist. Her full scope of training includes theatre creation, performance, aerial arts, theatrical design, visual arts, and music.
Yasaman’s work is often focused on experiential art including immersive or interactive theatre. She is the founder of the Pomegranar Virtual Art Gallery, which was featured on Lighthouse Immersive’s smART Magazine. She is also a co-founder of typo theatre and her work as a deviser, performer, and set designer on the production of Inverted Spotlight was featured on CBC Radio’s Here and Now. As a child, Yasaman immigrated to Toronto from Tehran and she often pays homage to her Persian background in her art.
Yasaman has a Bachelor of Arts from York University with a specialization in devised theatre and set and costume design.
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Kevin A. Ormsby
Artistic Director of KasheDance and Program Manager at Cultural Pluralism in the Arts Movement Ontario (CPAMO), Kevin A. Ormsby has performed with companies in Canada, the United States, and the Caribbean. He has been featured in works by Marie-Josée Chartier, Allison Cummings, Patrick Parson, Ronald Taylor, Ron K. Brown, Menaka Thakkar, Mark Morris, Bill T. Jones, Garth Fagan, Liz Lerman, Bageshree Vaze, and Lemi Ponifasio, among others.
A finalist for the 2021 Johanna Metcalf Performing Arts Prizes and recipient of Canada Council for the Arts’ Victor Martyn Lynch-Staunton Award, Kevin was an inaugural TAC Cultural Leaders Fellow. Kevin is on the faculty of Centennial College’s Dance Performance Program and has been a Guest Artist in Residence at the Philip Sherlock Centre for the Creative Arts at the University of the West Indies (Mona), University of Wisconsin-Madison, Northwestern University and University of Texas -Austin. His research and creative practice through KasheDance's technical approach exists in a space of constant interrogation and navigation of Caribbean cultural nuances towards a methodology of understanding space in creation, research, and presentation.
He is on the Boards of Dance Collection Danse and Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts, and has served on the Boards of Canadian Dance Assembly, Prologue to the Performing Arts, and Nia Centre for the Arts, where he was Chair of Canada’s first professional multi-disciplinary centre for African-Canadian art.
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Renée Salewski
Renée Salewski is a portfolio artist who is active as a director, performer (singer/actor/voice-over artist), writer, voice teacher, and acting coach. Creative opportunities have taken Renée all over the UK, London’s West End and off-West-End, Europe, Canada, Korea, Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Hungary, and a great many other inspiring places.
Highlights as a director/performer over the years include, English Touring Opera (three seasons), D'Oyly Carte Opera Company (2002 Season), The Arcola Theatre (Kismet), Edinburgh and Toronto Fringe Festivals (various), Opera York (six Spring productions), Opera Revue (Blitzkeig Cabaret), several remote projects for during the pandemic (COSA Canada- Pirates of Penzance, La Clemenza di Tito, Endymion’s Dream), and writing and producing with long time creative partner Allyson Devenish (Rubi: Shades of Love, and Struggle and Protest).
Current roles and projects include Intimacy direction and production consultant for The Pocket: a folk opera (Peckham Fringe Festival, London, England), RBC Artist Mentor on the Association for Opera in Canada Mentorship Program, Canadian Opera Company teaching artist, NATS Ontario (National Association of Teachers of Singing) VP of Special Projects and Events, audition/role coach and voice teacher to many aspiring and professional performers some of whom are currently appearing in the West End, Off-Broadway and on various national tours, and forever exploring her own craft.