Danna-Rae Evasiuk
(DRE): I knew Michelle when we were both at Westwood Community High School.
Michelle
Thorne (MT): Danna Rae was a couple grades younger than me and did backstage
work in school productions that I was acting in.
DRE: We were both in the drama crowd.
MT: Fast forward over a decade later
and we happen to meet again at the ADFA Regional Festival at Keyano Theatre a
few years ago.
DRE:
I was playing an Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes song in the tech booth
at the end of the night and she hollered, “Danna-Rae, is that you?” We’ve been
collaborating on projects ever since.
MB: How would you describe your relationship?
DRE:
We’re friends, we’re co-workers, we’re family. We come from the same spot, share
the same dreams and artistic vision.
MT: We are family absolutely. Her
mom is my mom. Her dad is my dad. Her sister is my sister. But we also have a
really strong artistic partnership; we share a common love for our community,
for alternative, black box theatre, and really understand each others artistic
visions. We have completely different skills set and really honed in on how to use
that to our advantage through the past few years of collaborations.
MB: How do you stay friends and work together?
DRE:
I don’t feel like there’s much of a separation.
MT:
It's all the same thing, really.
DRE:
We’re friends who work together, co-workers who are friends. We respect each
other as people and as professionals. Both roles are incredibly
interwoven and it works in incredible ways.
MT: We've spent countless hours
driving all over the Province for theatre festivals these past few years, after
our first 20 hour round trip and we still wanted to hang out and talk about
projects the next day; thats special! There are many parallels between our
friendship and the work that we do and really the work comes from passion
projects. It's not work, it never feels like actual "work". It’s what
we love to do and now we get an opportunity to share it with our community on
such a broader scale.
MB: What was your best theatre road trip?
MT: The trip to High River Alberta
for the ADFA Festival.
DRE: I wish you could have seen it.
It was a convoy of vans making a B-line straight through Alberta. We had the
time of our life.
MT: The community was so warm and
welcoming and the group of artists we travelled with were incredible.
DRE: We got to know and enjoy the
community, and see some of the most amazing theatre being produced in Alberta.
MT: We saw some incredible pieces and
met artists that we still stay in close touch with to this day. We were
fortunate enough to be able to stay at Danna Rae's Aunt’s house which was a 5
minute walk away from the theatre. She had a cat named Oreo and a gorgeous
backyard.
DR: There was this train car that
was converted into a diner – we ate there too often for the length of time we
were there, but the food was great and the ambiance was delicious. We were
delayed the day we left because there was this massive parade happening outside
the front door and blocking the driveway. A few weeks after we left the flood
hit. At the interPLAY festival of that year we remounted the play that we took
to that community – Barefoot in Nightgown by Candlelight. All
proceeds from those performances were donated to the Windmill Players, High
River’s Community Theatre Company, to help replace what they lost. That ability
of ours to give back to a community that left such an impression on us is what
makes this the best road trip to me.
MB:
How did you guys first get involved with theatre?
MT: When I was 4 years old I played
Chicken Little in my Jr. Kindergarten production of "Chicken Little";
I've been hooked ever since.
DRE:
I can’t even remember. Theatre has always been a part of my life – from being a
two year old ballerina, to elementary school musicals, to running the lights
for my high school’s musicals. It’s a joy and passion that I went to college
for it and now it’s my profession.
MB:
How many shows have you done together?
DRE:
I’ve lost track. We’re at probably more than a dozen.
MT: A
Midsummer Night's Dream-
DRE: Maggie's Getting Married-
MT:
Barefoot in Nightgown by Candlelight, Louis & Dave,
DRE: Five Ways To Break A Woman's Heart, The Vagina Monologues, AND-
MT & DRE: The Most Massive
Woman Wins.
MB: What show or shows have you done together that stand out to you?
MT: Probably ones we haven't done
yet. We're always thinking about the future. What can we do next? We have
lists.
DRE:
The one that stands out to me the most is the production we’re currently
working on – The Most Massive Woman Wins. It’s unique in the way that we
get to revisit it. We first mounted this production this last spring and so
many things can change between the spring and fall. To see the characters grow
has been a complete inspiration. As a designer, the growth of the direction and
acting has moved me to give my own work with lights and music room to breathe
and change and become something different.
MB:
What made you want to start a theatre company together?
DRE:
Michelle and I collaborated on so many projects for years before we even talked
about starting a theatre company. But once we started talking about we wanted
to see happen in our community, and what we envisioned ourselves doing, the
ball didn’t stop moving. When we started talking about it in detail, we were
driving to Edmonton. The drive seemed like it lasted half a hour. We were on
the same page with every dream, every idea. There is no moss on our rolling
stone.
MT: We wanted a platform to do the
kind of work that we love to do. There comes a time in everyone’s life where
they can either lay back and accept the regret of not chasing their dreams, or
just take a leap of faith and try. And we want to share this platform with our
community; give opportunity to a variety of theatre artists and exciting,
alternative theatre options for our audiences.
MB:
Why did you call your company Theatre Just Because?
DRE:
Honestly? Okay, I’m going to be honest with you. We were terribly stuck with
“Theatre” being the first word. But maybe that was just me. Michelle and I were
going back and forth, rapid fire. “Theatre…” We both suggested about a thousand
things. Fill in the blank.
MT: It was kind of a throw away.
When we started the name Theatre; Just Because when we were filling out
applications to be in a festival and decided we may as well give ourselves a
company name to keep it simple. We asked why we were doing the show and really
it is just because.
DRE:
It can mean anything. Just Because it’s
a way to connect, a way to create, a way to express yourself, a way to tell
your story, a way to be a part of and contribute to your community. It’s
anything you want, anything you need it to be.
MT: This is in our blood, its why we
wake up in the morning. We are theatre artists. There is no definable reason.
Its just in us.
MB:
What is your mandate?
MT: Our mandate is to produce
relevant theatre with local artists, utilizing black box and found theatre
spaces. To educate and inform, to ask questions and explore. To share with
other artists and to create outside the box. To make theatre which is reflective
of the community in which it is created in and to give back to the community
that we were born and raised in.
DRE:
We’re accomplishing that by our three-fold series of workshops with the Suncor
Energy Centre for the Performing Arts. And of course, we always want to
be producing different kinds of theatre ourselves. Theatre that Fort
McMurray hasn’t seen before.
MB: How has the company
grown since you first started?
DRE:
It’s grown massively. We first started out as a company that produced a single
One Act Play a year. We used to rehearse in my parent’s basement, then in
Michelle’s living room. Our company comes from very modest means.
MT: We can actually call
ourselves a company now, that’s pretty huge. I think a sense of accountability
has also taken a stronghold on us as well. There is so much potential for a
fresh alternative theatre company in town and we are so blessed that The Suncor
Energy Centre for the Performing Arts are supporting us as we begin to branch
our way out into the community. We've been working together for years but I get
a sense that we have barely scratched the surface.
DRE:
Now we’ve incorporated more theatre artists — the ever inspiring Terri Mort and
Pattie Dwyer, and a full season workshops that are completely free and open to
the public.
MT: These are exciting times for
Theatre; Just Because.
MB: Who inspires you?
MT: My community. The people within
it. The lives we live as Canadians. I'm usually drawn to the salt of the earth,
I get inspiration from overlooked individuals. I'm curious about their
stories.
DRE:
My family. Whenever I create something, I want to create something that they’d
like to see.
MB: Fort McMurray is a place where people come for work, is it hard for you to
attract audiences, artists, and support? Is it difficult creating theatre in an
oil town?
MT: I don't think either of us
really view Wood Buffalo that way. I, myself never refer to it as an oil town; it’s
just my home. We're both born and raised Fort McMurray. Graduated from the same
high school. Our immediate families still live here. We are so deeply rooted
and invested in our community and the support has been amazing. The ADFA
Regional Festival sold out last year with only two plays. People in our
community want a theatre experience and we want to give them performances that
resonate with them.
DRE:
I don’t find it difficult at all. The support in our community is extraordinary
- from audience’s interest to the support of the theatres in Fort McMurray. We
were fortunate to have the Suncor Energy Centre for the Performing Arts want to
partner with us to provide the means, support, and guidance we need to deliver
the workshops we dreamed of. We’re lucky enough to have amazing audience turn
outs to our shows. I can’t express my gratitude for that. However,
it is difficult to attract new, up-and-coming artists. The theatre community
here is full of superb talent, mind blowing and amazing talent. But I want to
see the people who are new to this, who have maybe watched a few shows and said
to themselves, “maybe I could…,” take the stage. If anything, my one complaint
is that everyone’s schedules are all over the place and it makes scheduling
rehearsals a nightmare. But it’s a nightmare that can be creatively worked
around.
MB: How do you want to
grow theatre/arts in Wood Buffalo? What
is your vision for theatre in this community?
DRE: My vision for theatre in Wood
Buffalo is to see more independent creation. More playwrights, more directors,
more artists with the gusto to put on an independent production, and more
participation in the ADFA Regional One Acts Festival.
MT: I personally would love to
see/create more educational based theatre programming. The arts is such a
phenomenal way to educate and raise awareness. I also want to provide more
opportunity for local artists to have opportunities to showcase their strengths
and learn new skills from their peers. I am a Canadian Theatre junkie and would
love to see more focus on local playwrights and encouragement of locally
written pieces. We've seen major successes of playwrights in Wood Buffalo, Jeff
Hoffman's One Man MacBeth, you, Mr. Beamish with Hometown The Musical,
and Pattie Dwyer's Mountaintop. I want to make theatre that is
accessible and relatable. Theatre that tells the stories of the people living
in our region. Theatre that educates, that pushes boundaries, that brings
people together. Theatre that entertains us in the good times and comforts us
in the bad.
MB: What is up and
coming for Theatre Just Because?
MT: We have several events that are
showing for Alberta Culture Days. We’ve remounted our production of The Most
Massive Woman Wins from the spring Regional ADFA Festival. We’re also
creating a staged reading of I, Claudia by Kristen Thompson.
From October, 2015-March 2016, we’re
providing a three-fold series of workshops that will give community members the
tools and resources they need to produce, direct, stage manage, design, or act
in their own One Act Play. We're also starting a Play Reading Club at the end
of September and we have a pretty incredible script picked out for the first
session.
MB: Thank you for the interview
ladies.
MT & DRE: Thank you.
“The program has expanded its
focus to include a mentoring element to help inspire and grow the skills of
local emerging artists,” said coordinator Michael Beamish. “The mentorship will
culminate with a final exhibition at the MacDonald Island Community Art Gallery
presented by the Kirchner Family Corporation.”
