Points Of View With Jillian Keiley

In this Points of View, NAC English Theatre Artistic Director Jillian Keiley hosts a discussion with two special guests, Anne & Gilbert Co-Composer and Lyricist Nancy White and Campbell Webster, Original Producer of Anne & Gilbert, about the evolution of this Canadian musical and the enduring appeal of Anne Shirley of Avonlea. A grown-up Anne of Green Gables is in love - and so are we. On idyllic Prince Edward Island, Anne Shirley is now an ambitious young woman about to begin her first teaching job. Romantic complications abound when childhood sweetheart Gilbert Blythe proposes marriage – but he's not her only suitor. Can Anne find true happiness? East Coast Music Award-winning songs and classic, well-loved characters make this sophisticated made-in-Canada musical perfect for our national stage this holiday season! "Sure to become a classic." -The Ottawa Citizen "Delightful... utterly charming." -Variety

In this Points of View, Assistant Director Brad Long hosts a discussion with two special guests, The December Man (L’homme de décembre) Director Sarah Garton Stanley and Paul Donison, Senior Priest, St. Peter and St. Paul’s Anglican Church and bereavement counsellor, about collective grieving for violence against women, and the creation of this production. In the aftermath of the 1989 Montreal Massacre, Benoît and Kathleen try to help their beloved son Jean deal with the guilt of surviving what so many women did not. Seething with self-loathing, rage and powerlessness, Jean's life has come unglued. With humour, empathy and the routine of everyday life, the narrative moves backwards in time to the fateful day when Jean survived. With devastating honesty and scalpel-like precision, this searing drama explores the nature of courage and the private shadows cast by public violence. “...no (one) should miss the chance to see this.” - VANCOUVER SUN

In Negro Creek, Ontario, Rainey Johnson is a powerful figure. Grieving for her daughter, she survives with cynical wit, superior intellect and superhuman strength. She wants answers, true meaning, purpose and maybe even spiritual salvation. Created by Governor General's Literary Award-winning playwright Djanet Sears, Adventures is a potent and profoundly emotional story of living, dying and the power of forgiveness. Dynamic movement and music and a superb cast of 22 bring this extraordinary world to vibrant life onstage.

An anxious government clerk meets a strange lookalike who is daring, romantic, and brash – a success at everything the clerk fumbles. Is it really his double, or could he just be paranoid? An ingenious Molotov cocktail comedy filled with laughter, obsession, and original live music, this Dora Mavor Moore Award-winning dark satire features the dazzling prose of Dostoëvsky, over-the-top physical comedy, and outrageously entertaining performances by a brilliant cast of three. An outlandish riff on the eternal search for personal identity and social status, The Double will make you cringe with compassion…as you double over with laughter.

This Southern Gothic chronicles a family's odyssey to bury their matriarch. The Bundrens must do battle with floods, fire and their private demons as calamity and chaos haunt their 40-mile funeral procession across Mississippi. Touching and darkly humorous, it's proof that the power of humanity to create good is undiminished. This vibrantly theatrical adaptation of one of the finest 20th century novels features multiple narrators on a bare stage, a supremely versatile cast, and powerful movement-based physical theatre devised by Canada’s masters of the genre, Theatre Smith-Gilmour.

Coming out to yourself can be as hard as sharing it with others. Tawiah M’Carthy’s captivating hero is caught between worlds – gay and straight, black and white, African and North American. Through storytelling, dance, and live music, Obaaberima (“girlboy”) chronicles young Agyeman’s journey from confused childhood in Ghana to mature Canadian adulthood. M'Carthy explores sexuality and socialization in his uniquely layered world, morphing effortlessly into the many characters he encounters. Obaaberima is a fulfilling and well-rounded emotional experience – funny, serious, sad, and extremely moving.

In this Points of View Podcast Associate Artistic Director Sarah Garton Stanley interviews director David Ferry and Rosemary Thompson for Stuff Happens. “Stuff happens… and it’s untidy, and freedom’s untidy, and free people are free to make mistakes and commit crimes and do bad things.” ~ U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld on April 11, 2003, following the looting and pillaging of Baghdad History in the making. Stuff Happens is dramatic dynamite, a provocative political drama starring a president, a prime minister, and a crowd of high-level decision-makers. Should the U.S. lead a war against Iraq? Are there indeed weapons of mass destruction or just words of mass distraction? A spellbinding blend of documented details, public-record information, and theatrical invention, Hare’s fusing of historical narrative with human drama exposes the relentless politicking behind the 2003 invasion. Stuff Happens is presented by special arrangement with Samuel French, INC. Did you know? Stuff Happens premiered at

In this Points of View, guest host NAC English Theatre Artist in Residence Corey Payette chats with two special guests, Alice Through the Looking-Glass Assistant Director Christine Brubaker and Alice aficionado and collector Amanda Lewis, about the enduring fascination of Alice and the creation of this unique production. English Theatre’s production of Alice Through the Looking-Glass ran in the NAC Theatre December 9 – January 3.

In this Points of View episode, Special Guest Host, 2014-15 Ensemble member Amy Matysio chats with two guests – Do You Want What I Have Got? cast member Dmitry Chepovetsky and e-commerce guru Kiersten Hanly – about the vagaries and quirks of buying and selling in the online world and the production of Do You Want What I Have Got? A Craigslist Cantata.

In this Points of View, Jillian Keiley chats with Brenda Lawrence of Lawrence and Associates, Offline Executive Introductions, and 2014-15 Ensemble member David Warburton, offering unique perspectives on Oscar Wilde’s classic tale The Importance of Being Earnest. English Theatre’s production of The Importance of Being Earnest ran in the NAC Theatre October 21 – November 8, 2014.

Experience this English Theatre production through an encounter with Associate Artistic Director Sarah Garton Stanley as she interviews two special guests who offer unique perspectives on the piece: Robert Chafe, Playwright, Oil and Water and Laurell Brault, Captain, United States Navy, Retired.

In this Points of View podcast, Associate Artistic Director Sarah Garton Stanley speaks with Elizabeth Kantor, Designer and Producer of Huff, and Rob Chief, Aboriginal Youth Worker.

Experience this English Theatre production through an encounter with Artistic Director Jillian Keiley as she interviews two special guests who offer unique perspectives on the piece: Annabel Soutar, Playwright, and Trish Jordan, Director of Industry and Public Affairs for Monsanto Canada.

Jillian Keiley chats with Kim’s Convenience Actor Paul Sun-Hyung Lee and Korean Teacher Yunsook Lee about the creation of Kim’s Convenience and the experience of Korean immigrants in Canada.

In this Points of View Podcast, NAC English Theatre Artistic Director Jillian Keiley chats with The Sound of Music Choreographer Dayna Tekatch and Ottawa Musical Artist Nicole Milne about the production and the magic of musicals.

In this Points of View episode, Artistic Director Jillian Keiley chats with HAMLET (solo) Director Robert Ross Parker, along with his and HAMLET (solo) star Raoul Bhaneja’s mothers, Marie Bhaneja, and Elizabeth Parker, about the production and its journey to the NAC. HAMLET (solo) ran in the NAC Studio November 12 – 23, 2013.

In this Points of View, we turn the tables as Associate Artistic Director Sarah Garton Stanley interviews Jillian Keiley, the director of Tartuffe, along with Rev. Trisha Elliot about the Newfoundland influence and religious thoughts behind Tartuffe. Tartuffe ran in the NAC Theatre October 15 – November 2.

In this Salon Saturday podcast, NAC English Theatre Artistic Director Jillian Keiley speaks with Big Mama! The Willie Mae Thornton Story Director John Cooper about the creation of the play and working with star Jackie Richardson, and CKCU Radio host John Tackaberry, about the history of the blues and influence of Willie Mae Thornton. Big Mama! The Willie Mae Thornton Story ran in the NAC Theatre April 24 – May 11.

In this Salon Saturday podcast, Artistic Director Jillian Keiley speaks with playwright Beverley Cooper, about the creation of her play, Innocence Lost: A Play About Steven Truscott and Superior Court Justice Colin McKinnon, about the miscarriage of justice surrounding the Steven Truscott case.

NAC English Theatre Artistic Director Jillian Keiley invites English Theatre patrons to join her and Metamorphoses Set and Costume Designer Bretta Gerecke, as they discuss the creation of the play’s unusual set.