armstrong's war study guide - canadian rep...

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Toronto Premiere Canadian Rep Theatre presents by Colleen Murphy directed by Ken Gass , what evolves is an unlikely friendship, as well as an “a thought-provoking theatrical gem” What’sOn, London (UK) Nov 11 - Dec 6, 2015 The Citadel, 304 Parliament St Tickets online: www.canadianrep.ca Phone: 416.504.7529 featuring Alex McCulloch and Paolo Santalucia

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Toronto Premiere

Canadian Rep Theatre presents

by Colleen Murphy

directed by Ken Gass

set design Marian Wihak lighting design Rebecca Picherack costume design Jung-Hye Kim

original music & sound design Wayne Kelso stage management ???

Armstrong’s War involves a chance encounter between a plucky 12-year-old girl, a Pathfinder, wheelchair-bound as a result of an accident, and a 21-year old soldier in an Ottawa Rehab Hospital following a tour of duty in Afghanistan. From shared readings of Stephen Crane’s The Red Badge of Courage, what evolves is an unlikely friendship, as well as an emotional battleground over the value of a life.

“a thought-provoking theatrical gem” What’sOn, London (UK)

Nov 11 - Dec 6, 2015

The Citadel, 304 Parliament StTickets online: www.canadianrep.caPhone: 416.504.7529

featuring Alex McCulloch and Paolo Santalucia

2

Presents

ARMSTRONG’S WAR

By Colleen Murphy

CREATIVE TEAM –

Director – Ken Gass Producer – Andre du Toit

Set Designer – Marian Wihak Light ing Designer – Rebecca Picherack

Costume Designer – Jung-Hye Kim Original Music & Sound Design – Wayne Kelso

Movement Consultant – Laurence Lemieux

CAST –

Halley Armstrong – Alex McCulloch

Corporal Michael Armstrong – Paolo Santalucia

3TABLE OF CONTENTS

AboutCanadianRepTheatre 4

NotesfromtheDirector,KenGass 5

Abouttheplaywright&productionhistory 6

Synopsis 7

Historical&SocialContext 8

Pre-ShowClassroomActivities 11

Post-ShowClassroomActivities 13

AdditionalDiscussionQuestions 15

CreativeTeam 16

References 18

4ABOUT CANADIAN REP THEATRE

CanadianRepTheatrewas founded in1983byKenGass.Thecompanyoperatedoutofa

churchspaceonAvenueRd(sincedestroyedbyarson)andtherepresentedthefirstRobert

LePageworkoutsideofQuebec,Circulations.WealsoproducedLeRail;HerschelHardin’sEskerMikeandhisWife,Agiluk,HrantAlianak’s LuckyStrike, JohnPalmer’sADayat theBeach; Ken Gass’ Claudius; and Amazon Dream with a multi-racial cast of 17. In 1996,

Canadian Rep co-produced, with Passe Muraille, a new production of Lucky Strike. ThenGassreturnedtotheFactoryandCanadianRepwasput‘onice’forseveralyears.

Since2013,Gasshasbeencommittedtore-launchingandre-buildingCanadianRepTheatre.

In January, 2014, Canadian Rep launched its first real season with the English language

premiere of Pacamambo by Wajdi Mouawad. Subsequently, Canadian Rep Theatre

produced theworldpremiereof JudithThompson’sWatchingGloryDie inMay2014.The

productionstarredJudithThompson(herfirsttimeonstagein30years)andreceivedthree

Dora nominations including Outstanding New Play, Outstanding Set, and Outstanding

Set/LightingProjections.CanadianRepTheatrealsoco-producedwithMirvishProductions

the Canadian premiere of George F. Walker’s Dead Metaphor, playing at the 450-seatPanasonicTheatreinTorontoforthreeweekstostronghousesandpositivereviews.

Canadian Rep’s exciting 2015 season began with the critically-acclaimed How Do I LoveThee?by FlorenceGibsonMacDonald in January/February. The production also received

five Dora nominations, for Outstanding New Script; Outstanding Direction; Outstanding

Female Performance; Outstanding Sets and Outstanding Costumes. The 2015 season

continueswithColleenMurphy’sArmstrong’sWar inNovember/December andGeorge F.

Walker’sincrediblysuccessfulNothingSacredinwinterof2016.

REVIEWS OF PAST PRODUCTIONS OF ARMSTRONG’S WAR

“…astudyofthefinelinebetweentruthandfictionandacelebrationofthecatharticpower

of written words to heal psychological wounds…a rewarding experience.” –Steven Bates,

ThePublicReviews

“fast-paced, detail-rich writing…Armstrong’s War portrays the very human, decidedly

unglamorousconsequencesofwar.”–BruceCinnamon,VueWeekly

“tight,well-constructedandfocused…asmallbutpowerfulplaythatpacksaconsiderable

emotionalwallop.”–EdmontonSun

“athought-provokingtheatricalgem.”–WhatsOnStage,LondonUK

5NOTES FROM THE DIRECTOR, KEN GASS

WhyIchoseArmstrong’sWar:

• Armstrong’s War is an important play by an writer

and artist; play that is a part of the major

This is also a play incurrentand

one that can wide community

particularlywithyoung

• Armstrong’s War brings emotionally complex,

old girl, bound a result of a

and soldier, from physical injuries in an Ottawa

Halley, the girl, isa (GirlGuide)

a community by to hospital Michael’s real

lie,of the

• ColleenMurphy isaplaywright have greatly formany

2007 winning, The Man,

her carefully and

ultimately to reveala complexand gripping social reality forcefully

impactingonthe lives.

• Thereare many likethiscould take,butColleen

Murphy five and honing the and the

journey is full of twists and unlikely

unravel in their

6ABOUT THE PLAYWRIGHT: COLLEEN MURPHY

Colleen Murphy was born in Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec,

and grew up in Northern Ontario. She is an award-

winning playwright, librettist, and filmmaker based in

Toronto.Colleen’splayTheDecemberMan(L’hommededécembre) won the 2007 Governor General’s LiteraryAward for Drama, the CAA/Carol Bolt Award, and the

Enbridge Playwrights Award. Other plays include

BeatingHeartCadaver(nominatedfora1999Governor

General’sLiteraryAwardforDrama),ThePiper,DowninAdorationFalling, andAllOtherDestinationsAreCancelled. Shewonawards in theCBCLiteraryCompetition for theradiodramasFire-EngineRedandPumpkinEaters.ColleeniscurrentlytheLeePlaywright-in-ResidenceattheUniversityofAlberta.She

hasservedasPlaywrightinResidenceforFinboroughTheatreinLondon,UK,Factory

Theatre, Necessary Angel Theatre in Toronto, and continues to serve as Guest

PlaywrightattheCitadelTheatreinEdmonton.

PRODUCTION HISTORY

Armstrong’s War was staged in a workshopproduction, presented by Flying Bear

Productions and ABG Productions in

association with Neil McPherson, at

Finborough Theatre in London, UK, from

August 11 to 27, 2013. The world premiere

was produced by the Arts Club Theatre in

Vancouver, fromOctober 17 toNovember 9,

2013.IthasalsobeenperformedinEdmonton

andWinnipeg.

MatreyaScarrwenerandMikByskov inthe2013

worldpremiere ofArmstrong’sWarat Arts ClubTheatre,Vancouver.PhotobyDavidCooper.

7SYNOPSIS

Armstrong’sWarisset intherehabilitationwingofahospitalinOttawa,Ontario,inthespringof2007.Itinvolvestwocharactersandtakesplaceinahospitalroomover

thecourseofsixweeks.HalleyArmstrongisanenergetic12-year-oldinawheelchair,

whowantstoearnherPathfinderscommunityservicebadgebyreadingtosomeone

in a hospital. The patient she chooses is Afghan war veteran Corporal Michael

Armstrong,becausetheyhavethesame lastname. At first,MichaelgreetsHalley’s

positiveenergyandoptimismwithscorn.Hetellsherhedoesnotwhattobereadto

andangrilytellsHalleytogoaway.

Halleyreturnsthefollowingweek,determinedtoearnhercommunityservicebadge.

ShedecidesthatmaybeabookaboutwarwouldbemoreappealingtoMichael,and

bringsinTheRedBadgeofCourage,anovelaboutasoldierintheAmericanCivilWar.

Michaelcanidentifywiththesoldierinthenovelashedescribesboththeexcitement

andfearofwar.HeasksHalleyifhecankeepthebooktoreadonhisown.Halleyis

encouragedbyMichael’s interest in thebook,and shareswithhim thestoryof the

skiingaccidentthatputherinawheelchair.

Thenextweek,Michaeladmits toHalley thathealready finishedTheRedBadgeofCourage.Michael suggests that they read their favourite parts aloud, andMichael

knows the book so well that Halley thinks he has actually read it several times.

Michael’s connection to the story helps him open up about his own experience

fightinginAfghanistan.

EvaFooteasHalleyandJamieCavanaghasMichaelintheTheatre

NetworkproductioninEdmonton,April2015.

8

WhenHalley arrives the followingweek,Michael surprises herwith a story he has

writtenthathecalls“Armstrong’sWar”.Halleyreadsthestoryaloud;itisabouttwo

“friends” Aidan and Danny who pledged each other that, if either was so badly

woundedtheywouldn’tbeableto liveanormallife,theotherwouldkillhimrather

than allowing him to go on living in such a terrible state. In the story, Danny is

woundedverybadly,andAidancarriesouthispromise.ThestorymakesHalleyvery

upset,andshetellsMichaelthatAidanshouldnothavekilledDannyeventhoughthe

twofriendshadapact.Halleyissoangrythatsheleavesthehospital.

MichaelisverysurprisedwhenHalleyreturnsthenextweek.Shehaswrittenherown

versionof“Armstrong’sWar”inwhichAidandoesnotkillDanny,andDannygoeson

to leadanormal andhappy lifedespitehis injuries.Michael gets angrywithHalley

and tells her that her version of the story is not realistic, but he respects Halley’s

optimism.MichaelandHalleynowtrusteachotherenoughtorevealdeepersecrets

about themselves. Halley tells Michael the real story of her accident, andMichael

admits that “Armstrong’s War” is really about him and his friend Robbie. He tells

Halley what really happened when Robbie was wounded. Michael gets ready to

return to his normal life and Halley teaches him the Armstrong family motto, “I

remainunvanquished.”

HISTORICAL & SOCIAL CONTEXT

Pathfinders

ThePathfindersareforgirlsaged12-14andarepartoftheGirlGuidesofCanada.Girl

Guides can trace their roots back to 1909, when a group of girls in England were

angry that they weren’t allowed to join the

BoyScouts, so they formedtheirowngroup.

The Girl Guides have been active in Canada

since 1910. Pathfinders emphasize

community building and outdoor activities,

andfocusonself-esteembuilding,leadership,

teamwork, and caring for the environment.

They earn badges for completing various

activities, such as community service like

Halleyintheplay.

9WarinAfghanistanHALLEY: CanIaskyouaquestion?MICHAEL: What?HALLEY: Arewegoingtowinthe

war?MICHAEL: Noone’sgonnawin.HALLEY: Whynot?MICHAEL: Lotofreasons…

Following the terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre in New York City on

September 11th, 2001, The United States launched invasions of both Iraq and

Afghanistan, the beginning ofwhat became known as the “war on terror”. Canada

decideditwouldcontributetothewarinAfghanistantofightterroristgroupssuchas

Al Qaeda, who were being fostered by the corrupt Taliban government. Once the

Taliban fell, Al Qaeda left Afghanistan, and Canadian forces remained to try and

rebuildAfghanistanasademocraticandsecurecountry.

Atthispoint,manypeoplethoughtthatCanada’sinvolvementinthewarwouldcome

to an end. However, the war continued longer than predicted. The Taliban

governmenthadbeensupportedbythemajorityPashtunethnicgroupandhadbeen

financed and supplied by factions within Pakistan. Once the government was

defeated,thosewhohadsupporteditwerefilledwithresentmentatthelossoftheir

political power. The United States and its allies created a mostly non-Pashtun

governingregime,whichsawlittlesupportfromthePashtun-dominatedareasofthe

country,particularly in thesouthernregionaroundKandahar,Afghanistan’ssecond-

largestcity.Asaresult,theTalibanreorganizedintoaguerrillainsurgencythatwaged

awar against the Afghan government and the forces supporting it. Thismade the

effortstofightagainsttheinsurgentsverydifficult;asMichaelsaysintheplay,“you

can’tdefeataninsurgency,bestyoucandoismarginalizeit.”

10

By the mid-2000s, the Canadian Armed Forces had suffered more casualties than

expected inawar thatclaimedtensof thousandsofAfghanlives.As timewenton,

theCanadianpopulationsupportedthewarlessandless.Itbecameincreasinglyclear

thattherewouldbenoclear“victory”overtheTaliban.In2014,Canadawithdrewits

final soldiers from Afghanistan. Canada’s 12-year involvement in the war in

Afghanistan resulted in the deathsof 158 soldiers and thewounding ofmore than

2,000 others, andAfghanistan still has a long and complicated road to becoming a

peacefulanddemocraticnation.

SoldiersReturningfromWar

Thereareavarietyofsocialandpsychologicalissuesthata

personwhohasbeeninanarmedconflictmustdealwith,

themostwellknownbeingPost-TraumaticStressDisorder

(PTSD). Post-traumatic stress disorder is a mental illness

involvingexposure to traumasuchasdeath, the threatof

death, serious injury, or sexual violence. Something is

traumatic when it is very frightening, overwhelming and

causes a lot of distress. Trauma is often unexpected, and

manypeoplesaythattheyfeltpowerlesstostoporchange

the event. Traumatic events may include crimes, natural

disasters,accidents,warorconflict,orotherthreatstolife.

PTSDamongwarveteranshasbeenknowntoexistatleastsincethetimesofancient

Greeceandhasbeen calledbymanydifferentnames. In theAmericanCivilWar, it

wasreferredtoas"soldier'sheart;"intheFirstWorldWar,itwascalled"shellshock"

andintheSecondWorldWar,itwasknownas"warneurosis."PTDSaffectseveryone

differently. Sufferers may experience nightmares, flashbacks, and distressing

memoriessurroundingthetraumaticevent.Theymayattempttocutthemselvesoff

frommemoriesoftheeventandwithdrawfromfriendsandfamily,whichcanleadto

feelingsofdepressionandisolation.Theymaysufferfromangryoutbursts,problems

withconcentration,andinsomnia.

PlaywrightColleenMurphyhasstatedthatMichaeldoesnotsufferfromPTSDinthe

play,buttheguilthefeelsforwhathappenedtoRobbieisobviouslyaffectinghimon

adeeppsychologicallevel.Inrecentyears,psychologistshavebeguntoidentifywhat

theycallmoral injury: theguilt that affects veteransoverbothkilling someone ina

combat situation, and surviving while others have not survived. What separates

moral injury from PTSD is a sense of violating one’s own basic moral values and

transgressingagainstwhatisright.

Mark Quartley as Michael.

Finborough Theatre, London,

11TheRedBadgeofCourageThe Red Badge of Courage is a novel by American writer

StephenCrane,firstpublishedin1895whenCranewas24.The

storytakesplaceduringtheAmericanCivilWarandfocuseson

ayoungprivateintheUnionArmynamedHenryFleming.Henry

has a romantic image of what he thinks war will be like and

dreamsofheroismandglory.However,whenheisconfronted

withtheenemy,Henryfleesintothewoods.Heisimmediately

ashamed and wishes that he had received a wound in battle

(the “red badge of courage” referred to in the title). He

eventually returns to his regiment and proves himself to be a

worthy and brave soldier. Although Stephen Crane wrote the

novelwithout anyexperience inwar, the novelwas praised as being very realistic.

ThenovelremainsamajorAmericantextandcontinuestobereadwidelyinboththe

UnitedStatesandbeyond.

PRE-SHOW CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES

Activity 1: War in Afghanistan (Geography, History,Civics)FindinformationonCanada’sparticipationinthewarin

Afghanistan. Break into groups and give each group a

specifictopictoresearch:

• Afghanistan before the war (political climate,

socialandeconomicconditions,etc.)

• AtimelineofthewarandCanada’sinvolvement

• TheTaliban

• EstablishingdemocracyinAfghanistanandthefirstelection

• Canada’s role inbuilding infrastructure (schools,hospitals, cleanwater, food,

etc.)

• ReactionstoCanada’sinvolvementinthewarfrompeopleathome

Each group can present their findings to the rest of the class in a 5-minute

presentation. Based on their findings, each group should decide whether or not

Canadashouldhavebeeninvolvedinthewar,andwhyorwhynot.

ActivityTime:70

minutes

40minutes:research

andpresentation

planning

30minutes:group

presentations

12Activity2:TraumaandPTSD(Health,English)Divide intogroups.Haveeachgroupresearchoneofmany

possibleproblemsthataffectwarveterans,suchas:

• Post-traumaticstressdisorder(PTSD)

• Drugandalcoholabuse

• DepressionandAnxiety

• Work,relationship,andfamilychallenges

TheVeteransCanadaarticle“Post-traumaticstressdisorder

(PTSD)andwar-relatedstress”isagreatplacetostart,and

canbefoundhere:http://www.veterans.gc.ca/pdf/mental-

health/ptsd_warstress_e.pdf

Eachgroupcancompileareportthatincludesbothprimaryandsecondarysources.

Primarysources:Peopleuseoriginal,first-handaccountsasbuildingblockstocreatestoriesfrom the past. These accounts are called primary sources, because they are the first

evidenceofsomethinghappening,orbeingthoughtorsaid.

Primary sources are created at the time of an event, or very soon after something has

happened.Thesesourcesareoften rareorone-of-a-kind.However, someprimarysources

canalsoexistinmanycopies,iftheywerepopularandwidelyavailableatthetimethatthey

werecreated.

Someexamplesofprimarysourcesarediaries, letters, photographs,video footage, sound

recordings,interviewsandpublishedfirst-handaccountsorstories,andmaps.

Secondary sources: Second-hand, published accounts are called secondary sources. Theyarecalledsecondarysourcesbecausetheyarecreatedafterprimarysourcesandtheyoften

use or talk about primary sources. Secondary sources can give additional opinions

(sometimes calledbias) on apast eventor on aprimary source. Secondary sourcesoften

havemanycopies,foundinlibraries,schoolsorhomes.

Secondary sources include history textbooks, biographies, published stories, movies of

historicalevents,worksofart,andmusicrecordings.

ActivityTime:60minutes

30minutes:research

30minutes:synthesisand

reportcompilation

13POST-SHOW CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES

Activity3:TheRedBadgeofCourage(English)“He sprang from the bunk and began to pacenervously to and fro, “Good Lord, what’s th’ matterwithme?"hesaidaloud.Hefeltthat inthiscrisishislawsoflifewereuseless.”--TheRedBadgeofCourage,StephenCraneHavestudentsreadallorpartofStephenCrane’sTheRedBadgeofCourage(thefulltextisavailableonlineat http://www.gutenberg.org/files/73/73-h/73-

h.htm).

DiscussionQuestions:

Comparethenovel toArmstrong’sWar.Whatsimilaritiescanyoufindbetweenthe

playandthestory?

Whatcomparisonscanbedrawnbetween thecharacterofMichael in theplayand

HenryFleminginthenovel?

WhydoyouthinkMichaelissointerestedinthisnovel?

Synthesis:

Write a story or poem about a

traumatic event (it can be real or

imagined).

Have several students share their

creative works. Discuss how you think

creative outlets, such aswriting a real

event as fiction, can be helpful in the

healingprocess.

ActivityTime:60minutes

20minutes:discussion

20minutes:creative

writing

20minutes:additional

discussion

14Activity4:Debate(English)

Havethestudentsformtwoteamstodebatethefollowingquestion:

DidMichaeldotherightthingwhenhewentbackonhiswordtoRobbie?Wasthepactbetweensoldiersmorallyrightorwrong?

Proposition:Michael did the right thingwhen hewent back on hisword. The pact

betweensoldierswasmorallywrong.

Opposition:Michaeldidnotdotherightthingwhenhewentbackonhisword.The

pactbetweensoldierswasmorallyright.

Youmayalsochoosetohavestudentsactasapanel

ofjudges.

20minutes:preparationofarguments

5minutes:Firstspeaker,Proposition

5minutes:Firstspeaker,Opposition

5minutes:Secondspeaker,Proposition

5minutes:Secondspeaker,Opposition

5minutes:preparationofrebuttals

5minutesRebuttalspeaker,proposition

5minutes:Rebuttalspeaker,Opposition

Afterthedebate,discusswhatworkedanddidn’twork.Youmayormaynotwantto

declarea“winner”basedonthestrengthofargumentsandtheeffectivenessoftheir

delivery.

ActivityTime:60minutes

20minutes:argument

preparation

20minutes:argument

presentation

10minutes:rebuttal

presentation

10minutes:discussion

15Activity5:SceneCreation(Drama)In Armstrong’s War, the action takes place during sixweekly visits that Halley makes to Michael’s hospital

room. What do you think happens to each of the

characters inthetimebetweeneachvisit?Howdoesthe

passageoftimebetweenscenes informtheactionofthe

play?

• ImaginethatMichaelandHalley’sfirstmeetinghas

just happened. With a partner, write a scene in

which either Michael or Halley is describing their

encounter to someone else (a friend at school, a

doctor,aparent,etc.).Howwouldyoudescribethe

othercharacter?Howdiditmakeyoufeel?Howwouldanoutsidelistenerreact?

• Shareyoursceneswith theclass asa staged reading.Whatare thesimilaritiesand

differences between all the scenes involving Michael? How about the scenes

involvingHalley?

ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

• Howdoestheplay’stitlecontainmultiplemeanings?

• Readingaloud isaprominentpartof theplay.How is readingalouddifferent from

solitaryreading?Whataretheprosandconsofboth?Whichdoyoupreferandwhy?

• Thisplayhastwocharacters,which isalsoknownasa“two-hander”.Whatare the

benefitsandchallengesofaplaywithonlytwoactors?Asadirector,howwouldyour

approachtotheplaydifferfromonewithalargecast?

• CompareandcontrastthewaysinwhichHalleyandMichaelcopewiththetraumasin

theirslives.Whydoyouthinktheyrespondindifferentways?

• WhatdoyouthinkwillhappentoMichaelandHalleyafter theactionoftheplay is

over? Inwhatwayshaveeachof the characterschanged throughout thecourseof

theplay? Inwhatwayshavetheyremainedthesame?WhydoyouthinkMichael is

sofixedongoingbacktoAfghanistan,despitehistraumaticexperiencethere?

• Both Halley and Michael have faced personal tests in their lives, in the form of

Halley’s accident andMichael’s experience in Afghanistan.What is a personal test

youhavefaced?Didsucceedingorfailingatthistestaffectwhatyou learnedabout

yourself,helpyougrow,ormakeyoufeelwiser?

ActivityTime:75minutes

30minutes:scene

creationandrehearsal

30minutes:staged

readingpresentations

15minutes:class

discussion

16ARMSTRONG’S WAR CREATIVE TEAM

PaoloSantalucia,CorporalMichaelArmstrongPaulo Santalucia is an actor born and raised in Toronto, Ontario.His

credits include The Dybbuk, Idiot's Delight, Of Human Bondage,GreatExpectations, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, The RoyalComedians,TheCrucible,Dirt(Soulpepper)RomeoandJuliet(HartHouseTheatre)TwelfthNight (CanopyTheatre)DogSeesGod,TheSelkieWife,Mr.Marmalade (FlyByNightTheatre)AfterJuliet(YPT). HewonaDoraAward for Outstanding Ensemble for his work in Rosencrantz andGuildensternAreDead.

AlexMcCulloch,HalleyArmstrongAlexMcCulloch iscurrentlygraduating fromtheperformancestreamat

the Drama Centre, where she has already proved herself an

extraordinary young talent, co-starring in Hedwig and the Angry Inch,

andinJudithThompson’sPerfectPie.Armstrong’sWarwillbeherfirstfull-fledgedprofessionalrole.

KenGass,DirectorKenGassisthefoundingartisticdirectorofCanadianRepTheatreand

Factory Theatre (1970-79; 1996-2012). He has directed numerous

notable productions including The Rez Sisters (2011); Belle (CapitalCritics’ Award for Best Direction); The Leisure Society (Dora Mavor

Moore Award for Outstanding Direction); Apple by Vern Thiessen(2006);TheTigerofMalayabyHiroKanagawa(2003);AShortHistoryof Night by John Mighton (1999); fareWel by Ian Ross (1999) and

severalacclaimedrevivalsofplaysbyGeorgeF.WalkerincludingBetterLiving,EscapeFromHappiness, BeyondMozambique,and Tough!.Gasswas the2010winnerof thePremier’s

Award for Excellence in theArts. Other awards includeTheGeorge LuscombeAward for

theatrementoring,TorontoTheatreCritics’AwardforcontributiontoTorontoTheatre,The

TorontoArtsAward,andTheDoraSilverTicketAwardforlifetimeachievement.

AndréduToit,ProducerIn addition to Canadian Rep Theatre, where he has been producer

since2008,AndréistheArtisticProducerofTheLabCabFestivaland

the Artistic Director of Rooftop Creations. Other producing credits

includethe2011DorawinningTomasso’sParty;FactoryWIREDfestival

2012 at Factory Theatre; Tough! (Magnetic North Theatre Festival);

Roaul Julia’sRomero (Summerworks);FromMint Condition to Badly Used (Fringe FestivalPatron’s Pick); and fourtyseven (Tecumseth Massive). He is also a multiple Dora Award

winning lighting designer (The Double, BakeliteMasterpiece, TakeMe Back to Jefferson),ProductionManager,TechnicalDirector,andPlaywright.

17WayneKelso,Composer&SoundDesignerWayne Kelso has spent the last thirty years performing, composing and

producing.Asacomposer,Waynehaswrittenscoresfornumerousplaysfor

bothCBCandlivetheatre.HisscoreforFactoryTheatre'sproductionofTheLeisure Society was nominated for a Dora award in 2005. He composed

musicandcreatedsoundfortherecentproductionsofPacamamboandHowDoILoveeThee?atCanadianRepTheatre.Healsocomposedoriginalmusic

andcreatedthesounddesignforClaudiusandAmazonDreambyKenGass(Canadian Rep Theatre); Apple by Vern Thiessen; and Better Living and

EscapeFromHappinessbyGeorgeF.Walker,alldirectedbyKenGass.

RebeccaPicherack,LightingDesigner

Rebeccahasdesignedlightingfornumerousaward-winningproductionsover

thepast15yearsattheatressuchasFactoryTheatre,BlythFestival,Buddies

inBadTimes,DNA,YoungPeople’sTheatre,MammalianDivingReflex,GCTC,

MTC, Mirvish Productions, Nightwood, Tarragon, Theatre Passe Muraille,

TheatreSmithGilmourandVolcano.Shehasbeennominated16timesand

received two Dora Mavor Moore Awards for her work in theatre. For

CanadianRepTheatre,RebeccadesignedlightingforPacamambo,aswellasfortheproductionofDeadMetaphoratthePanasonic.

Jung-HyeKim,CostumeDesignerAswellasdesigningcostumesforPacamamboforCanadianRep,Jung-Hye’sset and costume design credits include The Third Floor (Thousand IslandsPlayhouse), Passion Play (Outside the March, Convergence Theatre and

SheepNoWoolProduction),TheBiographer(TangoCo),Boblo(KitchenbandProduction and The Theatre Centre), Hiding Words (Eventual Ashes), TheGreatMountain(RedSkyPerformancewithYPT),PubOpera(TapestryNewOpera),After Akmatova, IfWeWere Birds (Tarragon Theatre),TheMiddlePlace (Project Humanity/Canadian Stage), The Big League (YPT),

Montparnasse (Theatre Passe Muraille/Groundwater Theatre); Minotaur(YPT)andDrivingMissDaisy(ThousandIslandsPlayhouse).

MarianWihak,SetDesignerMarian is a Toronto based multi-disciplinary artist working in film,

television, theatre and visual art. Her work has been the recipient of

numerous awards and nominations, including aDora nomination for TheLeisureSocietyandtwoGeminiAwardsforBestProductionDesignforthe

televisionmoviesPitPony,andSeptemberSongs: theMusicofKurtWeill,co-designedwithMichael Levine.Marian has collaboratedwith KenGass

on numerous projects over the years - Pacamambo, Bethune Imagined,Apple,Leisure Society, AmazonDream andClaudius, in additionto working on a wide range of film projects including Gordon

Pinsent’s Heyday, Agnieska Holland’s Julie Walking Home, and Rhombus Media’s

Mulroney:theOpera.

18REFERENCES

Bates,Stephen.“Armstrong’sWar–FinboroughTheatre,London”.ThePublicReviews,August152013,http://www.thepublicreviews.com/armstrongs-war-finborough-theatre-london/

Buri,George.“Armstrong’sWarStudyGuide”.RoyalManitobaTheatreCentre,September2014.

CanadianMentalHealthAssociation,“Post-traumaticstressdisorder”.

http://www.cmha.ca/mental_health/post-traumatic-stress-disorder/

Cinnamon,Bruce.“ReVue:Armstrong’sWarisaPowerfulBattlefield”.VueWeekly,April2015,http://www.vueweekly.com/revue-armstrongs-war-is-a-powerful-battlefield/

ColleenMurphybiography,http://www.citadeltheatre.com/robbins-academy/play-development-

forum-5-participants/

ColleenMurphybiography,https://www.playwrightsguild.ca/playwright/colleen-murphy

Commisso,Christina.“Timeline:Involvedsince2001,CanadawrapsupitsmissioninAfghanistan”.

CTVNews,March112014,http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/timeline-involved-since-2001-canada-

wraps-up-its-mission-in-afghanistan-1.1724890

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