JAC Theatre SWEEPS at Montreal English Theatre Awards!
By Mai Dasilva
Contributor
To the average person, the Montreal theatre scene is made up of Cirque Du Soleil performances and occasional touring productions at Place-des-Arts. But, truth to be told, Montreal is a place bursting with incredible artistry, and it happens to be a place where the theatre industry thrives.
Every year, the Montreal English Theatre Awards (METAS) recognizes the incredible works of art produced in Montreal. This season, nine John Abbott Theatre alumni and three current John Abbott Theatre Faculty members were nominated for awards, with four ruling victorious.
Diving into Montreal’s musical theatre scene, Penumbra Theatre’s inaugural production, Be More Chill by Joe Iconis, was a hit. Theodore Vlachos (commonly known under the Drag Name “Augusta Wind”) won over the audience’s hearts with his character Michael, a loser middle schooler. The JAC Professional Theatre graduate won his first META in the “Outstanding Supporting Performance” category.
Up next, Zachary Fraser, artistic director of Infinithéâtre, and a movement, creation, and career management teacher in the JAC Professional Theatre Acting program, was awarded the “Outstanding Direction” award for his play Dominoes at the Crossroads, a collection of stories from Caribbean Canadians that premiered back in March. Dominoes at the Crossroads was
nominated for seven different METAS, including a nomination for his creation of the text, as Zach himself adapted this piece from a novel by Quebec-based novelist Kaie Kellough. When asked about the similarities in his approach to directing versus teaching, Zach said,
I’ve often said that teaching and directing are two very important and complementary facets of my professional and artistic identity. […] I learn from my students every day. And I gain from their openness, courage, generosity, and their refreshing perspectives. And of course a youthful energy that I feed off! The craft and ensemble building that happens everyday within the theatre department… Those same tools and muscles are essential for a dynamic and exhilarating creative process out in the professional community.
The success of Dominoes at the Crossroads doesn’t end here though. JAC Professional Theatre Acting’s very own Jeremy Lewis (class of 2020 ) was nominated for two separate METAs for his incredible performance, and took the crown for “Outstanding Emerging Artist.”
The METAS have also announced the creation of the Innovation Award, to celebrate a project that creates an impactful advancement in Montreal Theatre. Rahul Gandhi, another JAC alumni, was recognized for his work in amplifying voices across people of different social minority groups with the project The 2023 Shruti Readings. The word Shruti means ‘that which is heard’ and comes from Sanskrit, an ancient Indo-Aryan language. Rahul’s work is a series of free theatrical performance platforms, meant to encourage work-in-progress pieces of theatre while eliminating behind-the-scene obstacles. Many of the pieces worked on went on to further stages of development, with the help of Rahul and the platform. Rahul says that; “These days, theatre as a medium has to stretch and squeeze into new forms to survive. Theatre has to evolve to fill the role it needs to fill in our artistic circles and communities. The Innovation Award is an excellent way to recognize when an artist does something to push the medium forward.”
All twelve of the artists nominated from our college created fantastic work— this recognition is a huge achievement for the John Abbott Theatre Arts Community.