Happening Now!

Halifax Theatre For Young People is proud to offer our production of Mi’kmaq Stories: Past and Present in digital format to schools across Nova Scotia through PERFORM! Mi’kmaq Stories will be available starting September 30th for Truth and Reconciliation Day, and throughout October as part of Indigenous History Month!

Grade Levels: Appropriate for all ages, recommended for ages 8-12.

Duration: 45 minutes

Cost: $50/class or $300 for whole school

Show Dates: Digital Production available through Mi’kmaq History Month October 1 – October 31 

To book please go to: Perform – Mi’kmaq Stories: Past and Present

Mi’kmaq Stories: Past & Present weaves stories from the past with glimpses into current realities and dreams for the future. This blend of Indigenous voices and stories, with an all-Mi’kmaq cast, will be an enlightening experience for young audiences at this pivotal time in our history. These are new and traditional stories, written & created by Mi’kmaq artists Trevor Gould and Catherine Anne Martin with additional writing by Rita Joe, Shalan Joudry, and Rebecca Thomas.

Featuring: Brady Googoo, Laura Fleet, Noel Julian, Anna Nibby-Woods, Shelly Woods

Additional material (interviews, archival photos, images and music): Dozay Christmas, Gerald Gloade, Loretta Gould, Seth Doucette, Samqwan Boyz, Richard Poulette, Dr. Bernie Francis and Alan Syliboy.

Learning outcomes: Mi’kmaq Stories Learning Outcomes

Feedback from Teachers: 

Wow……in 40 minutes we gained so much important information… The power of it was very important…This presentation should be part of the grade 6 curriculum from here on out. –Sackville Heights Junior High

The students were all focused on it. It also fit in with what we were working on in the Curriculum… Bringing the Arts into Social Studies is fantastic. –Leslie Thomas Junior High

We watched & absolutely loved it, and had a lengthy discussion afterwards…I found it to be a great launching point to talk about Mi’Kmaq ways of knowing and being. –Sackville Heights Junior High 

My class watched it and were engaged the whole time. It created new conversations around the culture and our (modern day) abuse of the environment and resources… It was also awesome to see local Mi’kmaq Peoples portraying the roles! –Sackville Heights Junior High

 

The Book of Ashes

Halifax Theatre for Young People is proud to announce our new project now in the works, The Book of Ashes, written by Emil Sher. Set in 2003 during the US invasion of Iraq, Amir, a young lover of books, learns about his country’s past, his roots and community as he helps to save their library during a time of war.

Five people standing in front of a darkened stage with blue lights and velvet curtains. Tessa Mendel is standing farther to the left, she has curly blonde hair and is looking directly at the camera with a smile. She is wearing a black scarf with golden accents, on top of a black short sleeve button up top, and a flowy black skirt. She has her arm around Ateka who has medium brown shoulder length hair in loose curls. She is looking to the left of the camera and is smiling. She is wearing a simple fitted black t-shirt and grey skinny jeans. She has her arm around Laith to the left of her and is standing with top of his head landing just above her shoulder. Laith is smiling and looking to the side of the camera. He iis wearing khaki pants and a black collard shirt with a Polo logo on the left side of his chest. He is standing next to Pasha who is about a foot taller than Laith. He has dark hair and a salt and pepper beard. He is looking to the side of the camera and is also smiling. He is wearing a black button up top that is open and a plain black t shirt under, and khaki pants. He has his arm stretch around Natalie. She has short curly dark hair and is looking to the side of the camera while smiling. She is wearing a long flowing teal linen dress with ¾ sleeves.

 HTYP had the opportunity to showcase a staged reading of the play at Eastern Front Theatre’s STAGES Festival this past June with actors Laith Abadi, Ateka Yaghoubi, Natalie Abdou, and Pasha Ebrahimi. This show is filled with magical moments brought to life with puppetry by Laura Stinson and design by Katrin Whitehead. 

STAGES Festival Book of Ashes staged reading review by Amanda Campbell:

https://www.twisitheatreblog.com/?p=5109

We will be putting on the full production next season – stay tuned for more news and updates on The Book of Ashes!

Written By Emil Sher
Directed By Tessa Mendell

HTYP Youth Acts!

This year, Halifax Theatre for Young People has started a brand new program called HTYP Youth Acts! that brings theatre and performing arts education to young people, free of barriers (financial and others). Our pilot project started with a drama club at Rockingstone Heights in Spryfield with the support of Halifax Regional Arts. Students in the drama club have had the opportunity to build upon improvisational/acting skills and apply this to creating material for the digital version of Newcomers: Stories of Refugee and Immigrant Children, filmed with the help of J.L. Ilsley’s film club. 

We will be bringing the Youth Acts! Program to YMCA’s Centre for Immigrant Youth this summer, working with immigrant and refugee girls. We are also looking to expand the program to other schools in Nova Scotia throughout the school year!

#IAMTHECHEESE on DIGITAL STAGE

Digital Stage is a brand new performing arts platform that teams up six theatre companies (including Nova Scotia’s Eastern Front Theatre) from across Canada to bring stage performances onto a digital format! It is a way to extend theatre’s accessibility and create brand new avenues of collaboration. Memberships to watch shows through Digital Theatre are pay-as-you-choose, and all fees collected are divided equally to help support the theatre companies involved.

On a dark purple/blue background with faded computer/HTML codes in white stands a stern and concentrated white man(Sam Vigneault) with medium dark brown hair. He has high cheekbones and a strong brow. He is wearing a red hoodie with a blue hospital scrub shirt underneath.

 We are proud that our production of #IAmTheCheese, co-produced with Eastern Front Theatre and filmed on January 31st, 2022 at Alderney Landing Theatre, is now available on Digital Stage! Click the link here to watch #IAmTheCheese and to learn more about Digital Stage!

Written by: Josh Macdonald
Directed by: Ann-Marie Kerr

NEWCOMERS: STORIES OF REFUGEE AND IMMIGRANT CHILDREN

Halifax Theatre for Young people is excited to announce that after a long awaited time, we will be coming to a school or theatre near you! Back in April HTYP had a very successful run of Newcomers: Stories of Refugee and Immigrant Children at the Bronfman Theatre at Pier 21 where we received many positive reviews. This September we again start rehearsals, creating and exploring the story of what it’s like being a newcomer to Canada. Our production of Newcomers: Stories of Refugee and Immigrant Children will be remounted and performed at The Ship’s Company Theatre in Parrsboro followed by a highly anticipated Nova Scotia School’s Tour!

This production shines a light on what it’s like for a child to be a newcomer to Nova Scotia. Composed of short plays and monologues by newcomers from all over the world including; Kenya, Hong Kong, China, Jamaica, Bolivia, Nigeria, and more, this production, is designed to build empathy and understanding of others’ experiences, while allowing newcomer students to see themselves and their stories reflected on stage, often for the first time.

Director: Luciana Silvestre Fernandes (Brazil)

Writers include: Sarah Poko (Nigeria), Chung Sing Au/Roland (Hong Kong), Maureen

Waithaka (Kenya), Tzu-Hao Hsu (Taiwan), Xaiver Campbell (Jamaica), Huiyan Gao

(China), Claudia Gutierrez (Bolivia) and Tanya Chedrawy (Canada / Lebanon).

This October HTYP will be having our first AGM of the season! As the 2023-2024 school year begins we have much to do at Halifax Theatre for Young People. Last year we were board focused, working on expanding our; knowledge, community involvement, and discipline backgrounds within the board, we will continue actively learning, exploring, and implementing strategies to help us grow as a Theatre company for the youth of Halifax.

Halifax Theatre for Young People occupies a unique place within the theatre ecology of both our local and regional communities as the only full-time Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA) Company in Halifax Regional Municipality. We have had the opportunity to create, share and produce numerous productions, and meaningfully engage young audiences across Nova Scotia.For more information or to book a show email: info@halifaxtheatreforyoungpeople.com