Lunchbox Theatre presents new director
By Rachel Woodward, June 2 2016 —
After working as an assistant director with Lunchbox Theatre this season, RBC Emerging Director Jenna Rodgers’s directorial presentation of Let the Light of Day Through premieres this week.
The play will perform for only the second time since its creation. Edmonton-based playwright Collin Doyle wrote the script.
Let the Light of Day Through is an exploration of love and relationships told through the characters of Rob and Chris, who met and fell in love when they were known as Bobby and Tina in high school. They are quickly forced to grow up when Tina becomes pregnant. The play won the 2012 Alberta Playwriting Competition.
“I’m a dramaturge and so I read a lot of new plays all the time,” Rodgers says. “I stumbled across this one which a friend had sent to me a couple of years ago wanting me to read it. I thought ‘this is a beautiful play, I wonder if I could do it’.”
The original play is an 80-minute one-act. Rodgers worked with Doyle over the past few months to bring the play down to a 60-minute performance.
Rodgers says that resources available from the Emerging Director program are one of the reasons she applied for the position.
“Mostly when you’re starting out as a director, you are directing your own stuff, so there is something really cool about being at a venue and picking designers. We have a production manager, a producer and a marketer, so you don’t have to worry about those other things,” she says. “That’s really been a huge gift. It’s so meaningful to have the time and space to focus on the craft of directing.”
Outside of this production, Rodgers works as the artistic director for Chromatic Theatre, which she says is dedicated to supporting diverse artists in Calgary. She is is also a part of Antyx Community Arts.
Rodgers says working as the RBC Emerging Director at Lunchbox Theatre has allowed her to focus more of her efforts toward community projects.
“This position gives me permission to focus on being the best director I can be — permission to confront my fears, my nerves, and to come out the other side with concrete skills to apply to my artistic practice,” she said in a statement on the Lunchbox website. “As a woman — and particularly as a woman of colour — I am still learning how to take up space in this community, how to claim a place for myself, and Lunchbox Theatre has welcomed me with open arms.”
Let the Light of Day Through will play twice a day at Lunchbox Theatre on June 2 and 3. Tickets are $20 for students.
For more information, visit lunchboxtheatre.com