Necessary Angel Presents Divisadero: A Performance Thru 2/20

Necessary Angel, in association with The Film Farm, will present Divisadero: a performance from the Governor General's Award-winning novel by Michael Ondaatje; adapted by the author, Daniel Brooks, Liane Balaban, Maggie Huculak, Tom McCamus, Aviva Philipp-Muller, Amy Rutherford, Justin Rutledge and the company. Performances run through February 20 at Theatre Passe Muraille's Mainspace, 16 Ryerson Avenue.

Divisadero: a performance is directed by Necessary Angel's Artistic Director Daniel Brooks. Lighting design is by Andrea Lundy, sound design is by Alexander MacSween and set and costume design is by John Thompson.

Performing in Divisadero: a performance are Liane Balaban, Maggie Huculak, Tom McCamus, Aviva Philipp-Muller, Amy Rutherford and Justin Rutledge - the Juno-nominated musician who has created music specifically for the piece.

Divisadero: a performance tells a story of a family that is forever changed by a single, violent event and examines themes of memory, identity, love and the grip of the past on the present. The production combines music, performance and storytelling, exploring the intimacy between the speaker and the listener, and language's ability to weave a magical spell.

Necessary Angel welcomes Ondaatje's return to the stage with his first full-length work in over two decades since he co-adapted his novel Coming Through Slaughter with the company for its presentation at the Silver Dollar Tavern in 1989. Divisadero: a performance was performed last fall in a series of sold-out workshop presentations under the Working Title When My Name Was Anna.

Divisadero: a performance

Writer: Michael Ondaatje. Director: Daniel Brooks. Assistant Director: Stefan Dzeparoski. Cast: Liane Balaban, Maggie Huculak, Tom McCamus, Aviva Philipp-Muller, Amy Rutherford, Justin Rutledge. Designers: Andrea Lundy, Alexander MacSween, John Thompson. Stage Management: Elizabeth McDermott, Crystal Salverda.

Performances February 8-20, 2011 at Theatre Passe Muraille's Mainspace, 16 Ryerson Avenue

Tuesday-Saturday 8pm, Sunday 2pm

Tickets: Tuesday - Thursday $25, Friday $30, Saturday $35, Sunday Matinee - PWYC

For tickets and more information, visit www.necessaryangel.com/ or call Theatre Passe Muraille Arts Box Office at 416-504-7529 

BIOS:
Liane Balaban | Claire
For Necessary Angel: When My Name Was Anna (workshop, now titled Divisadero)

Other: TV: NCIS: Los Angeles (CBS), Covert Affairs (USA), Abroad (CBC - Gemini Award nomination), Numb3rs (CBS), St. Urbain's Horsemen (CBC), Above and Beyond (CBC), After the Harvest (Lifetime). Film: The Future is Now, The New Tenants (2010 Oscar, best live action short), One Week (Genie Award nomination), Coach, Last Chance Harvey, The Trotsky, You Might as Well Live, Definitely Maybe, Seven Times Lucky, World Traveler, New Waterford Girl (Canadian Comedy Award nomination, Jury Congratulation - Toronto International Film Festival).

Daniel Brooks | Director

For Necessary Angel: Half Life, Bigger Than Jesus, Insomnia, The Eco Show, HardSell, This Is What Happens Next

Artistic Director of Necessary Angel since 2003. Daniel Brooks is a prolific and versatile artist whose innovation and risk-taking have made him a leader within the Canadian cultural landscape. He has worked as a director, writer, actor, producer and teacher. Some of his creations include Red Tape and 86; An Autopsy (with Don McKellar and Tracy Wright); The Lorca Play, House, Here Lies Henry, Monster, Cul-de-sac and, most recently, This Is What Happens Next (all with Daniel MacIvor); The Noam Chomsky Lectures and Insomnia (with Guillermo Verdecchia); Bigger Than Jesus and HardSell (with Rick Miller); The Good Life and The Eco Show. His work as a director includes John Mighton's Possible Worlds and Half Life, Goethe's Faust, Beckett's Endgame and The Drowsy Chaperone. He was the first recipient of the prestigious Elinore and Lou Siminovitch Prize in Theatre for directing. His work has traveled across Canada and around the world.

STEFAN DZEPAROSKI | Assistant Director

Most recently Stefan Dzeparoski directed SoulSeek for BirdLand Theatre where he is also a Resident Director. Prior to SoulSeek, Stefan worked as the Production Dramaturge for Assassins by Stephen Sondheim (2010 Dora Award winner for Outstanding Production of a Musical), directed by Adam Brazier. Stefan holds an MFA degree in Directing from University of Alberta, and an MA Degree in Theatre Studies from University of Arts in Belgrade. His other selected directing credits include: Roberto Zucco (Studio Theatre, Edmonton), Anime (Lucid Productions, Edmonton), The Creation of the world and other business (The System Theatre, Edmonton) and After the Fall (Studio Theatre, Edmonton). In Europe, he also directed Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? by Edward Albee and Quartet by Heiner Muller. Currently, he resides in Toronto with his wife, producer and actress Zorana Kydd, and teaches theatre at Ryerson University. In 2007 he was nominated for Edmonton's Sterling Award in Directing.

MAGGIE HUCULAK | Anna
For Necessary Angel: Tamara, Mein, Desire, Seven Lears, King Lear, Beating Heart Cadaver, The Piper, Hysterica, Half Life, When My Name Was Anna (workshop, now titled Divisadero)

Other: Antigone, Travesties, A Christmas Carol, The Wild Duck (Soulpepper); Age of Arousal (Nightwood Theatre); The Woman in White (Theatre Aquarius); The Clean House, The Glass Menagerie, Elizabeth Rex (Globe); 4:48 Psychosis (Summerworks); Lonely Nights and Other Stories, Twelfth Night, The Knee Plays, The Betrayal (Chalmers Award) (Theatre Columbus). A six-time Dora Award nominee, Maggie has co-created four plays including Mein, winner of a Dora Award, and The Betrayal, winner of a Chalmers Award. Maggie acts extensively on camera, with regular and recurring roles on Puppets Who Kill, Queer as Folk, Wind At My Back, The Adventures of Shirley Holmes and Eric's World. Recent film work includes Fugitive Pieces, Anne: A New Beginning and The Gathering. Maggie narrated CBC's epic documentary Canada: A People's History and the dramatizations of Michael Ondaatje's In The Skin of a Lion and The English Patient. She dedicates this performance to her father, Walter Huculak.
ANDREA LUNDY | Lighting Designer / Production Manager
For Necessary Angel: The Eco Show, Half Life, Insomnia, Hamlet, My Name Was Anna (workshop, now titled Divisadero)

Other: Andrea Lundy is an award-winning lighting designer, having been nominated for 22 Dora Mavor Moore Awards, winning 9 times for Hamlet; The Mill; The Eco Show; Stories from the Rains of Love and Death; Russell Hill; The Attic, The Pearls and Three Fine Girls; Possible Worlds; Insomnia and Oedipus. She has spent four seasons at the Shaw Festival and has worked extensively with Tarragon Theatre, Soulpepper Theatre, Canadian Stage, Necessary Angel, Factory Theatre, Theatre Passe Muraille and Neptune Theatre, among other Canadian companies. She is the Production and Tour Manager for Necessary Angel, teaches at The National Theatre School and Humber College and is a member of the Associated Designers of Canada. Recent productions include Tarragon Theatre's The Misanthrope and Theatrefront's The Mill, Part 4. Upcoming is More Fine Girls at Tarragon.

ALEXANDER MACSWEEN | Sound Designer

For Necessary Angel: Hamlet, When My Name Was Anna (workshop, now titled Divisadero)

Musician, composer and sound designer, Alexander MacSween frequently collaborates on dance, theatre and film projects. He has worked with Natasha Bakht, Marie Brassard, André Gingras, François Girard, Brigitte Haentjens, Robert Lepage and José Navas. He previously worked with Necessary Angel on Hamlet. As a drummer, Alexander is active in the worlds of rock, improvisation and electronic music. He has played with Paolo Angeli, Tim Berne, Michel F. Côté, Bionic, Frank Gratkowski, The Nils, Sam Shalabi and The London Improvisors Orchestra. He is a member of Martin Tétreault's Turntable Quartet and of the group Foodsoon. Alexander has also created solo pieces and sound installations. His work has been presented in several festivals including CitySonics, Sonorama and Mutek. He also gives workshops in real-time sound processing for the performing arts at various North American and European institutions.

TOM McCAMUS | The Father/Mancini/Gil

For Necessary Angel: It's All True, Hamlet (workshop), When My Name Was Anna (workshop, now titled Divisadero)

Other: Thom Paine (Tarragon Theatre), Mathilde (Nightwood Theatre), Hedda Gabler (Volcano), Innocent Eye Test (Royal Alex). Eight seasons with the Stratford Festival, roles include: Captain Hook in Peter Pan, Valmont in Dangerous Liaisons, MacHeath, Richard III, Brutus, Vladimir in Waiting for Godot, Coriolanus, King Arthur, Edmund in Long Day's Journey into Night. Four seasons with Theatre Plus Toronto. Eight seasons with the Shaw Festival. Film & TV: Cairo Time, Shake Hands with the Devil, Waking up Wally: the Walter Gretzky Story - Gemini/Actra Award, Possible Worlds, Long Day's Journey into Night, The Sweet Hereafter, I Love a Man in Uniform - Genie Award.

ELIZABTH MCDERMOTT | Apprentice Stage Manager

For Necessary Angel: Debut

Other: Apprentice Stage Manager: Night (Human Cargo: Ottawa, Inuvik, Yellowknife, Whitehorse, Gananoque, Iqaluit, Pond Inlet), As You Like It and King of Thieves (Stratford Shakespeare Festival), Yellowman (Nightwood Theatre/Obsidian Theatre), Late and Black Medea (Obsidian Theatre). Assistant Stage Manager: Foto (The Orange Company, Summerworks). Production Assistant: Bartholomew Fair, Three Sisters, Phèdre and Ever Yours, Oscar (Stratford Shakespeare Festival). Awards: Jean A. Chalmers Apprentice Achievement Award 2009 and 2010 (Guthrie Awards, Stratford Shakespeare Festival).

MICHAEL ONDAATJE | Writer

For Necessary Angel: Coming Through Slaughter, When My Name Was Anna (workshop, now titled Divisadero)
Other: His books include Coming through Slaughter, In the Skin of a Lion, The English Patient, Anil's Ghost and Divisadero. His work also includes poetry and a non-fiction book, The Conversations, about film editing. His new novel, The Cat's Table, will come out this fall.

AVIVA PHILIPP-MULLER | Young Anna

For Necessary Angel: Debut

Other: Aviva Philipp-Muller is a grade twelve student in the Claude Watson Program for the arts; drama major. She also took part in the Theatre Performance Intensive program at Stratford Shakespeare School. Most recent credits include: The Crucible (Studio 102 Production), A Midsummer Nights Dream (A Cringen Hall Production), Duet for Bear and Dog (Short Shorts), Before the Afterparty (Sears). Her writing credits include: For the Greater Good (Paprika Festival), Overshadowed (One Acts Play Festival), 18 De Rien Ave. (Sears). Aviva will be appearing next at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival performing in an original play called The Dreamcatchers.

JUSTIN JOHN RUTLEDGE | Coop/Singer/Songwriter
For Necessary Angel: When My Name Was Anna (workshop, now titled Divisadero)

Other: Justin Rutledge's following has flourished from the loyal local fans and media he attracted from his year-long residency at Toronto's CameRon House in 2004, to international recognition and respect. Signed to Six Shooter Records, Rutledge's albums garner impressive amounts of critical acclaim. Between his debut No Never Alone (2005), his sophomore release The Devil On A Bench In Stanley Park (2006), and third album Man Descending (2008), he has earned a Juno nomination, a Galaxy Rising Star award, countless year-end critics' picks, the title of Toronto's Best Local Songwriter (NOW Magazine), a spot on the 2008 Polaris Prize Long List and a Canadian Folk Music Award nomination. Justin has shared the stage with artists such as Blue Rodeo, Dolly Parton, Martha Wainwright and Great Lake Swimmers, among others. The songs composed for Divisadero can be found on Rutledge's acclaimed album The Early Widows, which was released May 4, 2010 on Six Shooter Records.

Amy Rutherford | Bridget

For Necessary Angel: The Message, When My Name Was Anna (workshop, now titled Divisadero)

Other: Amy Rutherford trained at The National Theatre School of Canada and Stratford Conservatory. Most recent credits include: The 39 Steps (Theatre Aquarius), Aftershock (Summerworks), Goodness (Volcano Theatre), The Vertical Hour (Prairie Theatre Exchange), Zadie's Shoes (GCTC), The Odd Couple / As You Like (Soulpepper Theatre). Selected TV and Film: Murdoch Mysteries (Shaftesbury), Angela's Eyes (NBC Universal/Lifetime), Puppets Who Kill (Comedy Network), Confessions of an American Bride (Lifetime), Four Minutes (ESPN). Amy will be appearing next in Studio 180's production of Our Class by Tadeusz Slobodzianek.
CRYSTAL SALVERDA | Stage Manager

For Necessary Angel: Half Life, Hamlet, This Is What Happens Next

Other: Crystal is thrilled to be back at Necessary Angel. Over the last few years she has had the opportunity to work locally as well as tour both nationally and internationally, stage managing some wonderful productions such as Half Life (Necessary Angel), Under Milkwood (Soulpepper Theatre Co.), Raisin in the Sun (Soulpepper Theatre Co./Theatre Calgary), Hamlet (Necessary Angel), This is What Happens Next (Necessary Angel/Canadian Stage), Civil Elegies (Soulpepper Theatre Co.), Tuesday's with Morrie (Harold Green Jewish Theatre), Of the Field's Lately (Soulpepper Theatre Co.), and Billy Bishop (Soulpepper Theatre Co). Crystal is looking forward to some exciting future productions such as Are you Okay (Necessary Angel/Peggy Baker Dance Projects), Zero Hour (Harold Green Jewish Theatre) and Andromache (Necessary Angel).

THE FILM FARM (Simone Urdl & Jennifer Weiss) has been producing quality films, fueling imaginations and cultivating original voices for over a decade. With an eclectic and award-winning slate of over 20 narrative feature films, short films and film-based projects, their credits include Atom Egoyan's last two features Adoration and Chloe; Brian De Palma's Redacted; Sarah Polley's debut feature film Away From Her; Sook-Yin Lee's Year of the Carnivore and Mike Goldbach's Daydream Nation.

John Thompson | Set & Costume Designer
For Necessary Angel: My Name Was Anna (workshop, now titled Divisadero)

Other: Through The Leaves, Festen, Whistle In The Dark, Marion Bridge (Company Theatre); Eternal Hydra (Crow's Theatre); The Retreat From Moscow, The Tempest, The Clean House, Humble Boy, The Shape of Things (Manitoba Theatre Centre); Blue/Orange, Side By Side By Sondheim (CanStage); Waiting For Godot, No Man's Land, Betrayal, Don Carlos, The Misanthrope (Soulpepper Theatre); The Trials of Ezra Pound (The Stratford Festival); The Pessimist, Helen's Necklace, Russell Hill, Little Mercy's First Murder, The Good Life, Skylight, Girl In The Goldfish Bowl, Earshot, The Road to Hell (Tarragon Theatre); Unity 1918, Blood (Theatre Passe Muraille). He teaches at the University of Toronto.

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