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44-571: Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre (Royal MTC) is Canada's oldest English-language regional theatre. Next to the Stratford and Shaw Festivals, MTC has a higher annual attendance than any other theatre in the country. It was founded in 1958 by John Hirsch and Tom Hendry as an amalgamation of the Winnipeg Little Theatre and Theatre 77. In 2010, the theatre received a royal designation from Queen Elizabeth II , and officially became

88-524: A series of paintings depicting the costumes from festival costume warehouse, having served as their Head of Scenic Art from 2007 to 2015. In March 2020, as preparations for the upcoming season were underway, the Festival was forced to announce performance cancellations and layoffs due to the COVID-19 pandemic . A month later, the entire 2020 season was put on hold and effectively cancelled. Just before

132-581: A 1957 design award from the National Industrial Design Council. Instead of Gaffney, the Foundation Company of Canada was awarded the contract to build the theatre. The structural engineers were Morrison Hershfield Millman & Huggins; mechanical engineers were Frost Granek & Associates; electrical consultants were Jack Chisvin & Associates; and the acoustical consultant was Robert Tanner. Shortly before

176-470: A Royal designation, becoming Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre. The Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre was designed in the Brutalist style by Winnipeg's Number Ten Architectural Group with input from artistic director Eddie Gilbert. With its exposed concrete sculptural form, an informal interior theatre space and a foyer originally conceived to balance large gatherings and smaller intimate groups in the same space,

220-477: A classic Greek amphitheatre and Shakespeare's Globe Theatre . It has since become a model for other stages in North America and Great Britain. Tony Award -nominee Scott Wentworth has performed in the festival's stage productions on numerous occasions since 1985, beginning with The Glass Menagerie ; the festival has helped Sara Topham launch her career in acting, performing from 2000 to 2011; and

264-570: A disastrous loss of employment with the imminent elimination of steam power. Patterson achieved his goal after gaining encouragement from Mayor David Simpson and the local council, and the Stratford Shakespearean Festival became a legal entity on October 31, 1952. Already established in Canadian theatre, Dora Mavor Moore helped put Patterson in touch with British actor and director Tyrone Guthrie , first with

308-719: A flag sent by the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon . Archdeacon Lightbourne dedicated the theatre, saying, "in the faith of Jesus Christ we dedicate this theatre to the glory of God and for the deepening and enrichment of the lives of His people, in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen." At the time of the dedication, decorations remained around the town from

352-428: A ready-made solution. Like a submersible aircraft carrier, the theatre at Stratford had to be invented, and there I was... ready to invent it." On 22 January 1953, Rounthwaite & Fairfield received the official commission to design a theatre for the new festival's first season. The project specified that the theatre would seat around 1,500 persons and have a backstage area for around 80 persons. The entire duration of

396-1822: A significant increase in the number of new patrons to the theatres. On 17 February 2015, AP News reported that the Stratford Shakespeare Festival plans to film all of Shakespeare's plays . Actors who have participated in the festival include Alan Bates , Brian Bedford , Domini Blythe , Barbara Bryne , Martha Burns , Jackie Burroughs , Zoe Caldwell , Douglas Campbell , Len Cariou , Brent Carver , Patricia Conolly , Susan Coyne , Jack Creley , Jonathan Crombie , Hume Cronyn , Henry Czerny , Cynthia Dale , Brian Dennehy , Colm Feore , Megan Follows , Maureen Forrester , Lorne Greene , Dawn Greenhalgh, Paul Gross , Alec Guinness , Amelia Hall, Uta Hagen , Julie Harris , Don Harron , Martha Henry , William Hutt , Frances Hyland , Charmion King , Andrea Martin , Barbara March , James Mason , Roberta Maxwell , Eric McCormack , Seana McKenna , Loreena McKennitt , Richard Monette , John Neville , Stephen Ouimette , Lucy Peacock , Nicholas Pennell , David J. Phillips , Amanda Plummer , Christopher Plummer , Sarah Polley , Douglas Rain , Kate Reid , Jason Robards , Alan Scarfe , Paul Scofield , Goldie Semple , William Shatner , Maggie Smith , Jessica Tandy , Peter Ustinov , Christopher Walken , Al Waxman , Irene Worth , Geraint Wyn Davies and Janet Wright . Female directors at Stratford have included Pam Brighton, Zoe Caldwell , Marigold Charlseworth, Donna Feore , Jill Keiley, Pamela Hawthorne, Martha Henry , Jeannette Lambermont, Diana Leblanc , Marti Maraden , Weyni Mengesha , Carey Perloff , Lorraine Pintal , Vanessa Porteous, Susan H. Schulman , Djanet Sears , Kathryn Shaw , Jennifer Tarver. From 1956 to 1961 and 1971 to 1976,

440-419: A transatlantic telephone call. On July 13, 1953, actor Alec Guinness spoke the first lines of the first play produced by the festival, a production of Richard III : "Now is the winter of our discontent / Made glorious summer by this son of York." Guinness and Irene Worth were among the cast of Stratford's inaugural performance of Richard III , working for expenses only. This first performances (like

484-548: A young, unknown Christopher Walken appeared in Stratford's 1968 stage productions of Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night's Dream , portraying Romeo and Lysander respectively. Long-serving Artistic Director Richard Monette retired in 2007 after holding the position for fourteen seasons. He was replaced with an artistic team consisting of General Director Antoni Cimolino and Artistic Directors Marti Maraden , Des McAnuff , and Don Shipley . On March 12, 2008, it

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528-444: Is an event unique in our history. We are marking a great moment in the story of an enterprise which began as a local effort with unbelievable ambitions. We now see it as a national achievement winning incredible success." The chairman of the campaign to raise the $ 1.5 million for construction was A. Bruce Matthews . The new theatre building was 200 feet in diameter; the foyer extended another 40 feet in diameter and ran 160 feet along

572-470: Is an industry partner of the University of Waterloo Stratford Campus . The 2024 season programmed by Artistic Director Antoni Cimolino has a theme of A World Elsewhere. 43°22′28″N 80°58′06″W  /  43.374336°N 80.968468°W  / 43.374336; -80.968468 Festival Theatre, Stratford Festival Theatre is a performing arts theatre in Stratford, Ontario that

616-682: Is funded purely from donations received during a run of a particular show each season. The Naomi Levin Theatre Scholarship was established in memory of Naomi Levin, a theatre technician associated with the MTC for a number of years. The theatres were renamed after the company's founders in 2008. In 2009, the Government of Canada designated the Mainstage theatre a National Historic Site. On October 26, 2010, Manitoba Theatre Centre received

660-548: Is the main venue of the Stratford Festival . The theatre was constructed in the spring of 1953 and was completed in time for the festival's opening on 13 July of that year. The original theatre comprised concrete bleachers covered by a tent and was usable only in the summer. The tent theatre remained in use for four seasons and was taken down in August 1956. That month, construction began on a new permanent building using

704-549: The Coronation of Elizabeth II on 2 June, lending to the atmosphere of celebration. The first performance at the theatre took place on Monday, 13 July 1953, with a production of Richard III . In December 1955, a sketch of the proposed permanent theatre appeared in the Toronto Daily Star . On 25 August 1956, following the end of the 1956 season, the tent came down for the final time and construction began on

748-557: The Stratford Shakespeare Festival . The festival was one of the first arts festivals in Canada and continues to be one of its most prominent. It is recognized worldwide for its productions of Shakespearean plays. The festival's primary focus is to present productions of William Shakespeare 's plays, but it has a range of theatre productions from Greek tragedy to Broadway musicals and contemporary works. In

792-717: The Bard are recalled with considerable feeling – 'all's well that ends well.' " On Sunday, 12 July 1953 following the town's church services, citizens gathered at the new theatre for the opening ceremonies. The service was opened by the Ven. Archdeacon F. Gwynne Lightbourne of the Anglican Church, and then the Rev. Donald B. MacKay of the Presbyterian Church gave an address. Following this, Tyrone Guthrie presented Showalter

836-734: The Festival Theatre, the Avon Theatre, the Tom Patterson Theatre, and the Studio Theatre. Although the Festival's primary mandate is to produce the works of Shakespeare, its season playbills include contemporary works and at least one musical, as well as the classic repertory. The Stratford Festival Forum runs during the season, and features music concerts, readings from major authors, lectures, and discussions with actors or management. The Stratford Festival

880-656: The Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre is one of Canada's most important small-scale Brutalist designs. Stratford Festival The Stratford Festival is a theatre festival which runs from April to October in the city of Stratford, Ontario , Canada. Founded by local journalist Tom Patterson in 1952, the festival was formerly known as the Stratford Shakespearean Festival , the Shakespeare Festival and

924-814: The Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre operates two theatre venues in Winnipeg, Manitoba - The John Hirsch Mainstage and the Tom Hendry Warehouse. Each season, MTC produces six Mainstage productions, four Warehouse Productions, an annual 12-day Winnipeg Fringe Theatre Festival , the Master Playwright Festival and a regional tour. MTC also provides student-only matinees with the Theatre for Young Audiences program, and scholarships and apprentice opportunities for post-secondary theatre students. The Jean Murray - Moray Sinclair Theatre Scholarship

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968-516: The Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre. It has a seating capacity of 785 and opened on October 31, 1970. When the Winnipeg Little Theatre and Theatre 77 merged to become the Manitoba Theatre Centre in 1958, it became the first of a network of "regional theatres" across North America. Artistic Director John Hirsch and General Manager Tom Hendry focused on classics, Broadway hits, and new Canadian work. A second stage for experimental work

1012-547: The Shrew . Young actors during the first four seasons included several who went on to great success in subsequent years, Douglas Campbell , Timothy Findley , Don Harron , William Hutt and Douglas Rain . Fundraising to build a permanent theatre was slow but was helped significantly by donations from Governor General Vincent Massey and the Perth Mutual Insurance Company. The new Festival Theatre

1056-684: The Stratford Festival also staged the separate Stratford Film Festival , which was credited as one of the first North American film festivals ever to schedule international films. That festival collapsed after the 1976 launch of the Festival of Festivals, now known as the Toronto International Film Festival , impacted both the Stratford Film Festival's funding and its audience. In 2011, the visual artist, Chris Klein , started producing

1100-583: The early years of the festival, Shakespeare's works typically represented approximately one third of the offerings in the largest venue, the Festival Theatre . More recently, however, the festival's focus has shifted to encompass works by a more diverse range of playwrights. The success of the festival changed Stratford into a city where arts and tourism play important roles in the economy. The festival attracts many tourists from outside Canada, most notably British and American visitors. The Festival

1144-557: The entire first four seasons) took place in a concrete amphitheatre covered by giant canvas tent on the banks of the River Avon. The first of many years of Stratford Shakespeare Festival production history started with a six-week season opening on 13 July 1953 with Richard III and then All's Well That Ends Well , both starring Alec Guinness. The 1954 season ran for nine weeks and included Sophocles’ Oedipus Rex and two Shakespeare plays, Measure for Measure and The Taming of

1188-518: The existing bleachers. The permanent building opened for the start of the 1957 season. Both the tent theatre and the permanent theatre were designed by architects Rounthwaite & Fairfield of Toronto. Festival Theatre has become a civic symbol of Stratford and serves as the center of the city's cultural life. In 1951, Stratford-born journalist Tom Patterson thought up the idea for a Shakespearean festival to be held in his hometown. In July of 1952, Patterson invited Tyrone Guthrie to Canada to advise on

1232-411: The new Stratfest@Home web streaming service. In April 2021, the Festival announced a season of plays and cabarets, with most productions being held under large canopies at the Festival and Tom Patterson Theatres. Only one late-opening production was held indoors at the Studio Theatre with reduced capacity. The theme for the 2021 season was metamorphosis. In May of 2022, the Festival officially opened

1276-420: The new building. In its announcement of the new permanent structure, an architectural journal noted that "the buoyant charm of a temporary shelter contending with the elements infused the tent-theatre with a sort of mystic personality. Festival goers of romantic persuasion, wilting in the summer heat and exposing themselves to the vagaries of the weather, emerge with a tingling sense of having lived briefly under

1320-461: The outside wall. The circular building was made up of 34 bays. The original bleachers were reduced from 252 degrees to 220 degrees; however, a new 20-foot cantilevered balcony was constructed adding 858 seats, bringing the total seating capacity to 2,192. At the end of construction, the original wooden seats were removed and replaced by new metal tip-up seats made by Canadian Office and School Furniture Company Limited of Preston, Ontario . The seats won

1364-420: The project would be 24 weeks, including only 12 weeks of construction. The John Gaffney Construction Company Limited of Stratford was given the building contract. Fairfield planned the theatre around the thrust stage that Moiseiwitch had designed. The architects' design for the new theatre was of a circular concrete bleacher covering 252 degrees, divided in seven 36-degree sections, and 134 feet in diameter. At

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1408-452: The project. Sir Tyrone agreed to be part of the project, provided that it employed star performers and experienced personnel. After the meeting, the festival hired Alec Guinness and Irene Worth to lead the cast, made Sir Tyrone director, and hired Tanya Moiseiwitsch as its designer. On 31 October 1952, an Ontario corporation, the Stratford Shakespearean Festival of Canada Foundation received its articles of incorporation. The first president

1452-478: The rebuilt Tom Patterson Theatre . Designed by Toronto-based architect, Siamak Hariri , the building overlooks the Avon river and sits on the site of the previous Tom Patterson space. The project cost an estimated 100 million dollars (CAD) and was funded by private donations with support from both provincial and federal governments. The Festival traditionally runs from April to October, and has four permanent venues:

1496-556: The season's cancellation, Cimolino announced that all productions that had been filmed as part of the Stratford Festival On Film series would be streamed online for free, with a different production being shown each week. Throughout the summer of 2020, the Festival produced four web series which, along with all the filmed productions and other Stratford documentaries and interviews, were launched in October 2020 on

1540-465: The spell of adventure, at no inconsiderable risk to themselves." However, the journal noted, the theatre was liked much less by actors. On Saturday, 26 January 1957, governor general Vincent Massey laid the cornerstone for the building. Archdeacon Lightbourn, who had dedicated the first theatre in 1953, gave the dedication for the second building also. At the ceremony, Massey said, "this is an occasion which must be profoundly moving to all of us here. It

1584-547: The theatre opened, engineer Charles Hershfield presented a paper on its structure at the annual meeting of the Engineering Institute of Canada in Banff. The dedication ceremony for the new theatre took place on Sunday, 30 June 1957. Over 3,000 packed into the theatre to watch the event. On stage were Walter Barfoot of the Anglican Church, Alexander D. MacKinnon of the Presbyterian Church, James S. Thomson of

1628-432: The time of construction, funding for the festival itself was uncertain, therefore, the architects had to consider financial failure in their planning and keep costs as low as possible. Rather than build a permanent cover for the theatre bleachers, they designed instead a tent structure to cover it. Four main masts supported the square tent, which had rounded corners with 45 degree radiuses. A false ceiling made of cotton sheets

1672-521: Was Harrison A. Showalter, and the first vice-president was Alfred M. Bell. In late 1952, with auditions underway for the inaugural season, the festival required an architect to design its theatre. Guthrie telephoned Ned Corbett , whom he had met in Edmonton in 1931, to ask if Corbett knew of any architects who could work on the project. Corbett recommended Robert Fairfield, who in 1946 had married his daughter Joan. The firm of Rounthwaite & Fairfield

1716-471: Was announced that Shipley and Maraden would be stepping down, leaving Des McAnuff as sole Artistic Director. In 2013, Des McAnuff was replaced by Antoni Cimolino as Artistic Director. In 2012, the Festival had a deficit of $ 3.4 million, but by 2015 had a surplus of $ 3.1 million under the control of Cimolino and executive director Anita Gaffney. The target of a half million ticket sales for the season (a previous record) had not yet been reached, but had achieved

1760-489: Was dedicated on 30 June 1957, with seating for over 1,800 people; no seats are more than 65 feet from the stage. The design was deliberately intended to resemble a huge tent. That season's productions included Hamlet , Twelfth Night , the satirical My Fur Lady , The Turn of the Screw and Ibsen's Peer Gynt . The Festival Theatre's thrust stage was designed by British designer Tanya Moiseiwitsch to resemble both

1804-428: Was established in 1960, and an annual provincial tour began in 1961. Since its founding, MTC has produced more than 600 plays with hundreds of actors, including Len Cariou , Graham Greene , Martha Henry , Judd Hirsch , Tom Hulce , William Hurt , Tom Jackson , Robert Lepage , Seana McKenna , Eric Peterson , Gordon Pinsent , Keanu Reeves , Fiona Reid , R.H. Thomson , Kathleen Turner and Al Waxman . Today,

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1848-667: Was formed by partners Cyril Frederick Thomas Rounthwaite (1917–1995) and Robert Calvin Fairfield (1918–1994), both of whom were graduates of the University of Toronto . Patterson and Guthrie arranged an initial meeting with Fairfield at the University Club of Toronto in December 1952. At a dinner in 1984, Fairfield recounted, "the kind of theatre Guthrie wanted did not exist anywhere in the world. There were, therefore, no prototypes or copybooks that would lead an architect toward

1892-404: Was founded as the Stratford Shakespearean Festival of Canada , by Tom Patterson, a Stratford-native journalist who wanted to revitalize his town's economy by creating a theatre festival dedicated to the works of William Shakespeare , as the town shares the name of Shakespeare's birthplace, Stratford-upon-Avon, England . Stratford was a railway junction and major locomotive shop, and was facing

1936-434: Was hung from the tent ceiling. The sheets were sprayed with fireproofing, which hardened them and allowed them to function as acoustic baffles. During construction, tent master Roy "Skip" Manley was brought in to supervise. Fairfield said of the project, "the architect-client relationship, begun in the spirit of adventure, ended in almost surprising accord in view of the difficult obstacle course negotiated by both. The words of

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