Tag Archives: Toronto

Sandra Shamas, performer, writer, impresario

Sandra_Shamas_Nature

Sandra’s career began in Toronto on the stages of The Second City and the legendary night club The Rivoli where she shared the highs and lows of a struggling young performer with fellow entertainers including The Kids in the Hall.

But it was at the Edmonton Fringe Festival where Sandra first broke out with her hit show “My Boyfriend’s Back and There’s Going to be Laundry.”

A few years later she started a new life, moving from the city to a farm where she took a break from performing to traverse her internal landscape, surveying her life, and how it intersected with those around her.

And soon the former urban dweller found herself falling into the rhythms of the surrounding nature.

She’s performed at top theatres in Canada and is recognized, for not only her writing and performing, but also her work as an impresario.

In the interview we talk about food, her creative process, social media and the influence of Tinder on relationships.

Plus Sandra reveals her favourite vegetable to grow on the farm. It might surprise you.

SHOW NOTES
The Big What Now
Sandra Shamas website
Sandra Shamas on Facebook
– Fox Run Mini Mortar and Pestle, Porcelain.
– Sandra Shamas: A Trilogy of Performances, ( used book ).
– Gourmet Chesnok Red, Hard Neck garlic bulbs. Non-GMO, organic (not the one Sandra mentioned but the best I could find on Amazon).

Sean Cullen, actor, improviser and writer

Not-Sick

Seán Cullen was regular on the Tonight Show and he’s appeared on stages in New York, Chicago, Toronto and at the Stratford Festival. He writes books for young readers, his “Hamish X and The Cheese Pirates,” won the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Juvenile Crime Book.

Plus he has a podcast, the Seanpod, and with all that going on he still finds time to play hockey three times a week.

Seán Cullen and I talk about his improvisation and writing, as well as his path to success in comedy.

He also talks about his work on stage and why he describes his time performing 8 shows a week in “The Producers” as “just trying not to get sick.”

Seán mentions his time as a CBC Radio host and says “I was rambling completely and this drove the CBC Mad.” But as he explains, his rambling got the attention of a book publisher that led to the opportunity to his write books for young readers.

Seán’s Books
Hamish X and the Cheese Pirates
Hamish X and the Hollow Mountain
The Prince of Neither Here Nor There
The Prince of Two Tribes[Paperback]

Show Notes
The SeánPod with Seán Cullen.
Twist Your Dickens at the Toronto Centre for the Arts.

The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
On Writing by Stephen King
The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan
Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr., E. B. White
Margaret Atwood’s Wandering Wenda to become Kids’ CBC series

Ross Petty: producer, actor

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My interview with Ross Petty was recorded in 2016. It delves into his background on stage and his transition from being a performer to one of Canada’s most successful impresarios.

Ross Petty grew up in Winnipeg but was soon performing in London, Paris and New York.

His career includes performances at London’s West End and the legendary Lido Cabaret in Paris.

In the U.S. and Canada Ross played the title role in Stephen Sondheim’s “Sweeney Todd,” directed by Hal Prince.

Ross made his Broadway debut in Arthur Kopit’s “Wings,” co-starred with Ginger Rogers and Sid Caesar in a national tour of Cole Porter’s “Anything Goes” and created the role of Eddie Dorrance on TV”s “All My Children.”

He lives in Toronto with his wife Karen Kain, Artistic Director of the National Ballet of Canada.

For the past 20 years Ross has been producing family musicals in the tradition of the British pantomime.

Ross is one of Canada’s most successful and enduring theatrical impresarios.

If you’ve ever produced a show you’ll want to listen because Ross talks about how he went from being an actor in the show to taking over as producer, getting sponsors, hiring writers, actors, and being the driving force behind one of Canada’s most successful, ongoing theatrical events. He also mentions the steps he took to create financial stability after losing a lot of money on a production.

As well as doing all of the above, for 20 years Ross starred in the family musicals, most often wearing a dress.

Ross in Drag 2

Ross Petty

The Wizard of Oz. A Toto-ly Twistered Family Musical

This season Ross is producing a brand new version of The Wizard of Oz that will have children and adults alike clicking their heels (more than 3 times) to pop songs, dances, jokes, ad libs and a generous helping of audience participation.

Details, Details:
The Wizard of Oz: a Toto-ly Twistered Family Musical
Runs through – Jan. 5
The Elgin Theatre 189 Yonge St. Toronto
Tickets start at $27
1-855-599-9090
Book online