Whether it's behind-the-scenes footage or prolonged recipe videos, we all have a hankering to know how things are made. What is the recipe for success, the components needed to create a polished end product? For showgoers and theatre enthusiasts, a glimpse behind the curtain is soon to be offered at the Presentation House Theatre. Its inaugural Creative Residency program has invited a hand-picked selection of artists to create new work and hone their creative skills, all under the watchful eye of North Vancouver locals.
Three artists have been narrowed down from a long list of potentials, with multimedia dance performer Aryo Khakpour and theatre collectives Monster Theatre and happy/accidents to take the initial reins in the two-year minimum residency. “It was a very challenging process selecting the artists,” said Brian Postalian, Presentation House Theatre’s artistic associate. “A lot of the projects we received, the ideas and the art being proposed were stellar and exceptional, and that was from artists across the board, from dance to music to theatre.
” Postalian said the idea came shortly after the pandemic began when forced closures and shifts in audience behaviour wreaked havoc on the local theatre scene. Theatres across the country are still struggling to attract their audiences back. “It came from a point of wondering, how can we better serve the artists in the community? We needed a place where they would be encouraged and fostered to develop work,” he .