Burlington Student Theatre
Where youth and passion go hand in hand by Rainer Noack

Unleashing the creative powers of our young people

In a convocation address to graduates in June, University of Guelph Chancellor Pamela Wallin said, “We need the balance between what we are capable of and what feeds our soul because creativity – the ability to find answers - is sparked by using both sides of our brain.  We need art and beauty and music in our lives to unleash the creative power to solve problems.”

This is at the heart of what we believe at Burlington Student Theatre.

The ’07-’08 season culminated with a summer of performances, including salutes to the musicals Oliver and Little Shop of Horrors. Each performance featured 100 students on stage and off. 

The Renaissance Ensemble of Student Theatre enlightened audiences with 17 entries at the seventh annual Beyond The Flounder Festival, a mosaic of original and student produced work that raised funds to complete technical installation in the auditorium at our studio in Optimist Park.  This renovation will complete a seven-year capital plan for equipping the studio to act as a fully functioning Black Box Theatre and should provide state-of-the-art training and preparation for the new Performing Arts Centre.

Student Theatre boasts a volunteer tech program where more than 38 students were recognized for more than 6,000 hours of production training.  For the second summer, Student Theatre has offered Explore Theatre, one of the only programs of its kind for children aged 9-15 where they can experience the thrills of working behind the scenes and writing and staging social justice drama. They are taught by former Student Theatre students who are now pursuing careers in business, technical theatre and education - demonstrating the transferable skills of drama training to other disciplines. 

Leadership training continues with the Student Management Team, a group of veteran senior students in Grades 11-12 who gain experience in theatre administration and leadership. This year’s group will help plan Student Theatre’s 10-30-50 Gala that will celebrate 10 ten years in our studio and 30 years of quality programming in the community. The gala will take place just in time for the opening of the new Performing Arts Centre in 2010, a dream come true for the staff, students and families who are members of Performing Arts Burlington.

Outreach programs continue in 2007-2008 with students participating in the Burlington Art Centre Gala Bali Hai on October 11 and the Mayor’s Gala on October 27.

In addition to these initiatives, many students took advantage of our summer trips to the Shaw and Stratford Festivals where they saw six performances with backstage tours and met performing theatre artists, some of them graduates of our group.

We thank the members of the community who believe in the need for life long theatre learning. Student Theatre is one of Burlington’s best kept secrets and I encourage everyone to come and see us. We’ll give you a tour, entertain you with a show, and invite you to be carried away – by the youth on stage, by the staff who support and guide them and by our passion- it’s contagious! 

For more information contact Rainer Noack at 905-637-6000 or by email noackr@burlington.ca

New Member Profiles

The Entertainers
905-827-5636
Email: ggoodfellow1@cogeco.ca

The Entertainers are a chorus of approximately 40 members who meet weekly for barbershop style singing practices. The group performs for local clubs, schools, community groups and other organizations, and hosts performances throughout the year for the general public at various locales.  The club supports speech therapy programs and the Harmonize for Speech Foundation.

Eclipse Events
905-483-5245
Website: www.eclipsevents.com

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