Cedar Ridge Artist-in-Residence
Jumblies Theatre
Artistic Director: Ruth Howard
Managing Director: Keith McNair
Associate Artistic Directors:
Community Arts Guild: Beth Helmers
Liz Rucker: Arts4All
Leah Houston: MABELLEarts
Michael Burtt: Making Room
Photo credit: Katherine Fleitas
Jumblies Theatre, founded in 2001 by Ruth Howard, makes art for, with and about people and places of Toronto, by residing for several years in one neighbourhood, passing through interlinked phases of outreach, research, creation, production and legacy, involving cross-sector partners, hundreds of people of all ages and backgrounds and dozens of artists from diverse disciplines and traditions, and resulting in both large-scale and highly produced original productions, and a multitude of creative activities along the way. Jumblies says "Everyone is welcome" and grapples with the social and aesthetic implications of meaning it. Thus, we create transient utopias and lasting ripples.
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Photo credit: Katherine Fleitas
Jumblies' residencies have taken place in South Riverdale, Lawrence Heights, Davenport Perth, Central Etobicoke, Camp Naivelt (Brampton), and currently in East Scarborough (with a home-base at Cedar Ridge Creative Centre). The large-scale performances stemming from these relationships have included Twisted Metal and Mermaids Tears (2000), Once A Shoreline (2004), Bridge of One Hair (2007, premiering at Harbourfront Centre's New World Stage), Oy Dii Velt Vet Vern Yinger (2008, remounted for the 2009 Mayworks Festival), and Like An Old Tale, a Scarborough telling of The Winters Tale by Shakespeare in December 2011.
Photo credit: Katherine Fleitas
Following this production, the Scarborough project moves into its Legacy and Sustainability phase, launching a new community-based arts organization: the Community Arts Guild, under the leadership of Beth Helmers, and still supported by Jumblies over the next few years and beyond, with new projects underway bringing people together across ages, abilities and cultural and economic backgrounds.
Jumblies provides ongoing support to the Offshoots that have grown out of past residencies into self-sufficient entities with distinctive artistic visions: Arts4All at Davenport Perth (in its 11th year, under the Artistic Direction of Elizabether Rucker) and MABELLEarts, at Mabelle and Dundas (in its 8th year, under the Artistic Direction of Leah Houston), and our "adopted" Offshoot, Making Room,
Photo credit: Katherine Fleitas
Community Arts (base at Parkdale Activity and Recreation Centre, under the leadership of Michael Burtt). The company also runs the Jumblies Studio: an integrated, interdisciplinary and itinerant program for mentorship, training and learning in Art that engages with and creates Community.
Jumblies current funders, partners and supporters include the Toronto Arts Council, City of Toronto Cultural Services, Ontario Arts Council, Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Trillium Foundation, Toronto Community Foundation, George Cedric Metcalf Foundation, the Government of Canada, Telus Foundation, Theatre Ontario, Davenport Perth Neighbourhood Centre, Toronto Community Housing, and many other agencies, foundations and individuals, who have given funds, time, space, encouragement, advice and creativity.
For more info or to get involved, contact:
416 203 8428
info@jumbliestheatre.org
www.jumbliestheatre.org
or drop by the Gardener's Cottage at Cedar Ridge.