LORRAINE KIMSA THEATRE FOR YOUNG PEOPLE RETURNS TO ITS ROOTS WITH A NAME CHANGE AND A POWERFUL NEW SEASON!
The 2011-12 Season will bring with it a playbill of dynamic theatrical experiences certain to affect positive change in the lives of young people and those who care about them. It will also denote a significant change to the theatre – our name. Beginning July 1st, Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People will return to the name it was given in 1966 by founder Susan Douglas Rubes: Young Peoples Theatre (YPT).
The Kimsa donation has sustained the theatre through many challenges and strengthened its ability to engage young people, their families and communities with the real issues of the day, and to entertain at the highest level.
The last decade has also marked a time of renewal for the distinguished theatre, allowing LKTYP to restructure artistically and administratively. Allen MacInnis assumed the role of artistic director in 2002 and infused the company with his passionate commitment to what theatrical art can be for young people. Focused on his vision of using theatre as a tool to positively affect child development, the company’s artistic impact has grown tremendously, garnering widespread praise and allowing LKTYP to tour some of its most successful productions to other cities in Canada. Administratively, the company has centred its operations on the full implementation of its artistic vision. This led to such actions as the lowering of ticket prices by 40% on the occasion of the 40th anniversary to ensure the theatre's work was accessible to all families. Attendance dramatically increased as a result. Other actions include the creation of the Education & Participation Department in 2007. With the generosity of leading philanthropist, Ada Slaight, this dynamic department encompasses meaningful volunteerism, targeted community outreach and innovative teacher/student resources, along with the theatre’s highly-respected year-round Drama School, which was established in 1969.
President of LKTYP’s Board of Directors for the last six years, Howard Glassman says: “There is no doubt that this theatre company thrived and survived over the past decade because of the help of the Kimsa Family. It is also true that the Kimsas backed a winner because YPT/LKTYP is unfailingly dedicated to the most important members of our community – young people. It is why really talented, inspiring people want to work there and wonderful philanthropists like the Slaight Family want to help out”.
Also during the last decade, LKTYP’s Drama School established The Ensemble, an advanced program for high school students with a strong background in theatre who seek an intensive and specialized experience with a professional theatre company. Building on that success, The Junior Ensemble was also introduced this year for middle school students who share that avid interest in theatre.
Last season, a generous contribution by Gary and Donna Slaight and The Slaight Family enabled LKTYP to establish the Artist-Educator Residency Program, designed to provide artists with practical experience in both the artistic and educational aspects of the company by involving them in LKTYP’s productions and teaching programs. Six artists have taken up residencies in 2010-11 and, with funding guaranteed for five years, the residency program will undoubtedly have an enormous impact on the theatre and the audience it reaches.
Managing Director Hugh Neilson says “LKTYP returns to its original name with tremendous gratitude to Kevin Kimsa, whose contribution provided a decade of stability and growth, ensuring that Young Peoples Theatre – Toronto’s oldest professional not-for-profit theatre – will not only complete its fifth decade but thrive well into its sixth.”
