International artists, audience interaction and the return of Ilsa, Queen of the Nazi Love Camp, all part of company's silver anniversary plans.
With a quarter century of success behind it, One Yellow Rabbit looks forward to further nurturing the kind of material that has garnered the company and its resident Ensemble an international reputation for inventive and intelligent work. Using a "nourish and flourish" model, the company will focus on the two aspects that contribute most to its continuing success: the development of new productions through an intensive workshop process and the presentation of favourite shows from the Rabbits' existing "inventory" of work.
Highlights of One Yellow Rabbit's selections for 2007-08, the company's 25th anniversary.
- Sylvia Plath Must Not Die - the lives, loves and literature of two notable mid-century poets!
January 8-12 as part of the High Performance Rodeo
More info and movie clips here - The annual High Performance Rodeo gallops in for its 22nd year!
January 5 - 26, 2008 - The notorious Ilsa, Queen of the Nazi Love Camp returns!
March 26 through April 19, 2008
After 25 years of original, thought-provoking, and entertaining performance creation theatre, One Yellow Rabbit is proud to mark its silver anniversary with One Yellow Rabbit Silver Jubilee.
- WHEN: Thursday, June 12, 2008 at 7:30 pm.
- WHERE: The Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium
- TICKETS: Are $25 and go on sale April 17, 2008 at Ticketmaster
- TELEPHONE: 299-8888 or online at tickmaster.ca
- For MORE information call One Yellow Rabbit at 264-3224
Join the One Yellow Rabbit Ensemble as they perform some of THEIR FAVOURITE SCENES FROM THE COMPANY’S MOST MEMORABLE PRODUCTIONS. The Company will welcome back some of their old friends and supporters to help celebrate this milestone with a night of variety, music and many laughs. Joining the ensemble on stage will be members of one of Canada’s greatest comedy troupes, The Kids in the Hall, Toronto rockers Rheostatics and the charmingly provocative Karen Hines. One Yellow Rabbit looks forward to announcing more of their friends and collaborators in the coming weeks.
Founded in 1982, dedicated to its Resident Performing Ensemble, and based in the Big Secret Theatre in Calgary’s EPCOR CENTRE for the Performing Arts, One Yellow Rabbit creates new, original theatrical works for its local audience each year. The One Yellow Rabbit Ensemble has also toured its unique brand of performance across North America, Australia, Asia, Mexico and Europe. Each year, in addition to producing new Ensemble creations, One Yellow Rabbit hosts the High Performance Rodeo, Calgary’s International Festival of the Arts, and the Summer Lab Intensive school of performance creation.
One Yellow Rabbit is overseen by co-artistic directors Blake Brooker and Michael Green. Choreographer and actor/dancer Denise Clarke is associate artist, and Andy Curtis, Onalea Gilbertson and composer Richard McDowell make up the rest of the resident ensemble. One Yellow Rabbit’s managing producer is Stephen Schroeder.
March 26 through April 19, 2008
- Wednesday, April 16 at 8 pm
- Thursday, April 17 at 8 pm
- Friday, April 18 at 8 pm
- Saturday, April 19 at 8 pm. (Closing Night)
One Yellow Rabbit is proud to present a remount of its best-known and most popular production of all time, Ilsa, Queen of the Nazi Love Camp, at the Big Secret Theatre in the EPCOR CENTRE for the Performing Arts, March 26 to April 12, 2008.
Written by Blake Brooker, with music by David Rhymer, this high-spirited, black comedy romp tells the story of Ilsa and The Colonel, two Nazis whose quest for Hitler’s lost offspring leads them to Alberta in search of real-life Holocaust denier Jim Keegstra.
Famously banned in 1992 by the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench during the Keegstra trial, OYR has not performed the play in over 13 years, since its closing run in Perth, Australia in 1995. It was last seen by Calgary audiences in 1994.
An auto mechanic, former mayor, and a social studies teacher in Eckville, Alberta, Keegstra was stripped of his teaching certificate and charged under the Criminal Code of Canada in 1984 for “wilfully promoting hatred against an identifiable group” by teaching his students the Holocaust was a fraud. The trial eventually went to the Supreme Court of Canada and became a landmark legal case, receiving major international attention in the process.
“In the end it is a simple musical satire about a simple, though deeply misguided, teacher. We are pleased to revisit this dark comedy for our 25th anniversary,” says Blake Brooker, Co-artistic director of One Yellow Rabbit.
OYR Associate Artist Denise Clarke reprises her role as Ilsa, the Teutonic Temptress. OYR Ensemble Member Andy Curtis and Co-artistic Director Michael Green return in their unforgettable roles as Jim Keegstra and The Colonel, respectively. The show's original live musicians, composer David Rhymer and the great violinist Karl Roth, also return to the stage. Ilsa is directed by Blake Brooker.
Ilsa, Queen of the Nazi Love Camp is a side-splittingly funny musical satire within which includes a prayer for the victims of the Holocaust, and a timely reminder of the danger posed by those who ignore – or rewrite – history. It is OYR’s statement against racism and intolerance, attempting to correct, through laughter, the negative light the Keegstra case cast on the province of Alberta and its citizens.
Although OYR had already built a reputation as a groundbreaking theatre creator throughout the 1980s, it was Ilsa that cemented the company’s national notoriety, and propelled its international touring career. Ilsa received rave reviews when it appeared at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in Scotland in 1994 and the Perth Festival in Australia in 1995.
“daring and delightfully ironic musical satire” - The Guardian, London, England
“an avante garde musical comedy with a daring streak” - XPress Magazine, Perth, Australia
“intelligent, subversive cabaret with great music” - The Herald, Glasgow, Scotland
During 07/08, the Ensemble will invite local audiences to take a glimpse at their highly organic creative process through such means as readings and public workshops from their latest works-in-progress. Numerous "research and development" projects on the horizon have been made possible by a Supplementary Operating Funds Initiative (SOFI) grant from the Canada Council. These additional monies will help fund a variety of projects, among them the epic tale of Gilgamesh - presented, of course, in Rabbit style. Workshopped shows will eventually be presented to the public as mainstage productions.
On September 26 and 27 the public were invited to a public presentation of Sylvia Plath Must Not Die, a theatrical exploration of the literature and complicated personal lives of poets Sylvia Plath, Anne Sexton and their husbands. Sylvia Plath Must Not Die made its Calgary debut as a cornerstone presentation of the 22nd Annual High Performance Rodeo.
More on Sylvia Plath including video clips from the public presentation.
Calgary's International Festival of the Arts
Curated by Michael Green
The High Performance Rodeo is an annual festival featuring theatre, dance, music and multimedia presentations. Curated by Co-artistic Director Michael Green and presented by One Yellow Rabbit, it is dedicated to entertaining as wide an audience as imaginable, while remaining fertile ground for the progressive and wild.
The High Performance Rodeo is the largest festival of its kind in Western Canada.
January, 2008 Media Release
22ND ANNUAL HIGH PERFORMANCE RODEO RAISED JANUARY’S TEMPERATURE
Calgary, AB - One Yellow Rabbit celebrated another successful January when it wrapped up the 22nd annual High Performance Rodeo, Calgary's International Festival of the Arts, January 4th to 26th. More than 9,500 people answered festival Curator Michael Green's call to experience the progressive and wild by participating in the festival and enjoying some of the world's brightest and boldest performing and visual artists who descended on Calgary to help fuel the city's creative energy.
"One Yellow Rabbit is proud to have hosted such a fine roster of exceptional talent, from all over the world, and especially proud that so many Calgarians showed up to demonstrate their enthusiasm and hospitality. This year's success bodes well for future editions of the High Performance Rodeo," says Michael Green, Co-artistic director of One Yellow Rabbit.
One of One Yellow Rabbit's biggest and most successful Rodeo's to date, it couldn't have happened without the generous support of its many sponsors, staff, and hard-working volunteers. One Yellow Rabbit would also like to thank and acknowledge the media, whose coverage of this year's Festival was unparalleled.
Throughout the four-week Festival Calgarians attended more than 38 performances and 17 different productions created by artists from theatre, dance, music and the visual arts. This year's Rodeo saw great success with an increase in collaborations with other well-established arts groups such as Alberta Ballet, Honens, Calgary Opera, and the Banff Centre. The Rodeo was also proud to work with The GRAND this year to present shows in its venue for the first time.
One of this year's many highlights was the attendance and participation of Their Excellencies Governor General Michaëlle Jean and Jean-Daniel Lafond, Honourary Patron of the 2008 High Performance Rodeo. Their Excellencies enjoyed several performances including Kids in the Hall alum Kevin McDonald in Hammy & The Kids, and Tubular Bells presented by The Bergmann Piano Duo and Alberta Ballet. His Excellency also hosted Art Matters, a dynamic roundtable discussion on Art During Boom Time.
Other highlights of the festival included Sylvia Plath Must Not Die, a flagship creation by the One Yellow Rabbit Performing Ensemble, Constantinople featuring The Gryphon Trio, and East Village Opera Company.
This year’s Rodeo has established itself as Calgary’s International Festival of the Arts with participants from China, Japan, Netherlands and the United States. The Festival also featured many Canadian artists not only based in Calgary but also from the Yukon to Newfoundland.
One Yellow Rabbit is delighted and grateful to all of Calgary for its support and looks forward to seeing everyone next year at the 23rd annual High Performance Rodeo in January 2009.
On line guides for the 2008 Rodeo and previous years - ARE HERE
2008 dates coming soon
- Unlimited tasting of the world's finest wines poured for you by the experts.
- Served alongside creations by Calgary's most talented chefs.
- Tickets go on sale August 1 at One Yellow Rabbit. Call (403) 264-3224.
This annual event features unlimited tasting of the world's finest wines poured by the experts, served alongside creations by Calgary's most talented chefs. Tickets are limited to 325 per night, and advance purchase is strongly recommended as the event sells out every year.
Participating Wine Merchants include BIN 905, J. Webb Wine Merchant, Kensington Wine Market, MetroVino, Richmond Hill Wines, The Banff Wine Store and The Wine Shop.
One Yellow Rabbit (403) 264-3224
Danielle French: Box Office Manager EMAIL
Ticketmaster (403) 299-8888 | You may now purchase your tickets online here!
- Ilsa runs from March 26 to April 19. Wednesday to Saturday inclusive.
- Regular prices are: Wednesday $19, Thursdays $22, Fridays $28 and Saturdays $30.
Students: Check out discounted tickets on LiveRush
Info on LiveRush: Students with a valid Live Rush membership card may buy up to 2 tickets per performance at the discount price of only $12 each to most One Yellow Rabbit shows.
Tickets are subject to availability and may be purchased at the One Yellow Rabbit Box Office in person 45 minutes before show time.
Big Secret Theatre: EPCOR CENTRE for the Performing Arts
2nd floor - (Centre Court Area ) - across from the Olympic Plaza.
1/2 Block West of Calgary City Hall on Stephen Avenue pedestrian Mall.
An image map showing our location in downtown Calgary:
Regular Show Times:
Tuesday to Saturday @ 8pm - Sunday @ 2pm
(show times vary during the High Performance Rodeo)
