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The Gardener and the Architect: Working from impulse to structure in playwriting with Meg Braem

Two-part workshop:
January 13 & 20 @ 7pm
Members $55
Non-members $75
*Attendance is capped. Only 10 spots available*

REGISTRATION IS CURRENTLY FULL. If you would like to put your name on the waiting list in case a spot open, please email us at [email protected]

Writers are often asked, “are you a gardener or an architect?” The gardener being an artist who plants a handful of seeds and waits to see what germinates while the architect starts from a set of plans and outlines. I believe all creators are both. Artists must generate material through impulse, curiosity, and wonder. This first step can be unruly and uncomfortable for those used to knowing exactly what they are trying to do. Once material has been created, the artist can begin to concentrate on finding a structure that serves the story. It is sometimes helpful to be reminded that it is spelled playwright not a playwrite, in a similar form to shipwright, meaning a builder of plays. Using playwriting to facilitate the integral steps of impulse and building structure, writers of all genres will follow their curiosity and gain tools to best articulate their ideas.

Meg Braem is an Alberta based playwright. Her plays have been nominated for the Governor General’s Literary Award, received the Alberta Literary Award for Drama and have twice won the Alberta Playwriting Competition.  Her work has been presented at the University of Alberta, University of Lethbridge, Lunchbox Theatre, The Belfry Theatre, Sage Theatre, Sparrow and Finch Theatre, Theatre Transit, Atomic Vaudeville, and Intrepid Theatre.  Most recently Meg premiered Flight Risk at Lunchbox Theatre and her play The Josephine Knot was published by Playwrights Canada Press. Meg is co-author of Amplify: Graphic Narratives of Feminist Resistance (University of Toronto Press, 2019) with Norah Bowman and Dominique Hui. Meg was the Lee Playwright-in-Residence at the University of Alberta from 2017-2020 and is the 2020/21 Canadian Writer-in-Residence in the Calgary Distinguished Writer’s Program at the University of Calgary.

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