Kevin Loring
Canadian playwright and actor
Kevin Loring
Born (1974-11-24 ) November 24, 1974 (age 50) Lytton , British Columbia , CanadaOccupation playwright, actor Nationality Canadian Period 2003–present Notable works Where the Blood Mixes
Kevin Loring (born November 24, 1974) is a Canadian playwright and actor. As a playwright, he won the Governor General's Award for English-language drama ,[ 1] the Herman Voaden Playwriting Competition [ 2] and the Jessie Richardson Award for Outstanding Original Script,[ 3] and was nominated for the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Play ,[ 4] for Where the Blood Mixes in 2009. His 2019 play, Thanks for Giving , was short-listed for the Governor General's Award for Drama.[ 5] In June 2021 Kevin Loring received an honorary doctorate from the University of Ottawa's Faculty of Arts.[ 6]
As an actor, his credits include roles in the television series Da Vinci's Inquest , Arctic Air and Health Nutz , and the film Pathfinder , as well as stage roles including Michel Tremblay 's Saint Carmen of the Main , George Ryga 's The Ecstasy of Rita Joe and Edmund in an all-First Nations production of William Shakespeare 's King Lear at the National Arts Centre in 2012.[ 7] Loring was a writer and co-producer for the documentary War: The Untold Story in 2009.[ 8]
A Nlaka'pamux from the Lytton First Nation in British Columbia,[ 9] Loring first began his studies at Cariboo College known now as Thompson Rivers University (TRU) . He was a 1997 university transfer student enrolled in an arts program. In 2015 TRU recognized Loring as a distinguished alumni awarding him with the Arts and Culture Award, in recognition of his impact on Canadian arts and culture as a playwright, actor, instructor, and mentor.[ 10] Loring then studied theatre at the prestigious Studio 58 theatre program at Langara College until 2000.[ 9] In June 2017, Loring was selected by the Hnatyshyn Foundation as a recipient of the REVEAL Indigenous Arts Award , which honours Indigenous Canadian artists across disciplines.[ 11] Kevin Loring created the Songs of the Land Project in collaboration with five separate organizations in his home community.[ 12] This project aimed to bring traditional Nlakap’amux songs and stories, which were recorded on wax cylinders at the beginning of the 20th century by anthropologist James Teit , to contemporary audiences.[ 13] This work informed The Battle of the Birds , a play which debuted at the Lytton River Festival in 2015,[ 13] and which was restaged in Ottawa in 2019.[ 14] It also spurred The Boy Who Was Abandoned , a second production which debuted in Lytton in September 2016.[ 13]
On June 15, 2017, Loring was announced as the first artistic director for Indigenous Theatre at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa (NAC) .[ 15] In early 2019, the NAC was denied $3.5 million dollars of requested federal funding, a decision which would have a significant impact on the inaugural season.[ 16] The first production, “The Unnatural and Accidental Women ” by Métis playwright Marie Clements opened on September 11, 2019.[ 17]
Works
References
^ "WCT collaborator wins Governor General's award". Kamloops Daily News , November 23, 2009.
^ "The classes and the damage done". The Globe and Mail , June 2, 2008.
^ "Playhouse Theatre Company nabs five wins at 27th Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards" . The Georgia Straight , June 15, 2009.
^ "Jersey Boys, Agokwe, Eternal Hydra Are Among Nominees at June 29 Dora Awards in Toronto" . Playbill , June 29, 2009.
^ "Governor General's Literary Awards" . Governor General's Literary Awards . Retrieved 2020-03-02 .
^ "uOttawa announces the recipients of Spring 2021 honorary doctorates" . University of Ottawa Web Site . Retrieved 2021-06-20 .
^ "A 'King Lear' in need of a king " . The Globe and Mail , May 13, 2012.
^ Canyon War: The Untold Story (2009) - IMDb . Retrieved 2024-05-08 – via www.imdb.com.
^ a b "Where the Blood Mixes draws on healing power of stories" Archived 2014-02-03 at the Wayback Machine . The Georgia Straight , May 28, 2008.
^ "2015 Distinguished Alumni – TRU Newsroom" . inside.tru.ca . Retrieved 2024-05-08 .
^ "Langara. News & Events: Langara News: 2017: Studio 58 alumni receive REVEAL Indigenous Art Award" . langara.ca . Retrieved 2020-03-02 .
^ "Kevin Loring | Biographies" . nac-cna.ca . Retrieved 2020-03-02 .
^ a b c "Songs of the Land" . New Pathways to Gold Society . 23 July 2013. Retrieved 2020-03-02 .
^ Hosein, Lise (September 11, 2019). "Battle of the Birds tells a mighty story of epic struggle (and very human realities)" . CBC Arts . Retrieved March 2, 2020 .
^ "Kevin Loring named NAC's 1st head of Indigenous theatre" . CBC News , June 15, 2017.
^ Friend, David (April 2, 2019). "National Arts Centre's Indigenous Theatre denied $3.5M federal funding" . The Canadian Press . Retrieved March 2, 2020 .
^ " 'It's about time': Ottawa's Indigenous Theatre prepares to launch first season" . Global News . Retrieved 2020-03-02 .
^ Loring, Kevin (2009). Where the Blood Mixes . Canada: Talonbooks. ISBN 9780889226081 .
^ Paleja, Shaker (2013). Native Americans: A Visual Exploration . Canada: Annick Press. ISBN 978-1554514854 .
^ Loring, Kevin (2019). Thanks for Giving . Canada: Talonbooks. ISBN 9781772012187 .
^ "Books » Talonbooks" . talonbooks.com . Retrieved 2024-05-08 .
^ "Lytton by Peter Edwards and Kevin Loring" . Penguin Random House Canada . Retrieved 2024-05-08 .
External links
1980s 1990s
Ann-Marie MacDonald , Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) (1990)
Joan MacLeod , Amigo's Blue Guitar (1991)
John Mighton , Possible Worlds and A Short History of Night (1992)
Guillermo Verdecchia , Fronteras Americanas (1993)
Morris Panych , The Ends of the Earth (1994)
Jason Sherman , Three in the Back, Two in the Head (1995)
Colleen Wagner , The Monument (1996)
Ian Ross , fareWel (1997)
Djanet Sears , Harlem Duet (1998)
Michael Healey , The Drawer Boy (1999)
2000s
Timothy Findley , Elizabeth Rex (2000)
Kent Stetson , The Harps of God (2001)
Kevin Kerr , Unity (1918) (2002)
Vern Thiessen , Einstein's Gift (2003)
Morris Panych , Girl in the Goldfish Bowl (2004)
John Mighton , Half Life (2005)
Daniel MacIvor , I Still Love You (2006)
Colleen Murphy , The December Man (2007)
Catherine Banks , Bone Cage (2008)
Kevin Loring , Where the Blood Mixes (2009)
2010s
Robert Chafe , Afterimage (2010)
Erin Shields , If We Were Birds (2011)
Catherine Banks , It Is Solved by Walking (2012)
Nicolas Billon , Fault Lines: Three Plays (2013)
Jordan Tannahill , Age of Minority: Three Solo Plays (2014)
David Yee , carried away on the crest of a wave (2015)
Colleen Murphy , Pig Girl (2016)
Hiro Kanagawa , Indian Arm (2017)
Jordan Tannahill , Botticelli in the Fire and Sunday in Sodom (2018)
Amanda Parris , Other Side of the Game (2019)
2020s