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History

Manitoba Theatre for Young People was originally founded in 1965 as Actors’ Showcase (an amateur theatre troupe formed to showcase local talent) and incorporated in January of 1977. In 1982, it was reconstituted by incoming Artistic Director, Leslee Silverman, as a professional company devoted to theatre for young people. This revitalization saw the new company assume a national profile with MTYP helping to redefine theatre for youth “…in new artistic directions away from entertainment for entertainment’s sake toward a theatrical mix that includes social activism and new approaches to traditional material.” (Canadian Theatre Review, 1985)

In August 1999, MTYP realized a 14-year dream; its own home. The company moved into the CanWest Global Performing Arts Centre located at The Forks in the heart of Winnipeg. This 28,000 square foot facility is the culmination of years of hard work and perseverance by countless staff and volunteers and it stand out as a unique environment unlike anything else in Canada.


Today, MTYP has grown to become one of the most respected professional theatre companies in Canada, for children or adults. Still under the direction of Leslee Silverman, the company has received numerous honours, including being the first English theatre to win the Canadian Institute of the Arts for Young Audiences Award in 1992. MTYP’s 1994 production of Comet in Moominland was nominated for the prestigious Chalmers Award and, in 1998, Old Friends received this same honour. In 1992, for her contribution to Canadian theatre for young audiences, Leslee was presented with the Governor-General’s Commemorative Medal, as part of Canada’s 125th Anniversary celebrations and, in 2003, she received the Manitoba Arts Council Arts Award of Distinction.

“In her MTYP tenure, Leslee Silverman has elevated a ragtag company to one of Canada’s leading voices in children’s theatre.” (Winnipeg Free Press, 2001)


MTYP Productions: 1982 to 2005
* indicates provincial tour

2007/08
 Queen of Colours
 The Stones
 *Kindness
 Honk!
 Mayhem Poets
 Fantastic Mr. Fox
 Circus Incognitus
 *Cranked
 The Starkeeper

2006/07
 Little Donkey
*The Canada Show: The Complete History of Canada
 Hana's Suitcase
 Seussical
 Comedy 4 Kids
 The Number 14
 Hamlet
 Comet in Moominland
*The Skinny Lie
 National Tour: (Toronto) Comet in Moominland

2005/06
 Comet in Moominland
 Jelly Belly Makes Garbage Delight of Alligator Pie
 Cyrano
 Silverwing
*Invisible Girl
 Sun Spirits
*Smokescreen
 Frog and his Friends
 Typo
 Bang, Boy, Bang!
 National Tour: (Montreal) Comet in Moominland
 National Tour: (Toronto) Russell's World

2004/05
 The House at Pooh Corner
 Lili
*Dying to be Thin
 A Year With Frog and Toad
 George and Martha
 Bullet-Proof Comedy
*The Big League
 Smokescreen
 Cirkus Inferno
 Russell’s World
 National Tour: (Ottawa, Calgary) Russell’s World

2003/04
 Snowflake
 Mimi and Brumm
 Fire...Where There's Smoke
 The Happy Prince
*The Power of Harriet T!
*Night Light
 The Dream Catchers
 Macbeth
 Cinderella
 The Other Side of the Closet
 Baking Time
 Where the Wild Things Are
 National Tour: (Calgary & Edmonton): Where the Wild Things Are

2002/03
 Where the Wild Things Are
 Jest Try Not to Laugh
*Danny, King of the Basement
 Pippi Longstocking
 Into the Ring
 Lulie the Iceberg
*IMPROVident: The Show Where Anything Can Happen
 The Red Balloon
 Martha
 The Flaming Idiots
 National Tour: (Vancouver & Montreal): Martha
 National Tour: (Calgary, Mississauga, London): Comet in Moominland
 International Tour: (Hong Kong): Comet in Moominland – cancelled due to SARS

2001/02
 Mur-Mur (The Wall)
 Circus
*An Illustrated History of the Anishnabe
 The Secret Garden
 Patty’s Cake
*Mirror Game
*The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe
 The Shape of a Girl
 The Mask Messenger
 The Odyssey

2000/01
 Comet in Moominland
*New Canadian Kid
 Dying To Be Thin
 Peter Pan
 The Number 14
 The Illustrated History of the Anishnabe
 Romeo and Juliet
 Jake and Pete
*Robinson & Crusoe
*Rocks
 Showcase 2001 in Mississauga:  Comet in Moominland
 National Tour (National Arts Centre): The Story of the Little Gentleman 
 Workshop performance (Banff): The Odyssey

1999/2000
 The Story of the Little Gentleman
 Snowflake
 MacHomer-The Simpsons Do Macbeth
 The Hobbit
*SeeSaw
*The Servant of Two Masters
 Rocks
 The Star Keeper
 The Boy in The Treehouse
 National Tour: The Boy in the Treehouse

1998/99
*Peacemaker
 Beauty Machine
 The Rememberer
*Square Eyes
*Chasing the Money
 The Other Side of the Closet
 Borrowed Black
 National Tour: (Montreal & Quebec City): Old Friends

1997/98
*The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe
 Health Class
 The Potato People Double Play
 Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang
*Baloney!
*Liars
 Twelfth Night
 Saigon Water Puppet Theatre
 International Tour (Australia) & National Tour: Old Friends

1996/97
*Ice Cream Store and More
 The Mask Messengers
 Old Friends
*I Am A Bear!
 The Stupendous Adventures of Don Quixote
*Toronto at Dreamer’s Rock
 Flippin’ In
 National Tour: Old Friends

1995/96
 Stuart Little
*Dolphin Talk
 The Number 14
 The Nightingale
*Night Light
*Making Friends, Influencing People
 The Book of Miracles
 Crusoe and Friday

1994/95
*Peter and The Wolf
 A Tale of Day and Night
 Snowflake - Gale LaJoye
 Naomi’s Road (children & teen series)
*Showdown
 Comet in Moominland
*A Day at the Improv
 Little Sister
 National Tour: Comet in Moominland

1993/94
*Land of Trash
 The Impossible Balance
 Pinocchio
*Suddenly Shakespeare!
  Bill’s New Frock
*Skin
 Desequilibre - The Challenge
 Theatre Forum: How To Eat a Steering Wheel
 National Tour: Seesaw

1992/93
*Whispers in the Dark
 Jest in Time
 The Secret Garden
*SeeSaw
 The Power of Harriet T!
*The Servant of Two Masters
 National Tour: Comet In Moominland

1991/92
*Serafina and the Big Cat
 Mur-Mur
 The Red River Valley
*Not So Dumb
 Singing in the Rain Forest
*Wheelie
 Cost of Living
 National Tour: Comet in Moominland

1990/91
*Two Weeks, Twice a Year
 Under One Roof
 No Worries
*Moving Day
 Terre Promise
 Mask Messengers
*There Is No Shame
*Mirror Game
 Burt
 Theatre Forum: Drinking & Driving
 National Tour: Robinson & Crusoe
 National Tour: Comet in Moominland

1989/90
*Crying to Laugh
 Once Upon A Story
 Bedtime & Bullies
*Square Eyes
 Comet in Moominland
 Separate Development
*Work It Out
 Mirror Game
* Feeling Yes, Feeling No
 Special Project: There is No Shame

1988/89
*Coconut Clackers
 Clairiere
 The Last Voyage of the Devil’s Wheel
*New Canadian Kid
 The Red Ball
 Thin Ice
*Liars
 Identical Islands 
 Provincial Tour: Feeling Yes, Feeling No

1987/88
*I Am A Bear!
 Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang
 The Potato People
*Night Light
 Robinson and Crusoe
*The Oath
 Liars 
 *Feeling Yes, Feeling No

1986/87
*Peacemaker
 The Mystery of the Oak Island Treasure
 Just So Stories
*Invisible Kids
 Pigiami
*Skin
 Peace Project 
 *Feeling Yes, Feeling No

1985/86
 Not So Dumb
 Of Mimes & Clowns
*Alligator Pie
*Little Victories
 Peter and The Wolf
*Getting Wrecked
 *Feeling Yes, Feeling No
 National Tour: Of Mimes & Clowns

1984/85
Separate Doors
The Little Prince
Alligator Pie
The Bittersweet Kid
L’Umiak
Everyday Heroes
*Feeling Yes, Feeling No

1983/84
*The Dream Eater
 Trummi Kaput
*New Canadian Kid
 Je Suis Un Ours! (I Am A Bear)
*How I Wonder What You Are
*Feeling Yes, Feeling No

1982/83
 The Little Beast
*Plum Pudding
 You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown
*School Yard Games
 Crying to Laugh
*Magic & the Supernatural in Shakespeare
 *Special Project: Feeling Yes, Feeling No: A Child Sexual Abuse Prevention Program

 

 


 

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