Electra Cast - before and after the show
It's been a couple of weeks now since we brought the curtain down on the 2026 Grinder Summer season with our production of The Electra of Euripides. What an adventure! A big thank-you to this small-but-mighty cast, rehearsing in the shadows of a much larger show, who pulled together quickly to create something spectacular in a very short period of time. I can now definitively check "Greek Tragedy" of my directorial bucket list.
Now that I've had a bit of time to recover (and to write blog posts) I'm starting to look ahead to the next two projects here at Grinder, a pair of shows in the Grand River Arts Festival's 10-minute Play Contest in Brantford this September. This is our third year participating, but the first where we've had two plays - one of Jules', and one of mine. Rehearsals will be getting underway for those soon, so watch this space for some rehearsal shots from both shows.
And while I don't think there are any other Grinder Productions shows aside from the 10-minute ones coming up this year, never say never. I'm always open to new opportunities if I have the time, the script, and the capacity to bring a show to a stage. I have, however, started to think about what we should do in 2027. Our attendance this year was the largest in the "modern era" of Grinder, i.e., since we started going back to the library for summer shows in 2017. And it wasn't all just Handlebar Dan - Electra pulled in a surprisingly strong audience, despite being a bit more niche. I have lots of ideas about how we could build on our success for next year, but there haven't been any eureka moments just yet. But as usual, I plan to announce the 2027 season on January 1st, so I'll have to figure it out by then.
But I shouldn't say "I'll have to figure it out." Starting this off-season, I'd like to start changing the "I" into a "We."
Since its inception in 2003 Grinder Productions has been making theatre that dares to be different. As the company matures we need a more formal governing structure: a steering committee, an executive team, a board of directors.
This board (used in the loosest possible sense of the term) will act as an executive steering committee for the company, overseeing curation, casting, production, and audience development.
As the Creative and Executive Director, I will retain responsibility for leadership and oversight, as well as a final say on all matters, for the time being. However, my intent is to exercise that authority less and less as time goes on.
I'm looking for 5 people. We will have just 4 meetings per year, and the maximum I'm asking of anyone is a 3 year commitment (with some 2 year and 1 year commitments to start, perhaps, to break things up).
I'm looking for:
- Chair: calls meetings, prepares agendas, delegates action items
- Artistic lead: do or delegate play selection, directors selection, auditions and casting
- Technical lead: do or delegate production tasks, crewing, production schedule
- Stage Manager: runs rehearsals (or delegates), acts as board secretary/treasurer
- Publicity: do or delegate marketing, communications, FOH
Nobody would have to be an expert in an area - the job would be about either doing, or delegating. I think that is important, because not being able to delegate is what leads to burnout (hence one of the reasons I'm creating this board). Are you interested? If so, let’s talk!
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