Students dive into local history; tell stories with artistic productions
MADE Urban Arts students finish semester with five shows at Guelph’s Sonic Hall
GUELPH – Arts students have been out in the community for months, piecing together five historical stories that they shared with audiences on June 23 and 25.
It’s the cumulative project for the Upper Grand District School Board’s MADE Urban Arts Program, taught by Gerard Gouthro and Lane Osborne at Heritage Hall in Guelph.
Each performance was entirely student-created, Gouthro said, from the in-depth research ahead of time to planning the shows and executing the performances.
Each performance centred around an interesting person or group in Guelph’s history: harmonica player Tommy Reilly, author Jean Little, murder victim Albert Thomasson, nurse Marisse Scott and band The Velvetones.
Tommy Reilly
The students told Guelph-born Reilly’s story with a short play that highlights the beginning of his musical training with his father; his arrest by the Gestapo in 1939; his six years living in a prisoner of war camp where he traded coffee for harmonicas in order to keep playing; his career after leaving the camp including his unusual, one-on-one teaching style; the Queen inducting him to the Order of the British Empire; and his romantic reconnection with a woman from his past.
TOP LEFT: Tommy Reilly, played by Jesse Thibault, and his dad, played by Caleb Murdoch, who helped Reilly get his start playing harmonica. TOP RIGHT: Reilly is not impressed this young harmonica player, played by Sophia Townsend. ABOVE LEFT: Reilly is reconnected with a girl from his past, played by Sasha Baldwin. ABOVE RIGHT: Reilly, played by Sophie Beecraft, received an induction to the Order of the British Empire from Queen Elizabeth II, played by Alexa Roux. Photos by Robin George
A harmonica signed by Reilly was among the props at the show, something MADE student Asher Bronson was able to borrow from his neighbour.
Jean Little
Little’s story was told with an animated film created by Lauren Ferrier, Kali Gonsalves, Sylvan Janleigh, Emily Lewis, Mia Ly, Breayan Singson and Shiro Lei.
Little, who was legally blind from birth, was born in Taiwan but grew up in Guelph. She was a poet, novelist educator and Order of Canada recipient, and Guelph’s Jean Little Public School is named in her honour.
Albert Thomasson
The MADE students presented a short play that told Thomasson’s tragic tale.
Three years after he moved to Guelph from England with his family in 1923, Thomasson was shot and killed while working at the International Malleable Iron Company in Guelph.
TOP LEFT: Albert Thomasson and his wife, played by Asher Bronson and Priya Madan, had recently arrived in Guelph from England and were trying to find work for Albert. TOP RIGHT: Albert Thomasson introduces himself to his new boss at the foundry, James Hawkins, played by Marden resident Lauren Ferrier. ABOVE LEFT: International Malleable Iron Company watchman James Hawkins, played by Marden resident Lauren Ferrier, and murder victim Albert Thomasson, played by Asher Bronson. ABOVE RIGHT: Sasha Baldwin played an enthusiastic Boy Scout searching for clues to solve Thomasson's murder. Photos by Robin George
The play depicted how local police brought in the Boy Scouts of Canada to help them investigate.
The enthusiastic Scouts did find a shell casing from the shot, but the murder remains unsolved to this day.
Marisse Scott
In a short film, students outlined how Scott persevered to become the first Black practicing nurse in Ontario, working at St. Joseph’s Health Centre in Guelph.
It portrays the anguish Scott felt at receiving rejection letter after rejection letter and how she fought to be given the same consideration as white nurses applying for the same positions.
Two of Scott’s children, Janice Griffith and Trevor Louisy, worked with the students to help bring their mother’s story to life.
The Velvetones
The story of The Velvetones, which included three Guelph Collegiate Vocational Institute (GCVI) students who came together to form a band in the 1960s, was told though both film and live performance.
It began with a video clip shot on band-member Norm Shaver’s real childhood front yard, where he fell in front of a lawn mower and injured his fingers as a kid.
There were also video clips shot inside GCVI, showing how the band formed.
On stage, students acted out parts of the Velvetones’ story and played their music live, including Sophia Townsend, granddaughter of original Velvetones member Stu Townsend.
The show was dedicated to Stu’s memory, as well as the memory of band member Gerry LaFontaine.
The show ended with a lively performance that included Shaver coming up on stage to sing and dance with the students.
LEFT: Manager Carl McCrae, played by Sophie Beecraft, introduces the Velvetones as they prepare to play at the opening of Guelph’s first A&W. CENTRE, RIGHT: From left: Caleb Murdoch, Desmond Dale, Norm Shaver and Sidney Cooke. Photos by Robin George
MADE Urban Arts
Guthro said the MADE program is designed for kids who love the arts, and it pushes them to explore areas that may not be their forte.
Each student had multiple roles across the five productions, with visual artists acting on stage, actors performing music and singers animating films.
That includes Marden resident and Grade 12 MADE student Lauren Ferrier, who animated a film; acted in a play; played sound, projector and video cues for two plays; and set up the stage and helped troubleshoot technical issues for musical performances.
Ferrier also filled in for actors during rehearsals, made prop lists and helped with costume ideas.
Ferrier said performing at Sonic Hall was a highlight of the experience, as they got to take what they’d learned in class and transfer it over to a new and unfamiliar space.
They also appreciated working with Patrick Vilbar, a freelance audio engineer and member of the band The Last Armada, noting their sense of humour made it easy to joke around while they learned.
Ferrier said throughout the MADE semester students went from being awkward and shy to developing a family-like bond.
“It was nice to be able to have a semester full of things I enjoy doing, and being able to do them with people who actually want to be there,” they said.
“It was also really fun to be able to joke around and have fun with the teachers Lane Osborne (Oz) and Gerard Gouthro (Guthy).
“I highly recommend that anyone who’s interested in any of the arts looks into partaking in MADE; the teachers are great and you’re very likely to find your people,” Ferrier said.
Though most people take the course in Grade 11, it can be taken anytime after Grade 9, and Ferrier is glad they took it in Grade 12 when it didn’t fit their schedule in Grade 11.
Next year Ferrier is heading to Sheridan College to study technical production in the performance arts industry program.
For more information about MADE Urban Arts, visit ugdsbmade.ca.
