THE WORKSHOP THEATRE

WTS holds a variety of live theatrical performances and events annually for Calgary and the surrounding communities. For the second half of our 2023/24 season we staged the remainder of our three main stage productions: 'The Rule of Thumb' an original play by a local playwright (Feb/Mar 2024) and 'Moon Over Buffalo' a well-known farce (May 2024). We continued with our training program ('the actor's studio') that provided training mentoring and an opportunity to work on acting skills for individuals wishing to improve their theatrical skills. The program had a successful year - once again mounting an original play ('Like and Subscribe') into the 2024 ADFA Calgary Region One-Act Play Festival (March 2024) which won Outstanding Performance and runner up for Outstanding Production. The Actor's Studio also held a showcase (June 2024) of the groups' work with feedback from peers and members of the workshop theatre. In addition we partnered with Morpheus Theatre to put on a joint performance at the Pumphouse in May to showcase two One-Act shows (May 2024) providing provide additional exposure for new playwriters. At the same time we continued our rental program to other theatre groups from our inventory of costumes props and set pieces. During this fiscal period this included rentals to Storybook Theatre Confederation Theatre and the FL Acting Club. The fiscal year continued to be challenged with a substantial deficit funding position despite revenue generation ongoing sponsorship and donation requests and grant requests. Unfortunately there was no casino revenue during this time period (recognized in 2022/23) to offset our deficit so the impact of continued rising costs of space/operating expenses insurance and theatre rental/royalty costs resulted in a large loss.

WTS is dedicated to creating theatre that provides excellence collaboration and passion for the Arts. We build passion for community theatre developing and maintaining a sense of community by being open inclusive and collaborative on stage and with our audience creating strong relationships sharing knowledge and providing a platform for local talent connect try new things and develop their craft. As part of this mandate we introduce new offerings and hone our programming to provide new and improved artistic experiences support new artists and community groups and provide new revenue streams. In the second half of the 2023/24 season this included mounting an original play by a local playwright ('Rule of Thumb') and partnering with Morpheus Theatre to put on a joint performance at the Pumphouse in May to showcase two One Act shows providing provide additional exposure for new playwriters. We also supported new diverse and up-and-coming theatre groups in their development: we began working with STRUM UA a new Ukrainian theatre group who mounted their first show at the West Village Theatre. To help we loaned out our rehearsal space at no cost over the summer and provided mentorship and theatrical resources for the show.