I grew up in the small village of St. Clair Beach, a bedroom community just outside of Windsor. While in high school I learned to drive, but my dad said I would have to work to pay my own insurance, so I auditioned for and got a role as a puppeteer at Boblo Island Amusement Park in Amherstburg, Ontario. That was the beginning of a theatre career that lasts to this day. That summer while puppeteering, I also worked on the odd occasion backstage at the main theatre. For the following 3 summers I worked in the main theatre as a lighting technician, costumer, and basic "gopher". Because of my new-found love for the theatre I applied to Ryerson Polytechnical Institute in Toronto for a spot in the Technical and Production Theatre course.
I left home for Toronto when I was 18 after graduating from grade 13. While in school I needed to supplement my income, and I became an usher at Massey Hall, one of Toronto's concert halls. I did that job for 2 years and enjoyed it very much.
After finishing at Ryerson I decided I needed a change. I hopped the train and moved to Calgary, Alberta. I began volunteer work at a local children's theatre and produced a musical for them. For money I worked as a Window Display person at the Bay, working with a great woman from Toronto named Johanne Hubert (if you know her let me know how to find her!). I hated Calgary and by the end of the summer I was ready to move back to Toronto.
I began working as an usher again at Massey Hall and then Roy Thomson Hall. Then an internal job posting caught my eye. I answered it and became Publications Coordinator for the Corporation, responsible for the house programs and all of the printed materials. For about 4 years I was in this position, before I was laid off due to cutbacks. Within a few months I obtained the position of Managing Editor for the Stratford FestivalSouvenir book. I met the Artistic Director-to-be at that time, and was offered the position of Administrative Assistant to him. When the souvenir book was finished I began full-time with him. I worked for him for 2 years before changing positions and taking advantage of my display experience by becoming Exhibitions Coordinator. Also during this time I took a two-week leave of absence to do freelance work in Prague, Czech Republic. They hired me to help their marketing department in Prague. The collapse of communism in that country meant that Bata Shoes was able to purchase its stores back from the government, and they were on their way to modernizing them. I was hired as a display consultant to the Director of Marketing (see the pic of me in Prague in "My pictures").
After 2 more years at the Festival I was "restructured" and was unemployed for almost two years! I kept myself busy as Secretary to the Board of the London Arts Council and then after giving up hope of finding a job in my field, a string of good luck occured.
I was hired for the summer of 1988 as Front of House Manager for an outdoor theatre company in Ottawa, called Odyssey Theatre. I wowed them with my work, and within three weeks I was asked to take over the position of General Manager, as my boss was leaving the position. I jumped at the chance and I have been the GM ever since. In September of 1998 I officially moved to Ottawa permanently, and in May of 1999 my boyfriend joined me from London, Ontario. Ottawa is the most beautiful city I have yet lived in. In August, 2003 I returned to my home city of Windsor where I became Marketing and Sales Coordinator at the Capitol Theatre and Arts Centre. After a year there, I felt that the management of the theatre was not as good as it should be, and left. I am now back at university to get my bachelor of education degree and teaching certificate to become a teacher of primary/junior grades and I am really excited about this major career change!
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