issue 27 // volume 40 Douglas College director gives opportunity to theatre students » Two recent graduates try their hand at producing ‘. Julia Siedlanowska Staff Writer Dr and acting teacher at Douglas College, Thrasso Petras recently invited two of his former students, Madelyn Osborne and Kate Prefontaine to asso- ciate produce Nicolas Billon’s Iceland this spring. The show is directed by recent UBC MFA grad Kathleen Duborg, and is her inaugural project as a director outside of UBC. Osborne is a graduate of the Douglas Theatre Program, but stayed after her final year to take several guided study courses at Douglas College. Having taken the courses within Douglas College’s Theatre Program, Osborne worked with Petras as an assistant director. “Thrasso recruited me in January when we were working : : worked as a student assistant : inthe Theatre department : this past year, which she says : helped her with herabilityto } : stay motivated and to prioritize. ! : formance of A Macbeth and : we caught upa bit so possibly : aseed was planted there.” on The Importance of Being Earnest, asking if I'd be inter- ested in associate producing,” said Osborne. “Having no idea what that meant but jumping on an opportunity I said yes.” The guided study courses helped prepare Osborne for her role as associate producer on Iceland. “It taught mea lot about deadlines and getting things done now, not later. I Director Thrasso Petras // By www.about.me/thrasso : connections and people skills, : the students also learned about : : perseverance, as Osborne : describes: “The greatest thing : I’ve learned is probably that you : : really can get anything done : as long as you are willing to : work for it. There were plenty of : : also really learned how tocom- : : municate with people and pull : the resources I knew I had and : ask for help when I didn’t have any,” said Osborne. She also Arhecent graduate of the Stagecraft and Event : Technology Program at : Douglas College, Prefontaine : was head of sound when : Petras directed A Macbeth at : Douglas College this past fall. “So we had that connec- : tion there,” Prefontaine says. : “Thrasso contacted me shortly : after A Macbeth wrapped and : asked if] was interested. I also : knew his production partner : Kathy Duborg from years back : when we worked at the Gateway ! : Theatre together. Kathy and I ran into each other at a per- Both students rose to the opportunity of producing and : learned a lot about the role. : “Producing is a vastly different : animal than being a tech, or : anactor,” says Prefontaine. : “It’s all about connections. I : think my stage management : background helped a bit there : because youre constantly : communicating with so many : different individuals in vastly : different departments and you : need to ‘speak their lingo’ while : still communicating what we : need for the production. One : minute you may be speaking to : government employees about : alcohol licences, the next youre : contacting people on Craigslist : about buying a couch for the : set, and then the next minute : youre trying manage the social : : media aspect and posting |} photos to Facebook to drum : up interest. Producing can be : anything and everything.” In addition to using their : times I would get frustrated not : : what Nicolas Billon does is he : then cuts the legs out from : underneath that judgment. : All ofa sudden it turns and : you're unsettled because : knowing how to do something : or where to go, but I’d push : through, research, and ask for : help until I got what I needed : to fulfill that task. Then, when : I finally did, it was so satisfying : : knowing I didn’t break.” : Both Osborne and : Prefontaine came to the news // 5 : opportunity through their : connection with Petras through : the Douglas College Theatre : Program. “I think one of the : greatest things that Douglas : gave me to prepare for this was a : network of individuals that live : for theatre,” says Prefontaine. : “The stagecraft group I gradu- : ated with is like a little family : andI knowI can turn to many : of them for help on any project : because they love this busi- : ness. Many have already lent : ahand to Iceland, and others : I’m already working with on : other projects. It’s a great little : community we’ve grown.” On the creative side, : Duborg chose and directed the : show by the Canadian play- : wright as a project outside her : MFA. The story is told by three : characters and deals with ideas : oncapitalism, sex, and racism. “Why this show is ulti- : mately challenging to an : audience is because they want to understand who these : people are really fast,” says : Duborg. “As an audience we'll make a decision pretty quick on who [the character] is. But you thought you had it.” Iceland concluded its week-and-a-half run at : Vancouver's Studio 16 on May 3. Temporary foreign worker program suspended across Canada » McDonald’s abuse allegations in Victoria offset the review Angela Espinoza News Editor Mi news @theotherpress.ca ut n April 24, a cross-country moratorium (temporary suspension) of the temporary foreign worker (TFW) pro- gram went into effect. The moratorium was set partially in response to reports of TFW abuse and fraud regarding three McDonald’s franchises in Victoria, all owned by one Glen Bishop, back in March. Employment Minister Jason Kenney made the call to have a moratorium on the TFW program. Ina public statement addressing the : suspension and the McDonald’s : abuse claims, Kenney said, : “Allegations of misuse will : continue to be investigated... : and those employers who : are found to have lied about : their efforts to hire Canadians : could face potential criminal : prosecution with sanctions that : include fines and jail time.” The TFW program, which began in 1973, initially only : applied to agricultural jobs, : live-in caregiver positions, : and high-skill careers, such as : education. In 2002 however, : the program was extended to : allow TFWs opportunities to : work low-skill jobs, such as : food service and construction. : Itallows employers to hire : foreign employees for jobs that : have been unfilled in Canada. The McDonald’s abuse claim also follows the Royal : Bank of Canada’s attempt at : replacing a number of Canadian : staffwith TFWs around the : same time last year. Where the : McDonald’s “abuse” claims : indicate that TFWs were given : priority hours over domestic : staff, RBC is alleged to have had : domestic employees train their : under-qualified replacements. A processing fee of $275 for each “lower-skilled occupa- : tions” worker application was : put into place in 2013. While : mostly major companies were : caught taking advantage of the : TFW program, many feel that : suspending the program until : further notice throughout the : country is overkill. The sus- : pension largely affects restau- : rants, kitchens, and fast-food —: : establishments from employing : : TFWs, although the entire : : program could be reviewed. Now many foreign workers : are faced with being unable to — : : renew their work permits, while : : businesses may have to contend : : with being understaffed. : The Globe and Mail released an article on May 2 : outlining basic information : onthe TFW program and how : it’s currently being affected : by the moratorium. Amongst : other things, graphs outlining : the influx of TFWs in Canada : over the past 10 years show : that the number of temporary : foreign workers has gone from The McDonald’s ‘abuse’ claims recognize that TFW’s were given priority hours over domestic staff... : just under 200,000 in 2002 to : just under 500,000 in 2012. While it would bea : stretch to assume there are : 330,000 people currently out : of work right now, a substan- : tial number of TFWs may be : forced out of Canada while : the moratorium is in effect.