After 10 years at the forefront of the PuSh festival, co-founder and artistic director Norman Armour finally feels that he and his colleagues have done enough enough to make the festival self-sustaining; to draw in more edgy and acclaimed arts companies from around the world; and to, maybe, one day, take a step back.
The festivals tenth anniversary marks a moment of reflection for a team that has worked tirelessly to bring the performing arts to the darkest days of winter in this city.
The first decade was about establishing trust with their newly cultivated audience (a mix of theatre goers, music and dance lovers, and filmmakers – a mirror of Armour's experiences at SFU's School for Contemporary Arts in the '80s). And with that trust, came support.
After getting off the ground in 2003 and becoming, with the help of the city, a non-profit entity, the festival experienced a set of circumstances unlike any the city will see again this century.
First, PuSh seized the opportunity afforded by the impending Olympic Games to become a major partner in the 2010 Cultural Olympiad. Then, in 2011, together with the City of Vancouver, PuSh launched the official celebrations of the city's 125th anniversary with an outdoor event in Gastown that drew more than 7,000 people.
Armour recalls a sense of fiscal foreboding at the end of that incredible run.
A lot of money had come into the region with the Cultural Olympiad, and some of it remained, to a degree, for the 125th, and then it was gone. You also had the gaming [money], which was pulled away from adult groups for a period there. That was a scary moment of pushing the rock up the hill and wondering, personally, if I had it in me to push it up again.
Despite the challenges, however, PuSh presented 160 performances and events over 19 days, with 31 sellouts in 2012. And Armour, along with co-founders such as Katrina Dunn, built an organization that warrants 19 board members and an advisory council.
And by 2013, Armour says he felt solid ground under the festivals supports.
There were too many people who believed in this, too many forces at play that depended on it, too many people who expected it each and every year who had been won over or perhaps had been believers in the festival from the very beginning, that I thought, for the first time, Wow, this is not going anywhere. This is here.
So what's next? This anniversary brings with it the impending departure of Minna Schlendlinger, the festival's managing director since 2005, who, Armour says, has achieved "everything she wanted to.
"There will be a time for me as well," he adds. "It's not yet. Every day I come looking forward and excited. Even amongst all the challenges that remain, there are still things that I want to achieve and see realized."
And Armour, last year's recipient of the Mayor's Civic Merit award, has the wherewithal to do so.
"From my experiences of living elsewhere and working elsewhere, if you want to make something happen in Vancouver, you often have to create the conditions for it to happen. By this time last year, we had created the conditions. Now there are more conditions [needed] for the long-term resilience and flourishing of the festival for the next 10 years."
Armour wants the festival to speak to what the city is, and its diversity the most direct way of which is to engage a younger audience.
Curating this year's festival with Joyce Rosario and Club PuSH's Veda Hille and Tim Carlson, Armour also aims to see more work from continents such as Africa and South America, and anticipates presenting their first Nordic piece in 2015.
"With the change after the Olympics and the 125th, there is a gap in terms of commissioning monies to support not only the premiere of a work and its presentation but also its creative development. The kind of monies and support that will allow us to make new situations and opportunities for the contemporary performing arts. Thats a challenge I want to tackle; I want us to open up a broader base of support in terms of the private sector and I think were not alone."
So the festival may be crossing the line this year, as the anniversary slogan puts it, but it is by no hard yards the finish line.
PuSh International Performing Arts Festival runs January 14 to February 2. Tickets at PuShFestival.ca
Gob Squads Kitchen:
Its pure, high-concept low-tech. Its an absolutely transformative piece for the audience. Its a daredevil celebration this company is remarkable and I think it will be particularly inspiring to the city. (Pictured; David Baltzen photo) Jan. 16-18; Advance tix: $27-33
Dragonfly of Chicoutimi:
The Quebecois scene is one of the finest anywhere in the world and here is this really strong company and acclaimed leading director tackling what is an iconic play in the Quebecois canon. Originally written as a one man piece, here, the character is split into five people. Its a great example of ingenuity of design and product dramaturgy and directorial interpretation. Jan 22-25; Advance tix: $27-33
Seeds:
To see Eric Peterson up on stage at the Frederic Wood Theatre at the campus of UBC his alma mater tackling an issue of food security and this very famous case of the Saskatchewan farmer going to court with Monsanto. Jan 22-26; Advance tix: $27-33
Usually Beauty Fails:
A dynamite show; no holds-barred Montreal dancing, choreography, band. Frédérick Gravel, one of the most sought-after choreographers in Montreal, has been coming up over the last five to 10 years. Its a great show; it has been moving all over the world and will go down to Seattle after Vancouver. Jan. 28-30; Advance tix: $38-44
The Pixelated Revolution:
"Rabi Mroués work on the Arab Spring... We had him a couple of years ago with Looking for a Missing Employee; this time its involving an exhibition of his video work as an artist in residence, which is something we wish to do more of down the road." Jan. 15-18; Advance tix: $27-33
LA Party/ An Evening with William Shatner Asterix
"Its a crazy night! Phil Soltanoff is a great artist from NY. One of the best uses of video LA Party that Ive experienced in many years. A beautiful, beautiful man. We had him before for a workshop and the community really took to him. It's delightful." Jan 21-25; Advance tix: $27-33
You can follow Kelsey Klassen on Twitter @KelseyKlassen
