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Symposia

Speaker Bios

Graham Abbey (Honest Villains and Noble Killers Symposium)

Graham Abbey is in his fourteenth season at the Festival. He plays Iago in this year’s Othello, as well as Athos in The Three Musketeers. Other roles at Stratford include Posthumus in Cymbeline (2012), Henry V (2001), Macbeth (2004), Romeo (2002), Henry VIII (2004), Jaques in As You Like It (2005), Prince Hal in Henry IV (2001), D’Artagnan in The Three Musketeers (2000), Petruchio in The Taming of the Shrew (2003), Algernon in The Importance of Being Earnest (2000) and Hap Loman in Death of a Salesman (1997). Roles elsewhere include Hamlet (Resurgence), Jeff Skilling in Enron (Theatre Calgary), Sam Byck in Assassins (Talk Is Free/Birdland), Charles in The School for Scandal and Valère in The Molière Comedies (Chicago Shakespeare). Television roles include series lead in The Border (CBC) and recurring roles in Degrassi, Murdoch Mysteries, Covert Affairs and Republic of Doyle. Film credits include Sarah Polley’s Take This Waltz opposite Sarah Silverman, Casino Jack, 388 Arletta Avenue, Othello, Defendor, Stealing Paradise and Secrets of Eden. He was also a series regular in Afghanada (CBC Radio). The recipient of a Dora Award and a Monte Carlo Television Festival nomination, he is the Artistic Director of Groundling Theatre (Groundlingtheatre.com).

Shawn A-in-chut Atleo (LaFontaine-Baldwin Symposium)

Shawn A-in-chut Atleo is a hereditary chief from the Ahousaht First Nation. In July 2009, A-in-chut was elected to a three-year mandate as National Chief to the Assembly of First Nations. He was re-elected as National Chief in the summer of 2012. Advancing a vision of supporting and enabling the success of every First Nation on the basis of their rights and responsibilities, National Chief Atleo and the National Executive have taken forward a bold plan of action and engagement with all sectors of Canadian society. First Nations from across Canada supported A-in-chut in confirming education as a top priority for the Assembly. Since then, A-in-chut has been a tireless advocate for First Nations by spending time in First Nations in every region of the country, with federal, provincial and territorial leaders and with national and international audiences. Previously, A-in-chut served two terms as Regional Chief of the B.C. AFN. Committed to the principles of working together through inclusion and respect, he forged the historic Leadership Accord among First Nations leadership in B.C. in 2005. A-in-chut graduated in 2003 with a master of education in adult learning and global change from the University of Technology, Sydney, Australia (in partnership with University of British Columbia, University of the Western Cape South Africa, and University of Linkoping, Sweden). In 2008, A-in-chut’s commitment to education was recognized in his appointment as Chancellor of Vancouver Island University, making him B.C.’s first indigenous Chancellor. He received an honorary doctorate of laws degree in education from Ontario’s Nipissing University in June 2010. In February 2012, he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for his advocacy work on behalf of First Nations across Canada. A-in-chut is supported by and gains strength from his partner of 25 years, Nancy, and their two adult children, Tyson and Tara. Traditional teachings have guided A-in-chut to serve First Nations as a leader, facilitator, mediator, planner and teacher.

Dr. Caroline Bicks (Honest Villains and Noble Killers Symposium)

Dr. Caroline Bicks is Associate Professor of English at Boston College (Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts) and is also on the faculty of the Bread Loaf School of English. She is the author of Midwiving Subjects in Shakespeare’s England (Ashgate, 2003), co-editor with Jennifer Summit of The History of British Women’s Writing, volume 2 (Palgrave 2011) and author of numerous articles on anatomy, maternity and girl-actors in the early modern period. She is currently writing a book on English girlhood that considers the figure of the adolescent female performer. Her non-academic writing has appeared in the “Modern Love” column of the New York Times, on “McSweeney’s Internet Tendency,” on NPR’s All Things Considered, and in the book and show Afterbirth: Stories You Won’t Read in a Parenting Magazine.” With Michelle Ephraim, she writes a blog called “Everyday Shakespeare: Where Bard Meets Life.”

The Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson (LaFontaine-Baldwin Symposium)

Universally acknowledged for transforming the office of Governor-General, Adrienne Clarkson was sworn in as Canada’s 26th Governor General on October 7, 1999. The energy, enthusiasm and knowledge of Canada she shared in her six years in Ottawa left an indelible mark in our nation’s history. A leading figure in Canada’s cultural life, Madame Clarkson has had a rich and distinguished career in broadcasting, journalism, the arts and public service. While at CBC, she created and starred in numerous series such as the fifth estate and Adrienne Clarkson Presents. An eminent writer, she has authored five books including a memoir, Heart Matters, a biography, Norman Bethune, and her latest book, Room for All of Us, which recounts the dramatic stories of 10 successful Canadians who lost everything and rebuilt their lives in Canada. Her work has been recognized with dozens of awards in Canada and the U.S., including 26 honorary doctorates. She was also honoured abroad with the Grand Cross of the Order of Pleiades from France (2001) and the Order of Friendship of the Russian Federation (2006), the only Canadian to receive this distinction. National Post columnist John Fraser remarked that Adrienne Clarkson has the ability, unique among public officials, of making Canadians feel good about themselves and their country.

Ellen Geer(Honest Villains and Noble Killers Symposium)

Since 1978, Ellen Geer has been Artistic Director of the Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum in Los Angeles, one of the most innovative professional repertory theatres in North America. The name of this outdoor “Theatre of Plants,” founded in 1973, pays homage to the plants mentioned in Shakespeare’s plays. Ms Geer has produced and directed over forty productions and is a renowned theatre, film and television actor, director and educator. Her 2005 production of Othello received outstanding reviews. Her film credits include Harold and Maude, Patriot Games and Clear and Present Danger, to name a few. A graduate professor of classical acting in the Department of Theatre, Film and Television at the University of California, Los Angeles, she has received numerous awards for her work at Theatricum and in the community, including a Los Angeles County “Woman of the Year” award.

Bethany Jillard (Honest Villains and Noble Killers Symposium)

Bethany Jillard is currently in her fourth season at the Stratford Festival; she plays Desdemona in this year’s Othello, as well as Constance in The Three Musketeers. She is a graduate of the University of Toronto and of the Birmingham Conservatory for Classical Theatre. Her Stratford roles include Katherine in Henry V (2012), Hero in Much Ado About Nothing (2012), Lady Anne in Richard III (2011) and Cécile in Dangerous Liaisons (2010). Other roles include Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With the Wind (world première – Manitoba Theatre Centre), The Little Years (Tarragon), After Miss Julie (MTC Warehouse) and My Name Is Rachel Corrie (Theatre Panik). Film and television roles include If I Were You (Paragraph), Murdoch Mysteries (Shaftesbury) and Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures (TMN). She is the recipient of the Peter Donaldson Guthrie Award (2012) and the Stage West¬–Equity Emerging Theatre Artist Award (2010).

Dion Johnstone(Honest Villains and Noble Killers Symposium)

Dion Johnstone is in his eighth season at the Festival. He is a graduate of the University of Alberta’s BFA in Acting Program and the Birmingham Conservatory for Classical Theatre. He plays Othello in this year’s production. Other roles at Stratford include Aaron in Titus Andronicus (2011), Caliban in The Tempest (2010), Valentine in The Two Gentlemen of Verona (2010), Oberon in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (2009), Macduff in Macbeth (2009), Tom Robinson in To Kill a Mockingbird (2007) and Edmund in King Lear (2007). Roles elsewhere include Marc Antony in Julius Caesar (Chicago Shakespeare Theater), George in A Raisin in the Sun (Soulpepper), Boromir in The Lord of the Rings (Mirvish Productions) and Davey Battle in Take Me Out (Canadian Stage). Guest-star and principal film and television credits include roles in Flashpoint, Cracked, Defiance, The Listener, Underground Railroad (documentary) and Stargate SG-1.

John Ralston Saul (LaFontaine-Baldwin Symposium)

John Ralston Saul is a Companion in the Order of Canada and a Chevalier in the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of France. He is the Founder and Honorary Chair of French for the Future, Chair of the LaFontaine-Baldwin Symposium, Patron of PLAN (Planned Lifetime Advocacy Network) and Former President, and now honorary patron, of Canadian PEN. An essayist and novelist, Saul aims his writings at a new humanism through what he calls responsible individualism. His philosophical trilogy and its conclusion – Voltaire’s Bastards: The Dictatorship of Reason in the West, The Doubter’s Companion: A Dictionary of Aggressive Common Sense, The Unconscious Civilization and On Equilibrium: Six Qualities of the New Humanism – has impacted political thought in many countries. In 2004, he received the Pablo Neruda International Presidential Medal of Honour. His most recent national bestseller is A Fair Country: Telling Truths about Canada. His latest book is Extraordinary Canadians: Louis-Hippolyte LaFontaine & Robert Baldwin. John Ralston Saul is currently the President of PEN International.

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