DIWC Has Finally Come Home
· 7 min. read
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For over three decades, Do It With Class Young People's Theatre has been offering acting opportunities to young people throughout Regina. Many of these have graduated from this program and gone on to acting in Broadway, West End, and Hollywood. With over a hundred shows produced since 1993 and thousands of students passing through the organization, many don’t realize the grueling and exhausting work behind every curtain call. DIWC is run by volunteers, working out of church basements, small community spaces, and whatever location they can find to make it happen. Parents help fund programs by working in bingo halls and doing fundraisers. It’s a community-run, community-loved organization done by people with big hearts, busy hands, and disbelief in the impossible.
On September 7, 2024, after decades of nomadic life – especially some pretty hard years following the COVID-19 pandemic – DIWC finally secured a place to call home. Located at 611 Park Street, this large studio was built specifically to prepare for upcoming performances. There is a large space for the performers to practice their craft, a space in the back to construct new and more impressive props, and a lounge for people to rest, snack, and socialize.
“There are two microwaves!” I heard one of the performers exclaim as they gathered in the lounge together. Their past studio didn’t have any microwaves at all. It doesn’t have to be the big things that make a place feel like home.
The studio is also filled with memorabilia from previous performances. On the walls are posters from Moby Dick and Wizard of Oz, the wooden crocodile from Peter Pan, the honey pot from Winnie the Pooh, the broken doorbell sign from Wizard of Oz, and shelves and shelves of books, scripts, and material, and many costumes hanging on the walls. The lounge is even filled with covers of Playbill, a magazine printed on Broadway about the upcoming performances. Many of these include alumni from DIWC.
I attended the grand opening of their new space. I heard speeches by the Minister of Parks Culture and Sport, Honourable Laura Ross, Her Worship Mayor Sandra Masters, actor and alumni Ryland Alexander Lukiwiski, Chair Jennelle Hubick, and Artistic Director Robert Ursan.
There were also two pre-recorded messages from past alumni, including Tatiana Maslany, who is famous for her roles in Orphan Black and She-Hulk. I had known that Maslany was a member of DIWC, but hearing about her time with the company and her memories of performing with them resonates so much more than hearing it from her. It really shows that DIWC can open the doors to many other possibilities.
During the grand opening, it was interesting to hear how each person had their own hand in an acting performance sometime in their life. Honourable Laura Ross has been a huge advocate for theatre and youth performances since taking office, and because of that Saskatchewan is growing as a place for theatre province-wide. Her Worship Mayor Sandra Masters also talked about her time as a youth performer, in a play I wanted to hear more about regarding collecting pennies and giving them to extraterrestrials.
However, the one person whom I can never listen to enough is Artistic Director Robert Ursan. Ursan has a unique way of speaking, where every word he says dances the line between reality and absurdity. All art is a manifestation of insanity, and Ursan’s sense of humour and passion for art and performance comes out when he talks about the program.
“I am in denial that I will ever grow up”, was one of his best quotes, followed by how remarkable it was that many of the alumni were deeply unwell. This brought up a chorus of laughter from the audience. After all, you need a sense of madness to make sense of Alice in Wonderland or teach students about the social complexities of Peter Pan following a global pandemic when many were forced to adapt and grow seemingly overnight. Even seeing my nephew in the program, and seeing how he’s grown, and how he’s changed, is remarkable. Ursan sees this every day and has seen alumni bring their children back to the program as well. It is probably very humbling to see so many young people growing up and changing before their eyes.
It’s easy to gloss over the performances of these students as just child actors, but they are very well-disciplined and instructed. This became very clear when we walked into the new studio. Many of the adults, ignorant of the ways of the art, tromped through with their shoes on, stepping on the new mats put down for the performers. However, each of the students took off their shoes, put them to the side, and then carried on. They didn’t have to be told; they just knew.
There is an unspoken bond between Rob Ursan and the performers, from those who are still children, those who are parents, those who are alumni, and those who are around the world. Tradition, legacy, and the love of theatre bring them together in an unspoken way. It creates a sense of community that is like no other, and now with a roof over their heads, it finally has a place for that community to come home.
Just remember to take off your shoes.
Do It With Class Young People's Theatre has three upcoming performances, with The Little Prince performing from November 13-16, 2024, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare in February 2025, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in March 2025. Please visit their website for more information.
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Categories: Canada, Regina, Saskatchewan
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