Performance professor selected for ThisGen Fellowship

Performance Acting Professor Lisa Karen Cox was selected for the ThisGen Fellowship, a national accelerator program for BIPOC women and non-binary performing arts professionals that provides paid training and mentorship opportunities with world-class artists, national residency gatherings, and peer connection. Cox was selected from a number of applicants across Canada for the Directing Fellowship, an initiative of Why Not Theatre in partnership with the National Arts Centre. 

“It is such a privilege to be amongst such rigorous artists as we engage in challenging conversations that centre the craft. Whether participants or facilitators, many of us are interdisciplinary artists that recognize theatre and performance as a cross-disciplinary vehicle for innovation, social and political change,” Cox said. “With the mounting reports regarding isolation, anxiety, depression and artificial intelligence, Why Not Theatre's ThisGen Fellowship is inviting us to critically think and engage in much needed embodied art of performance; to create communities across forms and disciplines; and to welcome differences. I can not wait to share my learnings with students!” 

Bridging education with industry

The program offers a unique opportunity that equips participants with the skills, networks, and resources to expand the kind of work seen on Canadian stages, as well as reimagine the process of making it. This year’s program starts with an online paid training intensive led by internationally renowned artists, followed by an in-person residency at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa from June 10 to 14. The fellowship will culminate in a two-week hands-on lab in Toronto where they will apply their learnings in an exploratory setting.

By introducing Fellows to leading international artists creating groundbreaking work, the fellowship aims to expand imagination around artistic and leadership practices and equip this generation of cultural leaders in Canada with the tools to shape the future of the performing arts.

The Creative School at Toronto Metropolitan University

The Creative School is a dynamic faculty that is making a difference in new, unexplored ways. Made up of Canada’s top professional schools and transdisciplinary hubs in media, communication, design and cultural industries, The Creative School offers students an unparalleled global experience in the heart of downtown Toronto.