Opportunity knocks

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This article was published 05/09/2019 (2235 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

If the whole world’s a stage, then perhaps it’s time Winnipeg stepped into the spotlight

.“Winnipeg needs to know how great it is,” Taesia Scratch, a Glenelm resident who is performing in the Bake-Off competition at Sarasvàti Production’s FemFest 2019. “Sure, we can joke about the winters, but we are the next big city. We are coming up.”

A child actor, Scratch grew up in Vancouver, where she attended performing arts school after high school. She and her husband, who also holds a fine arts degree, moved to Ottawa after completing their educations.

“When I got there, my union rep said, ‘Sorry, there’s not much happening right now,’” Scratch recalled. “So we had kids.”

Scratch, her husband, and their four children — now aged 19, 17, 15, and 13 — moved to Winnipeg seven years ago, and they haven’t looked back since.

“It’s been awesome,” Scratch, who has appeared in a number of Sarasvàti Productions plays, along with a number of film and television parts, over the past seven years. “Winnipeg is a great city.”

Next week, Scratch will be one of the actors taking part in FemFest’s annual Bake-Off competition. Directed by Cairn Moore, in partnership with the Manitoba Association of Playwrights, the series challenges five playwrights to craft 10-minute scenes involving three “ingredients” and featuring up to four actors in a single, eight-hour sitting. The actors then have eight hours to rehearse the piece before performing it live.

This year’s playwrights are Daphne Finlayson, Erin Hammond, barb m janes, Brooklyn Alice Lee, and Lynne Martin. Their list of “ingredients” includes the sound “shhh”, a flat tire, and the quote “Everybody’s got a plan until they get punched in the face.”

“You never know what to expect,” said Scratch, who acted in last year’s Bake-Off. “The scripts have been science fiction to comedy to drama, and everything in between. It’s really pretty cool.”

While Scratch said she is “exceedingly thankful” for all the work she has been able to do in Winnipeg, she added that a highlight for her is the sense of community in both theatre and film, which she said Sarasvàti in particular encapsulates.

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“Sarasvàti is a true roots community,” Scratch said. “(Artistic director) Hope (McIntyre) is incredible. She really nurtures her community. That appeals to me, because that’s real.”

FemFest, which Sarasvàti has been producing since 2003, runs Sept. 14 to 21 at the Asper Centre for Theatre and Film at the University of Winnipeg (400 Colony St.). 

For Scratch, the festival is an opportunity to showcase and take in what the city’s theatre community has to offer.

“There are a lot of people who think FemFest is going to be ultra-feminist or whatever, but it’s for everybody,” she said. “There are people from all walks of life who participate and lead. This is one way to peak in and see what’s happening in the city.”

The Bake-Off performances take place on Mon., Sept. 16, beginning at 6:30 p.m. Tickets for the Bake-Off are $15.

Sheldon Birnie
Community Journalist

Sheldon Birnie is a reporter/photographer for the Free Press Community Review. The author of Missing Like Teeth: An Oral History of Winnipeg Underground Rock (1990-2001), his writing has appeared in journals and online platforms across Canada, the U.S. and the U.K. A husband and father of two young children, Sheldon enjoys playing guitar and rec hockey when he can find the time. Email him at sheldon.birnie@freepress.mb.ca Call him at 204-697-7112

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