George Bernard Shaw once said, “We are made wise not by the recollection of our past, but by the responsibility for our future.”
Leading the College as it celebrates its remarkable 25th anniversary and being able to build on its legacy is a rare and significant responsibility, and a personal honour.
While this exciting year strives to celebrate our past, everything we do in the here and now has always been about the future of the Performing Arts – ensuring our students are ready to take centre stage when their time comes; and making sure that CCPA is always here, scouting a little further ahead, for the performing arts sectors next leaders.
We honour the past by showcasing the accomplishments of the journey that got us here. We invest in the future by continually refining our facility and curriculum to best serve our student’s journey.
We celebrate our past students with the largest alumni presence on creative teams in the College’s history. We commit to the future by continuing to explore emerging and diverse artistic practices and current dialogues.
We commemorate our name and roots with the most significant season of Canadian programming in the College’s history. We develop the future by increasing new work creation and co-productions.
CCPA’s 25th Anniversary Season, A Path to Dreams, presents classic storytelling, beloved titles, historical journeys, new work, and current issues while celebrating theatrical magic, musical theatre, alumni talent, and our Canadian pride.
Please join us for the next act.
Caleb Marshall
Managing Artistic Director
Hello, and welcome to the Canadian College of Performing Arts.
I would like to acknowledge the Lekwungen people and the Esquimalt & Songhees First Nations, on whose traditional territories we learn, create and perform.
After 19 years spent living and working in the UK arts and education industry, it is an honour to return to CCPA as the Director of Education, to lead alongside Managing Artistic Director Caleb Marshall, during a time when the artistic global community transitions to a new paradigm of performance.
The pandemic has prompted the artistic community to let go of old ideas about training, performing and “show business.” During my time in the UK as a student, performer, voice coach and academic, I gained the skills, knowledge and craft necessary for a successful career in the arts. However, the most impactful aspects of my experience were finding a sense of belonging through dialogue and shared experience, creating community through exchange of ideas and beliefs, broadening perspectives, and working with others toward common goals.
Through training at CCPA, my wish is for students to become expressive, articulate, constructively critical, curious and creative individuals – thinking practitioners capable of shifting habits and beliefs through exploring different perspectives, and developing confidence in themselves and their abilities as performers and active citizens.
Since arriving, I have been overwhelmed by the generosity of community and exceptional artistry generated at CCPA. I look forward to collaborating with students, faculty and staff as we work together through artistic practices.
Danielle Meunier
Director of Education
West Side Story, 2019 | director Matthew Howe | photo credit Peter Pokorny