Indigenous 
Submitted by: Kyle Blair, Professor, Program Co-Coordinator, Music Theatre Performance program
On Tuesday, September 30, the third-year Music Theatre cohort was absolutely thrilled to welcome Tom Carson (Executive Director) and Cassandra McCarthy (Program Director) from Smile Theatre Company in Toronto. Together, they led us through dementia sensitivity training as we prepare to embark on a deeply meaningful collaboration with residents of the St. Lawrence Lodge long-term care home.
Over the next month, our students will sit down with seniors to listen, connect, and gather their stories, songs, and cherished memories. These lived experiences will become the creative foundation for an original, student-devised musical, which will then tour care homes across our community in the new year.
This initiative is not only about performance, it’s about centring empathy, care, and human connection in the artistic process. We are profoundly grateful to Tom and Cassandra for their generosity, insight, and inspiring guidance in showing us how to make theatre that uplifts and honours the communities we serve.