Resume
Liza Balkan is a Canadian, multi-disciplinary theatre artist with a career that spans over 43 years. Her professional practices include extensive work as an actor, director, creator, librettist, educator, as well as dancer and singer, each discipline informing and complementing the other.
She began her Conservatory training and professional work as an actor in New York City, returning to Ontario eight years later to continue her career as a theatre maker. In 1997, she received Toronto's Dora Mavor Moore Award for her performance in "Still The Night", by Theresa Tova, produced by Tapestry Opera, Tova Ent. and Theatre Passe Muraille.
Through an extended residency with The Theatre Centre in Toronto, she developed, co-produced and then directed her documentary/verbatim project Out the Window. This work, investigating police violence, mental health, witnessing, racism, and the justice system, had several public iterations on its journey toward a production at Toronto’s International Luminato Festival in 2018, directed by Sarah Garton Stanley. Out The Window was published by Sirocco Drama in the Fall of 2022.
Liza’s recent work as a librettist includes composer Brian Current’s multi-Dora Award-nominated opera Gould’s Wall, produced by Tapestry Opera/Maniac Star/Koerner Hall. Her collaborations with composer Lembit Beecher include the song cycles Looking at Spring: Meditations on Aging and After the Fires, both of which have been produced by Brooklyn Art Song Society, with the latter having its Canadian Premiere at RCM/Koerner in 2023. With composer Paul Shilton, she created, and directed So, How’s it Been?– a music work inspired by interviews through the Pandemic.
Liza has been a guest artist, educator and director at theatre and opera training Conservatories and universities across Canada and in Italy, and is presently on faculty at Sharjah Performing Arts Academy in the UAE, teaching acting in the musical theatre programme and directing practice in the post - graduate Master of Fine Arts; Theatre and Live Performance Creation.
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She is committed to inclusionary practices, process, communication, and building courageous, joyful, respectful and inspiring spaces in which to create with others.
CV
ACTING TEACHER /COACH /EDUCATOR
Private coaching 2010-Present.
Sharjah Performing Arts Academy/UAE/Course Leader-Acting/Musical Theatre, Instructor-Directing/MFA Post-Graduate Programme 2023- Present
George Brown School/Theatre Dept./ Stage Director 2021
Driftwood Theatre/ Mentor 2021
Humber College - Theatre Department/2020 - 2021
Canadian Opera Company/Artist Educator/
workshop leader 2016 —2020
University Of Windsor/Director and teacher 2010 - 2016
Movement Instructor/Birmingham Conservatory/Stratford
Festival 2011 - 2014
Director/teacher/ Randolph Academy 2013
Movement Instructor/St. Clair College 2013
Arts Educator/Te Amim Theatre - schools in GTA 2010/11
Shakesperience – two week summer programme 2009
Academy of Film and Television
Ryerson Theatre School -director
Soulpepper Youth Outreach/Pleiades Theatre
Usdan Centre – Long Island, New York 1981/8
SELECTED WRITING CREDITS
Librettist
Gould’s Wall /21C/Koerner Hall/RCM 2022**
After the Fire/Brooklyn Art Song Society 2022
So, how’s it Been?/Here for Now Theatre 2021
I Missed the Beginning/5Boroughs Songbook Fest. NYC.2018
What Rhymes with Azimuth/ Bicycle Opera Project. 2016 Tour
21C Festival/Koerner Hall /RCM 2016
Looking at Spring; Meditations on Ageing / Scrag
Mountain Music 2014
Ride the Fear - Ivan Barbotin's album ATOM 2014
Ice Cream/ Opera Briefs /Tapestry New Opera - 2012
(What Rhymes with) Azimuth/Tapestry/Briefs- 2012
Little Miss All Canadian/Tapestry/Briefs - 2012
DUSTINGS/Festival of Ideas and Creations 2011
Writer
Out The Window/Luminato Festival 2018
Out the Window/Theatre Centre/Window Collective 2012
Out The Window/Crows Theatre Workshop 2010
Playwright in Residence-Crows Theatre 2009/10
Artist In residence Theatre Centre 2008/2009
Plenty Room/Winnipeg Jewish Theatre 2007
Leftovers/Rhubarb Festival /2002
Wedding Number/WJT 1997
Martha Stewart Projects/
Pea Green Prods/ Buddies in Bad Times Theatre 1996
BRANgst/Rhubarb /Toronto Fringe 1996
SELECTED DIRECTING CREDITS:
FROG SONG Here For Now Theatre 2023
MUSTARD University of Waterloo 2022
SO, HOW’S IT BEEN? Creator/Director /Here for Now Theatre, 2021
LOVE AND INFORMATION George Brown School, Online/Live 2021
ALWAYS STILL THE DAWN CanadianStage 2020 ( Cancelled/Covid -19)
EVERY BRILLIANT THING Grand Theatre, London 2020
LLANDOVERY CASTLE Wilfred Laurier 2020
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING CanadiansStage/Shakespeare in His Park. 2019
MIKVEH Harold Green Jewish Theatre 2019
KOONI Buddies in Bad Times/Rhubarb/Queer Festival Halifax’17
LOVE WITH LEILA Toronto Centre for the Performing Arts/NYC Solo Fest
GreenLight Arts 2015/16/17
AN EXPERIMENT WITH AN AIR PUMP UP/UWindosr 2016
EL GATO con BOTAS/ BERIO’S FOLK SONGS Royal Conservatory Of Music/GGS. 2015
STAG AND DOE Lighthouse Festival Theatre 2015
BICYCLE OPERA PROJECT Roy Thomson Hall/ RCM 21C Festival /Summer Tour 2015
LOVE WITH LEILA Springworks/Canadian Fringe/NYC Solo Fest.2015
TO MOSCOW UP/University of Windsor 2015
ANAIS NIN Koerner Hall/21C Festival 2014
BICYCLE OPERA PROJECT Summer Tour/Toronto/Stratford/Guelph/et al. 2014
THE BROTHERS GRIMM Canadian Opera Company 2013
MY TWENTIETH CENTURY Glenn Gould School/Royal Conservatory 2013
ONE SONG GLORY Acting Upstage Company 2013
PARADISES LOST Summerworks/Musical Works in Concert 2013
GIRL RABBI of the GOLDEN WEST Orion/UVic 2013
OUT THE WINDOW Theatre Centre/Window Collective 2012
WELFAREWELL UP Playhouse/UWindsor 2012
CALCEDONIES LHSC/Jeff Nisker 2012/13
DUSTINGS CanadianStage Festival of Ideas and Creations 2011
CRIMES OF THE HEART UP Playhouse/UWindsor 2011
LE NOZZE DI FIGARO C.O.S.I. Sulmona, Italy 2010
L’ELISIR D’AMORE C.O.S.I. Sulmona, Italy 2010
SMASH Windsor University 2010
LAKE NORA ARMS Summerworks/ Factory Theatre/Leacock Festival 2009
MOURNING DOVE Tarragon Theatre /Ark Collective 2009
LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS CCPA, victoria BC 2008
7 STORIES CCPA, Victoria. BC 2007
TROJAN WOMEN Assistant Director / Marti Maraden/Stratford Festival 2008
ALL’S WELL THAT ENDS WELL Assistant Director / Marti Maraden/Stratford Festival 2008
OPERA ON THE ROCKS Ambient Opera Society/Paupers Pub 2008
OPERA BRIEFS 06& 07 Tapestry New Opera 2006/07
BUNNICULA Theatre Athena/director/choreographer 2007
HALF AN HOUR Directors’ Project/ Shaw Festival 2007
INVISIBLE MAN Assistant Director to Neil Munro/Shaw Festival 2007
THE CRUCIBLE Assistant Director to Tadeusz Bradecki/Shaw Festival 2007
ENEMIES ( Premiere ) Ryerson Theatre School 2006
ORCHIDS Marquis Entertainment 2005
TRYING Persephone Theatre 2005
SKYLIGHT Persephone Theatre 2004
THE PAJAMA GAME Randolph Academy/Bathurst Street Theatre 2007
THE GOOD WOMAN OF SETZUAN Director/choreographer/Ryerson Theatre School 2005
PLATONOV Assistant Director to Laszlo Marton
Soulpepper Theatre Company 2001
SCHOOL FOR WIVES Assistant Director to Laszlo Marton/Soulpepper 2001
AMADEUS Movement/Opera Coach – Theatre Aquarius 2007
ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE Assistant Director to Marti Maraden/
National Arts Centre 2001
TWELFTH NIGHT Assistant Director to Marti Maraden/NAC 2001
PAVLOV’S BROTHER Salivating Dog/Toronto Fringe 2005
SO. THEN. Creator/choreographer/ Mayhem Festival/Theatre Columbus 2005
MY DYING DAY London Fringe Festival 2003
WAVES Choreographer – Rhubarb Festival 1997
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