PricewaterhouseCoopers & the 2017 Sterling Committee are proud to present the 30th Annual Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Awards, celebrating the professional theatre in Edmonton.The Sterling Awards were created in 1987 to enhance the profile of live professional theatre and bring about a greater awareness of the performing arts in this remarkably dynamic city. Elizabeth Sterling Haynes, or Mrs. Haynes as she was known to her many students, was a pioneer in the development of theatre and theatre education in Alberta, and is the perfect example of the dedication and achievement we seek to celebrate.

1. •The 32nd Annual Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Awards will take place at The Mayfield Dinner Theatre, 16615 - 109 Avenue on Monday June 24th beginning at 4:30pm for cocktails with dinner at 5:00pm and show promptly at 6:30pm.After the show we will celebrate with dancing and regaling in the Mayfield Ballrooms, where DJ Leif Ingebrigsten will be spinning the tunes!
   

1. •The show will be written by Belinda Cornish and directed by Kate Ryan and Belinda Cornish. Ariel Spanier will be production manager and Rachel Rudd will be Stage Manager.
   

1. •Tickets are $65+GST, include full buffet, a spectacular show & dance, and are available by calling the Mayfield Dinner Theatre box office (780-483-4051) starting Tuesday June 6th.
   

• Questions? Interviews? Need more info? E-mail us at sterlings@shaw.ca

Outstanding Contribution to Theatre in Edmonton

The award for Outstanding Con- tribution to theatre in Edmonton is the greatest honour that we can bestow, and this year’s the award will go to not one but two joint recipients, whose individually au- tonomous yet mutually compli- mentary careers have fostered creativity, education and mentor- ship in generations of young artists - Greg Dowler Coltman and Tami Dowler Coltman.

Tami has been an arts educator and leader with Edmonton public schools for 4 decades, also teaching at the University of Alberta,Theatre Network, the Citadel Theatre and across the province. She has served as an acting coach, arts and cre- ativity advisor and twice served as Fine Arts consultant for the school board, and has both taught and served as Curriculum Director at Artstrek. In 1986, she was invited to be a part of the transformation of Victoria Composite, a crumbling inner city school with a dwindling population, into a vibrant centre of arts education - Victoria School of the Arts. As the driving force behind this revitalization, she built an innovative arts-based educational program whose ethos is to draw on the individual strengths of students, and, through its willingness and ability to provide non-traditional learning solutions, has given hundreds of children rich academic, artistic and personal development.

Greg is a graduate of the University of Alberta’s BFA Acting program, and began his ca- reer as artistic associate with Theatre Network, where he served as actor, director, dra- maturg and educational programmer, as well as teaching numerous courses at the De- partment of Drama, before completing his Education degree and then joining the arts faculty of Victoria School of the Arts in 1998. Over the past 2 decades, he has directed 25 mainstage productions and facilitated 20 years of PlayWorks,Vic’s student-directed- and-hosted one act play festival - whose focus he shifted from competition to celebration, judgement to analysis - and initiated formal mentorship programs and projects, connecting students to alumni and working professionals, all with the intent of helping Vic’s graduates to carry all their valuable learning and exceptional creativity into the real world.

Together, Greg and Tami’s passionate commitment to education and the arts continue to nourish the remarkable fountain of creative youth that is the beating heart of Edmon- ton’s theatre community.

The 2019 Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Awards committee is thrilled to honour Greg and Tami Dowler Coltman.

The Margaret Mooney Award for Outstanding Achievement in Administration

The Margaret Mooney Award for Outstanding Achievement in Administration honours an administrator who has most embodied the hard work and excellence the professional theatre demands. This year’s recipient is a man whose profound skill and efficiency is spiced with his passion for the artistic process, and wrapped in a big-hearted demeanour that makes working with him both a delight and a privilege: Adam Mitchell.

A long time member of the Edmonton the- atre community, Adam’s extensive back- ground in theatre, festival and event pro- duction is displayed in his prolific career, both in this city and across the country. He fulfilled the pivotal and immensely demand- ing role of technical director for both the Edmonton and Winnipeg fringes, as well as working as TD of the Royal Manitoba The- atre Centre, before almost returning to his hometown, spending 5 years in the position of Cultural Facilities Manager for the City of St.Albert, where he juggled managing the Arden Theatre, the Northern Alberta In- ternational Children’s Festival, and St.Albert Children’s Theatre. He has successfully com- bined his advocacy for education, culture and community at every stage of his journey. He understands the complex intricacies of facility operations, whilst also embracing the needs of the artists, and his great practical skill combined with his passion for artistic process allows him to confront every obstacle with creative solutions. In short, he’s the kind of guy who always finds a way to say yes!

In 2015, Adam returned home to the Edmonton Fringe, and assumed the role of Fringe Executive Director in early 2016 - we couldn’t be happier to have him back! In his own words, he believes that the Fringe is a place where people can come together to share and create, to build a better community together. And there could be no greater exam- ple of this ethos than he is himself.

The 2019 Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Awards Committee is delighted to honour the man who makes everything possible - the extraordinary Adam Mitchell.

The Ross Hill Award for Outstanding Achievement in Production

The Ross Hill Award for Outstanding Achievement in Production honours the experts behind the scenes for a body of work exemplifying a career of distinction and accom- plishment.This year’s recipient is an individual whose hugely prolific career is matched only by his jovial good nature: we are delighted to celebrate Alastair Elliot.

Alastair began his career at the tender age of 16, when he was paid ten dollars to run a follow spot for the intro and post show of a documen- tary called “Documentary”, which claimed to prove the existence of the Sasquatch. He then went on work for, well, just about every local theatre during the 1980s and 90s: Stage West, Theatre Network (where he met his wife, a former board member), Northern Light, Cata- lyst,Workshop West, the Citadel, the Kaasa and the old Chinook Theatre - and he was there when the Chinook became the New Varscona Theatre. He worked with Phoenix Theatre throughout its existence, from teching its very first shows in the Haar, to being technical director for the last show the Phoenix ever did. He was there at the inception of The- atre Network, and at the very first fringe - going on to become fringe technical director and then production manager in the early years. He’s provided his extraordinary skill and good humour on calls at the Coliseum, the Shaw, and countless individual shows and events, and has been house technician at the Jubilee Auditorium for 23 years.

His career is a study in longevity, commitment, enormous range, and the joy that a jubi- lant spirit brings to the work. Somehow, he has also found time to travel extensively with his family - visiting seven continents, and countless countries therein.

Editing his bio for this presentation - which he claims was written in crayon on a flight home from Japan - sifting through the profusion of jokes about his many jobs, and thank yous to his colleagues, has been a delight for us at the Sterling committee, and it speaks volumes about the extraordinary, witty, joyous, prolific man he is: the reasons why he is deeply beloved are crystal clear.

The 2019 Sterling Committee is thrilled to honour Alastair Elliot.

2019 Sterling Committee

April Banigan, Shannon Blanchet, Kendra Connor, Taylor Chadwick,  Kristi Hansen, Jason Hardwick, Mathew Hulshof, Maddy Knight

Show Committee 2019

Belinda Cornish, Kate Ryan, Yvette Martens, Kristi Hansen, Ariel Spanier, Rachel Rudd, Maddy Knight, Taylor Chadwick

Our 2019 Sterling Sponsors

Without the following award sponsors we would not be able to put on the tremendous celebration of the theatre in our city that the Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Awards has become:

Canadian Actors’ Equity Association
The Canadian Institute for Theatre Technology
ACTRA

Edmonton Arts Council
Players de novo
Theatre Alberta
Rapid Fire Theatre
The Varscona Theatre
The Mayfield Dinner Theatre
The Next Act
Red Deer College
Dimensions Graphics
Mosaic Entertainment
Production World

Barber Ha
PriceWaterhouse Coopers

Fringe Theatre Adventures

Bottom Line Productions

The 32nd Annual Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Awards will take place Monday, June 24, 2019 at the Mayfield Dinner Theatre!!!