Welcome,
Sum Theatre friends and family, to the 2021/22 season of The Last Sunday. Please join us on the last Sunday of each month (October – May) for exciting creations in response to the month’s current events. You will see work from playwrights, musicians, ranters, and a hot seat interview. All in one action packed hour.
There is a lot going on in the world and the Last Sunday is here to help us digest our current moment. We hope these performances and the discussions they generate will help build a better community.
This is the 5th season of The Last Sunday, and we are thrilled to welcome partners in Regina, Prince Albert, Swift Current and The Battlefords.
“It’s theatre of the now,” says artistic director Joel Bernbaum. “Art is more relevant than it has ever been before. It has the power to take people down a new path of understanding the world around them. We believe these performances and the discussions they generate will build a better community.”
Join us live at The Refinery at 607 Dufferin Ave or Online
Topic of the Month - Vaccine Passports
With pandemic fatigue, health care worker burn out, protests and now vaccination passports. Is this the way out? Will this help get us to a more “normal”? Come join the conversation.
Doors open at 6:30pm - Show Starts at 7:00pm
**Proof of vaccination and masks are required for entry**
**Costumes Optional **
The Line-Up this Month
Actor
Skye Brandon
Skye is a Treaty 6 actor/director/producer who has a great passion for both classical theatre and new works. He has appeared in productions for Persephone Theatre, Globe Theatre, Dancing Sky Theatre (where he also spent two seasons as Artistic Producer), Station Arts Centre, Drayton Entertainment, Prairie Theatre Exchange, Northern Light Theatre, Theatre Calgary, and a number of companies under the Live Five banner. Skye has appeared at the Stratford Festival for five seasons, and Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan for six seasons where is also currently Co-Interim Festival Curator.
Actor
Drew Mantyka
Drew (He/Him) is a Saskatoon based theatre artist. He is an emerging actor, director, playwright, physical theatre creator, the occasional stage manager and wears every other hat he can get his hands on. Drew is also the Co-founder of new Saskatoon theatre company Wonder City Collective which he runs with his fiancé Sammy. You can check out their current projects on Instagram @wondercitycollective. Drew has been working with Sum for a number of years, including helping to run the first three seasons of The Last Sunday, and is delighted to be performing again in one of his favorite events. Drew would like to thank his family and his fiancé for supporting him in all he does.
Actor
Johanna Arnott
Johanna (she/her) is a multidisciplinary theatre artist who works primarily as an actor, writer, and stage manager. Some of her recent theatre credits include: Short Cuts 2020 (actor; Hardly Art Theatre), The Winter’s Tale (actor; Bridge Theatre Co.), The Wolves (actor; littleBIG Theatre & Evilstick Productions), The Last Children (SM; Curtain Razors Theatre), The Art of War (SM; Hardly Art Theatre), and The Penelopiad (SM; Ferre Play Theatre), When she’s not working in theatre, Johanna can be found taking part in the thrilling sport of knitting. This past year was… a lot. Johanna is excited to be leaving the Zoom call and entering the theatre again.
Actor
Kat MacLean
Kathleen MacLean is an IndigiQueer Métis-Settler from Treaty 6 Territory, Saskatoon who currently lives in Treaty 1, Winnipeg. Kathleen is a graduate from the National Theatre School of Canada. She’s excited to be back in Saskatoon for a while! Recent credits include The Rez Sisters (Stratford Festival), Women of the Fur Trade (RMTC), The Third Colour (PTE).
Playwright
Yvette Nolan
Yvette Nolan (Algonquin) is a playwright, director and dramaturg. Her work with Sum Theatre includes Thicker Than Water, Little Badger and the Fire Spirit, Queen Seraphina and the Land of Vertebraat, The Young Ones and Last Sunday. Other work includes The Tempest (Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan), Reasonable Doubt (Perspehone), The Unplugging (Arts Club; Factory; GTNT), the dance-opera Bearing (Signal Theatre), and the libretto Shawnadithit (Tapestry Opera). Her book, Medicine Shows, about Indigenous performance in Canada was published by Playwrights Canada Press in 2015. She is currently pursuing her Masters in Public Policy at Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy.
Musician
Chelsea Mahan
On the operatic stage, soprano Chelsea Mahan has been praised for her panache of character (La Presse, 2015), while her comedic work “creates some of the most memorable, [and] funny moments” (Star Phoenix, 2016). Her rich yet ethereal tone is complemented by the warmth and passion that she weaves into every phrase. Equally at home performing concert repertoire for large audiences, in intimate recital settings, or in studio recording, Ms. Mahan enjoys a vast career that specializes in up-close and personal performances in found spaces such as warehouses and abandoned churches. The depth of her interpretations and her ability to bring meaning to every work has brought success with every venture. Ms. Mahan has made appearances with La Compagnie Baroque Mont-Royal, Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra, Regina Symphony Orchestra, Saskatoon Opera, Souris Valley Theatre, Little Opera on the Prairie, Swift Current Oratorio Choir, and SUM Theatre. In March 2020, she made her SSO Main Stage Series debut as the soprano soloist for the highly anticipated North American premiere of Rebecca Dale’s Materna Requiem. Off stage she works with singers, teachers, and speakers using her high level of technicality, intuitive and trained ear, expressive language and innate knowledge of the vocal mechanism to achieve the goal of optimal vocal health. Ms. Mahan holds her B.Mus/B.Ed from the University of Saskatchewan and her M.Mus in Opera and Voice Performance from McGill University. Outside the music world, Ms. Mahan is the mother of two girls who provide inspiration for her performances with the all-female improv comedy troupe SHEnanigans. She can also be found dabbling in the art of clown and contributing to the comedy and theatre scenes in Saskatoon.
Musician
Naomi Piggott-Suchan
Ms. Piggott-Suchan is a graduate of McGill University’s Master of Music program where she studied collaborative performance under Prof. Michael McMahon. She has been a professional accompanist for McGill University’s Voice Department, coaching undergraduate students in French, English, German and Italian, as well as diction, musical style and ensemble. Ms. Suchan was also a frequent recitalist at McGill and throughout the Montreal area. Ms. Suchan received her Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance from the University of Saskatchewan, where she graduated with Great Distinction and was awarded the University of Saskatchewan’s medal in Fine Arts. During this degree, she studied under Kathleen Lorenz Gable and Kathleen Solose. Ms. Suchan has attended the American Institute of Musical Studies in Graz, Austria, where she was named the Most Outstanding Collaborative Pianist in Lieder. Ms. Suchan has also studied at the Centre for Opera in Sulmona, Italy; Icicle Creek Chamber Music Center in Washington State, USA; and NUOVA in Edmonton, Alberta. In March 2020, Ms. Piggott-Suchan was the principal pianist in a Lecture-Recital tour featuring a new work for saxophone and piano that developed the complexities of isolated Metis fiddle music from the Ebb and Flow First Nation in northern Manitoba. Songs of Ebb and Flow was performed in 10 schools across Saskatchewan and as part of the Fine Arts Research Lecture Series at the University of Saskatchewan. Songs of Ebb and Flow was professionally recorded by Ms. Suchan and Gerard Weber in March 2020. For the last ten years, Ms. Suchan has directed the Opera Ensemble and Accompanying program at Summer School for the Solo Voice, and has regularly premiered new Saskatchewan compositions at the Strata Festival of New Music. Ms. Suchan is a certified exam pianist for the Royal Academy of Dance, an adjudicator for the Saskatchewan Music Festival Association, and Preparatory Accompanist for the Saskatoon Children’s Choir. She has been an extra musician with the Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra, and has also accompanied at the National Music Festival. Ms. Piggott-Suchan maintains a Royal Conservatory of Music teaching studio for piano, offering preparation for practical and theory exams. She lives in Saskatoon with her husband Paul and two children, Evelyn and Isaac.
Special Guest
Belick
Belick has been kicking around Saskatoon for a couple of years now, surfacing mostly at local arts events where he dabbles in magic tricks, illusions, and social commentary. Due to this being an entirely unsustainable source of income, they are looking to branch out into maybe a more permanent career path in senior management, Senior’s Management, or Hummus Taster. They enjoy craft beer, middle eastern desserts, and their own personal space. They dislike deer crafts, middle eastern deserts, and humans calling other humans “Clowns”.
Call for Artists
Interested in lending your artistic skills to a Last Sunday performance?
Frequently Asked Questions
The Last Sunday is a live talk show featuring a play, a musical act, a rant and a hotseat interview. All packed into one hour.
Anyone is welcome to attend The Last Sunday.
The event is curated for an adult audience, though youth are welcome. Sum Theatre does not provide an age rating for the material. In fact, we often do not know the content of the pieces before showtime. We encourage artists to respond as they wish.
If you would like to watch The Last Sunday livestream from your home, please RSVP through the link at the top of the page.
If we are able to have a LIVE AUDIENCE at the Broadway Theatre: We are taking the necessary precautions to ensure the health and safety of those who would like to join us in person for The Last Sunday. The Broadway Theatre requires that masks be worn when you are in the building. Hand sanitizer will be provided as you enter the space. Proper social distancing will be observed. We are asking all who attend The Last Sunday to sign in upon entry to facilitate contact tracing.
As you arrive, you will be asked to sign our contact tracing form, and then front of house staff will escort you to your seat in the theatre. Once you are seated you will be asked to remain seated until the end of the performance.
If we are unable have a live audience at the Broadway: All performers, technicians, and Sum Theatre staff will be masked throughout the show. Performers will be wearing clear plastic face shields while they are on stage so you can see their faces! Everyone in the theatre will be socially distanced throughout the night.
Thanks to the generous support of our sponsors, The Last Sunday is free of charge.
If you find The Last Sunday valuable, consider supporting Sum Theatre with a monthly donation.
The Live Stream of the event is free and accessible to everyone who can access the internet.
We simply ask that you RSVP at the top of this page (if you haven't already RSVP'd for a previous Last Sunday) so we know who to send the link to!
We have all of this year's Last Sunday's on our YouTube channel HERE.
So even if you missed one or you couldn't watch on the day of, you can catch up on the Sum Theatre content.
We are excited to announce that we have moved to the Broadway Theatre which allows for accessibility.
Main access into the building is with ramps inside and around the theatre.
There are also accessible washrooms available.
There are gender neutral washrooms in the lobby. If you need to use the washroom’s we ask you to do so before you are seated.
Thanks to our Sponsors!
