The Flame: Hope Springs Eternal Edition

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Tune in for a night of uplifting stories filled with the fresh hope of spring from a variety of accomplished, local storytellers, hosted by award-winning actor and one of the creators of Mom's the Word, Deborah Williams. The Flame is well-known in the Vancouver storytelling community for being a sizzling storytelling series, and features personal, true stories shared with a live audience.

FLAME PERFORMER BIOS:

Tequila Mockingbird: From film to Facebook & from artist to advocate, the two words that best describe Tequila succinctly are, “She’s complicated.”

Yanting Qiu, a.k.a. Beichuan, is a foodie & theatre lover who collects recipes & stories all the time. Yanting is also the co-founder of the Theatre as a Second Language Society & serves as playwright and dramaturgy for UBC Face Drama Club. She is now working on building a community for Chinese speaking storytellers and encouraging the use of dialects and accents on the theatre stage.

As an award-winning writer, Dave Deveau investigates queer themes that speak to a broad audience. He is the Playwright in Residence for Vancouver’s Zee Zee Theatre, & is deeply devoted to developing intelligent, theatrical plays for young people that foster conversation. He lives in Vancouver with husband Cameron Mackenzie & their almost three-year-old.

Alysha Collie is a mixed Afro-Indigenous artist, storyteller and educator from the The'wá:lí (Soowahlie) First Nation. She recently graduated on the Dean’s List with a Bachelor of Science degree - a Biology Major and Visual Arts Minor. While at university, Alysha spent her time as an Indigenous Peer Mentor where she assisted her peers with their culturally sensitive needs while also providing academic support. During university she helped plan a Reconciliation Shakespeare Garden, a unique space designed to bring Indigenous & non-Indigenous communities together through plants & storytelling. Alysha now focuses on decolonization by reclaiming her ancestral roots through art creation, public speaking, storytelling, performing & filmmaking.

Norma Pelkie is a lover of stories; both written and oral, a wife, a mother of sorts to her standard poodle, Cooper, a sister to her 10 siblings (8 sisters & 2 brothers), a friend to many, & psychologist to her clients. Seven years ago, with great trepidation, she attended one of Deb’s Flame workshops & to her surprise uncovered a passion for storytelling. She enjoys dancing, cycling, baking cookies, & prior to COVID welcoming family and friends into her home.

Caitlin is a Writer, Producer, Host, Actor, Voice Over actor. Caitlin originally trained in theatre at Studio 58 in Vancouver, but in recent years has focused more on Film/TV. She’s appeared on stages primarily in Vancouver & Toronto - most recently in a critically-acclaimed production of SCRATCH, which she also produced.

Michelle Fleming is portrait photographer and co-owner of Skylight Images that she runs with her husband. Her children have all flown the coop to get educated. Now she is caring for her mom.

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Surrey Civic Theatres

Surrey Civic Theatres are built on the unceded territories of the se’mya’me (Semiahmoo), q̓ʷɑ:n̓ƛ̓ən̓ (Kwantlen), and q̓ic̓əy̓ (Katzie) nations. We are honoured to work and learn on land they have stewarded since time immemorial.

Surrey Civic Theatres are owned and operated by the City of Surrey. Venues include the Main Stage and Studio Theatre inside the Surrey Arts Centre, and Centre Stage located inside Surrey City Hall.

Events held on these stages are both programmed by Surrey Civic Theatres’ staff, as well as presented by organizations and individuals who rent the theatres. Together, they provide the community with a spectrum of performing arts and entertainment options.

Surrey Civic Theatres also support the training and development of emerging artists through performing arts classes and workshops including day camps for children, youth, and adults.

The annual Surrey International Children’s Festival is produced as part of the Surrey Civic Theatres’ portfolio of programming.

Guided by the best practices of performing arts venues in Canada, Surrey Civic Theatres ensures its venues are safe for audiences, artists, and their specialized staff. All venues feature LED lighting to be more sustainable.

Together, the three venues support a busy schedule of high-quality performing arts from classical music and dance from a variety of cultures, through to socially engaged theatre productions for all ages, as well as numerous community events.