Why an Interview,,,

Over the years we have been able to meet and talk with some very interesting people. They have shared with us their knowledge and have provided us with a great deal of insight as to how and why festivals and events work and why they are so important to our communities and to the Province of Ontario. With this in mind, we decided that we wanted you to meet and hear from some of the wonderful people who work so hard to provide us all with such wonderful Ontario Festivals and Events! We are pleased and proud to present "THE INSIDE SCOOP"!

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Interview with Ian Farthing (Part Three)


Ian Farthing
Artistic Director
St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival


What you may also not know about Mr. Ian Farthing is that he is a professional singer and has had the opportunity to perform with the acclaimed men’s choir Chor Leoni! Since this group is primarily located in Vancouver I asked Ian if he was active with them still. Ian shares with me that “The choir are very generous and allow me to slip in and sing concerts whenever I’m back in Vancouver (which isn’t often). I started singing with them about 6 years ago when I was going through a thin period on the work front and I found that I got amazing artistic sustenance singing all of that wonderful music. I love the fact that we sing everything from Canadian folk songs to classical to Queen!” I wondered if Ian had a preference of Directing versus Performing and his reply was “Not really a preference, as I enjoy both processes immensely. If I can continue to do both alongside each other, I will be very happy!” Ian seems to be happy. When I have seen him, he always has a continuous smile on his lips and a gleam in his eyes! Getting more SCOOP, Ian shares his role as Artistic Director at the St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival, “involves working year-round to ensure that the summer is a success. Although the summer festival is just over 5 weeks of performances, we have to start planning a year in advance”. (This sounds typical of most festivals/events throughout Ontario, where the dedication of volunteers, staff and the community play a critical role in the success of a festival/event!) He goes on to say “Whether it’s fundraising, marketing, planning the performance schedule or organizing other events during the year, there’s never a dull moment! Although part of the AD's job is to be “the face of the festival”, that is only the tip of the iceberg and administrative tasks take up 90% of the time.”
(To be continued)

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