Join us in March of 2026 to celebrate 80 years of all things USask Drama.
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For 80 years, the University of Saskatchewan’s drama program and Greystone Theatre company have been at the heart of Canadian theatre—geographically, historically, and artistically. As the first university drama program in the Commonwealth, it has shaped generations of theatre artists, influencing both local and global performance landscapes. For our 80th anniversary, we will engage with this legacy and its evolving future through the creation of one-act plays that explore theatre in Saskatoon as a central node in a vast network of artistic creation.
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Celebrate USask Drama's 80th anniversary by coming together on Saturday, March 21st, 2026. 
A welcome reception and program will begin at 4:30pm, with dinner to be served afterwards.

80th Anniversary Showcase: 5 New Plays

To commemorate 80 years of being in the middle of every_____, School for the Arts - Drama has commissioned 5 alumni of the program to create 5 brand-new one-act plays. These original works, directed by Skye Brandon (BFA '00, MFA '19) and Ken MacKenzie (current Drama Faculty) will be premiered and performed in the Emrys Jones Theatre from March 19-28, 2026.

Rotating Performance Schedule:

March 19 - 7:30PM  March 20 - 7:30PM March 21 - 8:00PM March 23 - 7:30PM March 25 - 7:30PM March 26 - 7:30PM March 27 - 12:00PM March 28 - 7:30PM
A Ghost Named Hank, MUD: A Prairie Fairytale,
Idyll in the Wild
Double Major,
In the Middle of Every Storm is a Moment of Quiet
A Ghost Named Hank, MUD: A Prairie Fairytale,
Idyll in the Wild
Double Major,
In the Middle of Every Storm is a Moment of Quiet

A Ghost Named Hank, MUD: A Prairie Fairytale,
Idyll in the Wild

Double Major,
In the Middle of Every Storm is a Moment of Quiet
A Ghost Named Hank, MUD: A Prairie Fairytale,
Idyll in the Wild
Double Major,
In the Middle of Every Storm is a Moment of Quiet

The Plays

In the Middle of Every Storm is a Moment of Quiet (Clare Middleton) invites the audience to participate collectively as it follows a woman at a crossroads, deciding who she is — and whether to stay in or cash out. Through her story, the play explores the lens through which we view our lives, asking what truly shapes us: our failures, our choices, or the people who surround us. 

Mud: A Prairie Fairytale (Hope McIntyre) - In Mud: A Prairie FairytaleRain, one of the elemental fae who rule over the prairies, has been poisoned. Through a series of three stories, you must learn who poisoned Rain and decide their fate.  

Idyll in the Wild (Hope McIntyre) - Sass is stuck in the middle, unable to decide what to do as a newly minted graduate with a theatre degree. Do they stay or strike out seeking adventure - the ghosts, spirits and visitations have a lot to say without providing any helpful advice. 

A Ghost Named Hank (Leanne Griffin) is a comedy about the way a place holds memories. The play, set in 1993, follows a group of University of Saskatchewan drama students attempting to coerce Hank, the theatre ghost, to move to the new John Mitchell Building before the old Hangar Building is turned into a parking lot. 

Double Major (Sugith Varughese) is an autobiographical play based on the experience of the playwright as the first pre-med/drama double major at the U of S Drama Department 50 years ago. The names have been changed to protect the innocent.

The Playwrights

Clare Middleton (she/her) has BFA in Acting U of S, MFA in Creative Writing UBC has been working in and around theatre for the past several decades. Clare loves to teach adults and kids alike and has held several Artist in Residence positions around the province. She has taught theatre classes for U of S, U of R, and UBC, and is a founding member of Live Five theatre season in Saskatoon. Her passion for theatre takes her in all directions and she especially loves when she gets to work on projects that involve her doing puppetry, clowning, new plays, storytelling, theatre for young audiences and directing. Clare lives in Treaty 6 territory (Saskatoon) with her husband, two kids, three dogs and plants – too many plants.

Lauren Griffin (she/her) is a writer, actor and stage manager from Treaty Six Territory. Lauren graduated from the University of Saskatchewan with a BFA in Drama and minors in Psychology and English, and was awarded the University Medal in the Fine Arts. Awarded Outstanding Emerging Artist at the 2025 SATAs, Lauren acted in and wrote The Mooneaters, which won Best Local Show at the Saskatoon Fringe Festival (2025). Lauren has also acted in Paper Wheat (Dancing Sky Theatre 2025) and Breaking the Curse (25th Street Theatre). Lauren’s stage management credits include The Art of French Cooking (SM - 25th Street Theatre) and Men Express Their Feelings (ASM - 25th Street Theatre). Lauren’s publications include “Frost” (1st place Hybrid Grain Contest, Grain Vol.51.3) and “Excavation” (Guild Prize winner, Freelance Vol.53 No.4). Lauren’s poems “The Way We Walk,” “Birthday,” and “Eggshells” were published in Spring Magazine 2024, Vol.14. 

Hope McIntyre is an award-winning playwright and director. She is an Associate Professor at the University of Winnipeg Department of Theatre and Film. Her training includes a BFA in performance from the University of Saskatchewan and an MFA in directing from the University of Victoria. She was the founding Artistic Director of Sarasvàti Productions, a company dedicated to social change that she helmed for 22 years. During this tenure she developed multiple new theatrical works, produced FemFest (an annual festival), worked as a dramaturg for emerging playwrights, and developed community-based play creation methods. Since leaving the company in 2020 she has focused on her own work as a playwright. She has received the YWCA Women of Distinction Award, the Bra D’Or, the Women Helping Women Award, and Mahatma Gandhi Social Change Award for her work supporting community. She is also a former President of the Playwrights Guild of Canada.  

Leanne Griffin (she/her) holds a master's degree in drama from the University of Saskatchewan. She has taught acting classes at NORTEP and St. Peter’s College. Her acting credits include Much Ado About Nothing and The White Devil at Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan, Steer Clear of Kafka at 25th Street Theatre, and various Fringe productions. Leanne has written and directed three plays for Fringe Theatre Festivals. She has also written and directed 16 high school plays, winning Best Overall Production 14 times at regional festivals and Best Overall Production 3 times at provincial festivals with her productions of The History of Dating (2006), Dust (2016), and The Hotel (2017). Leanne’s plays, including Dancing With Myself (published by YouthPLAYS), have been performed across Canada and the United States. Her script Bluebeard’s Chamber was selected for inclusion in the Saskatchewan Playwrights Centre 2018 Spring Festival of New Plays. The SUM Theatre 2024–25 First Monday series of staged readings of new Saskatchewan plays included her script Personal Space. Her latest play, A Ghost Named Hank, was selected as one of five commissioned plays to celebrate 80 years of Drama at the University of Saskatchewan in 2026.

Sugith Varughese - Pioneering South Asian Canadian in the arts. A Writers’ Guild of Canada award winning screenwriter and Gemini award-nominated TV writer best known for writing and starring in the first multicultural romantic comedy produced by CBC TV, Best of Both Worlds and the iconic Muppet series Fraggle Rock. After winning the first York Trillium Award for Most Promising Writer-Television, he was the first minority to attend the prestigious Canadian Film Centre as a writer-director. His subsequent short films and children's TV dramas have screened at festivals globally and won several awards. His stage play Entitlement premiered at the Summerworks Theatre Festival in 2013 and he co-wrote the acclaimed outdoor play with music, The Postman, that premiered at the Panamania arts festival in 2015. His most recent work is 26 Doctors, a solo show he wrote and performed which premiered at Summerworks in Toronto in 2025. He has won or been nominated for 11 national and international awards and win a Writers Guild of Canada screenwriting award for the Talespinners series he wrote for the NFB. As an actor, director and writer, he has over 150 screen credits, including recurring on both the hit TV series comedy Kim’s Convenience seen on CBC in Canada and Netflix worldwide and the acclaimed TV series drama Transplant on CTV in Canada and NBC in the US. He has also made many stage appearances, including a Dora Award nominated performance starring in Little Pretty and The Exceptional at Toronto’s Factory Theatre. He is a member of the WGC, ACTRA and CAEA and the Canadian Academy of Cinema and Television. He is listed in Who’s Who in Canada and wikipedia.org
Do you have a USask Drama memory or photo you would like to share for the anniversary? 
Feel free to share any photos and memories to drama@usask.ca

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