#402 – Scott Garland
This week on Stageworthy, host Phil Rickaby sits down with actor, writer, and theatre creator Scott Garland. A fixture in Toronto’s theatre community, Scott is passionate about playwriting, dramaturgy, and fostering creative spaces. He was one of the curators of Sing for Your Supper, a monthly play reading series that gave playwrights a chance to hear their work performed.
Scott is also a founding member of Silent Protagonist, a puppet theatre company that gained attention with Frankensteinesque at the Toronto Fringe. In this conversation, he shares insights on theatre school, the challenges of independent theatre, and the importance of building artistic community.
This episode dives into:
- Scott’s early theatre influences and what led him to pursue acting.
- His experience in multiple theatre schools and how training shaped his career.
- The evolution of Sing for Your Supper and its role in supporting new playwrights.
- Why Toronto’s theatre community needs more development opportunities before production.
- His work with Silent Protagonist and the art of puppetry in theatre.
- His experience in voice acting, including People Watching.
- The emotional impact of the pandemic on artists and why we need bold, fearless creativity.
Guest:
🎭 Scott Garland
Scott Garland is a German-born, Alberta-raised Toronto-based actor and writer.
A George Brown grad, with a BA from the University of Alberta, he’s best known for performing as Harris in Pea Green Theatre’s award-winning Three Men in a Boat. He’s a founding member of the puppet theatre company Silent Protagonist and former host-curator of the new works play reading series Sing For Your Supper.
Stage credits include Kitchen Witches & Complete Works of William Shakespeare Abridged (Bruce County Playhouse), Midnight Madness (Port Stanley Festival Theatre), Romeo and Juliet Chainsaw Massacre (Bain & Bernard), Threepenny Opera (Soup Can), Miracle on 34th Street (Sudbury Theatre Centre). Writing credits: A Madhouse Dramedy (play), Half A league (play;) and episode writer for Female Therapy (web series). You can hear him in the award-winning animated series People Watching (CBC Gem) and Let’s Go Luna (PBS Kids); or catch him on select episodes of Workin Moms, Mayor of Kingstown, Murdoch Mysteries, and Titans.
Connect with Scott:
📸 Instagram: @scottdontgotthegram
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Transcript
Transcript is auto-generated and may contain minor errors.
Phil: Scott Garland is one of those, people that, that, I’m surprised that I never had him on the podcast before. Scott and I have run in similar circles. the fringe circle that’s run a fringe festival circle, um, theatre in general. Scott’s name has popped up so many times. It’s surprising to me that I never had him on the podcast.
I’m fixing that today. but again, in the entire seven years of, of the previous run of stage worthy, talking to Scott just didn’t happen. So I’m really, really thrilled to talk to Scott today. Scott Garland is many things. Scott is an actor and writer. He’s really passionate about playwriting and about, development of plays.
Scott was, uh, one of the hosts and the, curator . For, the play reading series, sing For Your Supper, which at the time that I first encountered Scott was being held at The Storefront Theatre. and it’s moved to several different, venues in its time.
Scott is a founding member of the Puppet Theatre Company, silent protagonist.
Phil: a few years ago at Fringe, they had a show called Frankenstein-esque, which was, uh, one of the big, uh, of fringe that year. Uh, and one that I would describe as, uh, wonderfully weird. Uh, which I think Scott will take as a, a compliment. so I’m really, really excited to be talking to Scott today. if you’re new here, I’m Phil Ricky. I am the host and producer of Stage Worthy, And so if you’re watching on YouTube, make sure that you, uh, like [00:02:00] if you do the whole like and subscribe thing and hit the whole bell, uh, if you are listening in your ear holes, uh, make sure that if you haven’t already, that you’ve subscribed to the podcast, uh, or followed.
If you’re on Apple Podcasts, , I would love to have you as a regular listener, or watcher if you’re on YouTube. So, uh, please join me. I have a Patreon and my patrons are the ones who have allowed me to get to the point where I’m able to bring this back after a year, OO of no stage worthy. and so that’s it. patreon.com/stage. As a patron, you will become, uh, sort of the brain trust, suggestions for what the panel discussions will look like, questions for guests, and anything else that we can come up with together to make stage worthy, an amazing place to be.
I’d love to have you there as well. Uh, that’s enough business for now. Now here is my conversation with Scott Garland.
So Scott, I was thinking about, about the fact that earlier today I was thinking earlier that, you know, I. Previous to my, uh, um, one year long break or whatever I wanna refer to it, to, um, it, it sort of astounds me that I’ve not had you on the podcast before. Um, because our paths have have crossed for many years, so
many a shoulder, many a shoulder, um, and I, I be, be, even though we’ve, we’ve, we’ve crossed paths, rubbed shoulders and been in the same room, I, I don’t know you as well as I should.
So I wanna ask, uh, just a little bit about your background and how you found yourself, uh, interested in theatre and how that, how that manifested and what made you want to pursue that
Scott: Okay. Um, all right. Uh, I blame my parents. Uh, no. I, uh. I’m, uh, I’m a small town Alberta boy. Um, a lucky son of two veterans in the Air Force. So, uh, I was, uh, born in Germany, uh, during the Cold War and, uh, then we came back home and, uh, then the wall came down and I’m like, I guess we’re just Canadians again.
And, uh, we were always Canadians. What am I talking about? Uh, stop trying to make yourself more interesting. . Uh, yeah. And then I grew up in, uh, Northern Alberta in a place called Grand Center. Don’t try to find it on map ’cause it doesn’t exist anymore. Uh, it’s, uh, now the Tri-Town area of Cold Lake Alberta.
And, uh, yeah, not a lot of drama programs there. Um, we, we had a high school . Drama class that I actually remember teaching once. ’cause the teacher was just like, you, you watch whose lens anyway, could you just lead the class for a bit? I was like, okay, . And, uh, I grew up, my parents, God loved ’em. They, uh, threw as many interests at me as they could.
They did the sports, I did the music, they did the cadets. They did, uh, martial arts, like anything they can think of. Uh, and I was just a sad kid until, uh, one year they, uh, they saw the Edmonton Fringe was a thing. Uh, they’re like, yeah, this seems like a thing that happens every year. Uh, get ’em outta the house.
They took me and I was hooked. Um, and that was my, uh, right before my senior year of high school. So I was like, oh, this is the thing. Oh, okay, yeah, this is all right. And then suddenly I came alive and they’re like, okay, it’s a terrible life choice and we support you a hundred percent. So thanks mom and dad.
Phil: Was there something, was there something else that, that you were like, this is the thing I’m going to do, and then you, the Edmonton Fringe happened and you changed paths, or were you sort of adrift not knowing what you wanted to do?
Scott: Uh, I mean, everything was always in the creative sphere. Um, I really loved writing from an early age. Um, my favorite book in grade three was The Thesaurus. We had a, we had a glass, the, we had a class thesaurus. It was about this big, and it was described to me as my teacher was just like, it’s like a thing where if you have a word but you want a better word, just look for it in this book.
And I was like, that is the coolest thing ever in technology will never get greater than this. Um. So, yeah, my first favorite book was at Thesaurus. Um, I, uh, I love drawing. Um, but no, everything was kind of just like, uh, what are you gonna do, Scott? I’m like, I don’t know, man. I’m just gonna go with vibes alone.
Uh, and then, yeah, Edmonton Fringe, uh, saw as many shows as I could. Um, I would find out later, uh, how spoiled I was for that to be my first fringe. Um, both as like an attendee and also just like a first exposure. Uh, ’cause I’m sure well, you’ve, you’ve toured man, you know, you haven’t fringe like Yeah.
Imagine, imagine like, you know, uh, the first play you ever see is like, uh, at the West End, and it’s just like, oh, I guess this is what the theatre is. It’s like, this is what some theatre is
since then, I’ve either always attended a French festival or, uh, participated in some kind of fringe festival.
Uh, be it, uh, Fort Murray’s short-lived interplay festival, the Edmonton French Festival, the Ottawa French Festival, et cetera, et cetera. And so, like, you know, like, uh, Toronto Fringe for example, uh, if you’re taking a snapshot of 10 years ago to today, very different beast. Um, same can be said about Edmonton Fringe.
It is so large, it spans much larger than the small section. It was for my money. Now, my favorite fringe in the country I think is actually probably Winnipeg Fringe. I think it’s the right size. Not too big, not too small, just right.
Phil: Yeah. Yeah. Now were there any, are there any shows that you saw at that particular first fringe that stuck with you?
Scott: zoo story.
Phil: Zoo Story. Okay. Al Albi. Yeah. Hmm.
Scott: Two guys and a bench.
Phil: It is two guys in a bench, but it’s like it all leads up to this huge thing that if you don’t know what’s coming,
it’s, it’s pretty awesome.
Scott: Yeah. And again, like immortal, immortal way to it, it’s an improv scene. It very much is an improv scene. Like as you look into the story of it, you’re like, this is the foundation of every improv scene. Just two guys at a bench, one guy enters, says something weird. Okay, let’s build a play off of that
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: yeah. And again, like that was one of my first favorite plays. And, uh, fun fact about that is if anyone’s watching or listening to this and is just like, oh God, how did become a playwright? How will I become successful? Like one of the greats of which Albi is one of the, like, he’s, he’s one of the big three of American modern drama at the time, the premier of that play was in Germany
Phil: Huh.
Scott: and he just kinda like it, it got rejected everywhere. And then some theatre in Germany was like, we wanna put your play on. He was like, okay. And then they did. And then I come, come see it. He is like, yeah, sure. And he showed up and he was just like, so that’s my play.
Phil: Yeah. so you grew up in, in, in, in Alberta.
What, what brought you to Toronto?
Scott: so in Alberta, uh, because again, like I said, I didn’t have a very, uh, strong, uh, uh, drama high school drama program. Uh, and I, I then I, I just say I, sometimes I’d be very flippant and, uh, I, I just wanna say, um, every, every person in my life has tried to do their best. Every institution has tried to do their best.
No one was out for me. I’ve had very supportive upbringing, but because again, they, we, I’m, I’m ju I’m one of the judges for the NTS uh, drama Festival, uh, for the regionals next week. And, uh, I never went to any drama festivals when I was in high school. We just, it was not a thing we really knew or thought about.
So it’s, it’s very nice for me. But, um, so I had to get training. And back then they had these, uh, we had a bunch of programs across the province. They were two year diploma programs in theatre. It was Mount Royal. It was, um, Keanu College, uh, back then, um, the, uh, grant McEwen University was a grant McEwen two year musical theatre program.
Rosebud, uh, U of C, all of that. So I auditioned for all of them. Uh, everyone said, no, except for Fort McMurray. They’re like, yeah, we could do something with this guy. Uh, so I went even farther north to, uh, learn what many people would learn. The basics of drama is . Um, I got to do it in two years in college and just be in awe and amazement.
Uh, then I transferred to Edmonton to get my degree. ’cause uh, my parents instilled in me that like, well, you gotta get a degree. If you got a degree, then like, it doesn’t matter what you do in life, you got a degree to fall back on. That degree was in arts, in drama and English. heck of a fallback. Um, and.
When I was there, I got a lot more interested in writing in stage combat, um, because Edmonton’s a small town, so it’s very small. I mean, I know people think like Toronto or anywhere they go, they’re just like, oh, the old guard. Oh, it’s, it’s very, it’s such a small town. Edmonton’s just like, yeah, there’s four guys and if any of them don’t like you, you’re not working.
Um, . So, uh, uh, things weren’t going great and I was like, well then I guess I gotta get more training. And similarly, I now applied for every program in the country, uh, and everyone said no, uh, except for George Brown. Um, and since they were the only ones who said yes, I was like, I guess I’m going to Toronto
Phil: Now, when you started at George Brown, were they already at the salt pepper space?
Scott: Yes, I was at George Brown from 2010 to 2013, uh, near the end of the problematic years.
Phil: Okay. ’cause I was gonna, I was gonna, I was gonna ask, uh, what your experience was like. ’cause I’ve, there’ve been people that I’ve talked to who,
Scott: On
Phil: I went to, I went to George Brown, um, uh, uh, in the early nineties, um, long before Soul Pepper was ever a
twinkle that that space was ever a twinkle in anybody’s eye.
Um. And we had our issues.
Scott: Mm-hmm
Phil: But when I would talk to people who were George Brown graduates, and I would ask them, um, you know, how, what their experience was like, um, during the interview, they would, they would give sort of like a very tense smile and they’d be like, it was great. And then that would be the end of the conversation.
And then afterwards they would tell me, these, these, these, the, the, some of them horror stories, some of them uncomfortable stories, like these stories about, about the experiences that they had. And, uh, um, never wonderful to hear that about the school, the, the place that you went to school at and see
what it became.
Especially when, you know, when I was there, we were in this tiny warehouse. It’s not there anymore. The building is a condo now, but like this, this warehouse with two studios, a one black box theatre and a, like a, a green room. And that’s basically it. Um, and now the, the school is in this. World class building.
Um, and to hear that we’d gone from that maybe things were better in the smaller space. Um, but what was, what was your experience like at George Brown?
Scott: Uh, I’ll, I’ll tell you the same thing I kind of tell a lot of people, and that tense smile for me was, um, because again, like I have the benefit of, I’ve been to three theatre schools, uh, and they all, they all have similar problems. Uh, but for George Brown particularly, um, it was the right program for me at that time in my life.
Um, if I had not gone away to college, if I’d not gone to a bigger city and been thrust in that setting, I doubt I would have, uh, come out of it in a positive light. Uh, it was not a young person’s program. If someone had just gotten out of high school, I would not have recommended that program to anyone.
Um, it was good because it’s insisted on already a certain level of confidence and competence, not just as a performer, but as a person. ’cause, you know, uh, the, it is, uh, every theatre program at the time, uh, had the same kind of, uh, mix of, uh, New York sensibility and, um, English influence with regards to dramatic training, which all kind of fundamentally comes down to interweaving armchair psychology.
It’s like you need to know who you are, and then you have to destroy that person to become someone else kind of thing. It’s like, cool. Some of these people don’t have their frontal lobe fully developed yet. You’re asking them to like really look deep and ask, who are you? It’s like, I don’t know yet.
versus me. I’m there in my like twenties. I have a degree under my belt. I’ve love, I’ve lost, I’ve done things both ill and, and good. Um, and you know, I’ve, I’ve, I’ve lost people. I’ve, I’ve, I’ve done things. I’ve had a job. I’ve paid a, I’ve, I’ve paid taxes, . So like I come in with something to have a perspective and have that perspective challenge.
So, uh, George Brown very much had that, uh, English influence of, we’re going to give you speech, uh, voice, dance, uh, uh, stage combat, uh, scene study. You’re all doing the same scenes so we all can kind of get on the same page kind of thing.
Phil: Mm-hmm
Scott: and, uh, yeah. And a lot of the same teachers you probably had.
Phil: Possibly, possibly there. One of the, one of the things, uh, uh, that, that I recall from my team, now, one thing that that changed massively over the years is when I was there, they drilled into us. You were gonna be an actor and nothing more. You will, you will be an actor. There’s no hyphenation, there’s no actor slash anything.
You are an actor. That’s what we’re training you to do, and that is all you will ever be. And, um, it was only a short while later that the industry, that was not possible in the industry anymore. I remember at one of my interviews, ’cause at the time they were still, I don’t think they do it anymore, but they were like, they bring in 30 people and they cut people at the, at, at various points in the year.
Scott: they did that. They did that.
Phil: And one of my, one of my interviews, they said, well, maybe you’d be better suited to, I don’t know, doing solo shows at the fringe or something. Like, it was like the, the lowest thing that you could possibly do. But they also, I mean, it was of the years when, you know, their whole thing and a lot of theatre schools did this, we’re gonna break you down and then build you back up.
Scott: Mm.
Phil: And they spent a lot of time in the first year breaking you down. And then by the end we’re like, so when does that, uh, when does that build you back up thing start to happen?
Scott: Mm-hmm
Phil: were like, the what? Bye . You know? And, and it’s, I think it’s, it, it, it kind of sets the students up for a certain amount of failure because they’re doing their best.
They get out into the world. And a lot of, a lot of, a lot of people graduate, they come out of a theatre school and they’re so exhausted and they’re so kind of emotionally raw that they just don’t last in the industry.
Scott: Mm-hmm . No, and it, it’s true because again, like you say, you started with 35 eager young people, and in our case, we ended with 14. Tired, but very talented people. And that’s not to say the people who left weren’t talented. Like we almost, we almost had a, a riot for some of the people we lost. Um, but of those people who graduated, a bunch of them, like they no longer act in the industry.
’cause like, why would you like this? You hurt me so much. And I mean, like, it’s easy to like, like harp on them, like how dare you do this emotional problem. But one thing that they did start to implement as I was leaving was the fundamental, um, the fundamental shift you’re talking about with regards to you’re just going to be an actor.
For me, that was them pointing at us and saying like, that’s not gonna be good enough for, uh, the Stratford stage young man. We’re preparing you for shawl. That was the mindset they were in, that you are going to be a pay for play player in a larger institution. Regardless of your feelings about, uh, emotional wellbeing and, and psychological, um, temperance, um, that’s just not a good business plan.
And I’ll say that after my year, we started seeing them pump out some very powerful artists. For example, like Fiona Solder was one year after me and Matt AK was in my year. And then after that, you have a bunch more artists who are still kind of being grilled about, like you need to be better, but also they’re bringing in a lot more influences through like business of acting and, um, some of theise and collective creation stuff.
But also like the artists whom they’re bringing in, who are currently working are kind of instilling in that new generation, like, you gotta found your own theatre company. There’s not enough work. There’s not enough work. Like, oh, you need to hire each other. You need to hire me.
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: The two houses, they don’t have enough money and they don’t have enough parts.
And even if they do, they’re gonna hire you for like two or three seasons and then you’re gonna be back here again. And all you’re gonna have to have known is how to hold a candle or how to hold a, like a tray. So I mean, the, the thing we kind of came to terms with by the time I graduated was there aren’t really any more purely stage actors anymore.
It’s not, it’s not, uh, it’s not a tenable occupation to have. And that’s, some people might be like, ah, shucks. But it’s like, okay, but like, that’s reality. So try to expound it a bit more. What was most frustrating during theatre school was honestly the days we’d bring in like a, a guest director who’d be like, cool, you’re all actors.
What else can you do? And I’m sitting there next to like, someone who’s just like, well, I’m a classical pianist. And then someone else is like, I can speak another language. And like, someone else is just like, I’m, I’m, I’m a flexible, like, uh, Tumblr, I’m just like, I came here to act . That is all I was able to do.
That’s why I left Alberta. ’cause I could do it. I didn’t know I was supposed to learn other stuff. Um, yeah. That just came outta me. Didn’t.
Phil: Yeah, no, it’s, it’s, it’s funny because I think that that, you know, I, I, I, I, at the same time would’ve had the same, the same difficulty. Now I went into theatre school, I was 19, like, said. ’cause I think that the, the, um, the uh, the way that we treat secondary schools
after high school, sorry, that, that, that sort of part of, of the education process is the whole thing is to quickly get you out the door and into some kind of post-secondary program.
Um, and the schools are happy to have you. They’re happy to take your money and, and, and, and do that. Um, although when I was at theatre school, there was one person in my class who was 30 years old, and, and Peter Wild, who was the head of acting was always like, if only you would all go away. If only you would all go away and come back to me when you’re 30.
And we were all like, we were all like, fuck you old man. Come on. No, we’re here
now.
But you know,
he, he was like trying to get us to have that, you know, I wish you would go and have life experience and then come back, but also the school was also very happy to be like, no, stay until they didn’t want you there anymore.
Scott: Yeah. Well, I mean, and another another thing you bring up is like you talk about large class sizes for, um, uh, just a acting program. So, like I said, I went and got a degree after my diploma and. It’s a degree in a general arts in, um, program for drama. And that’s a class size of up to a hundred. You know?
And all of them, especially in Alberta, they come in, most of them come in. It’s just like, I wanna be an actor. Why do they wanna be an actor? It’s because that’s the most visual part of the whole process.
Phil: right? Yes.
Scott: But, But, and then you start seeing as you’re going through your four, four year degree. Less actors are there because they’re, the more they explore it, the more they find other aspects of it.
I mean, that’s the thing about the, the theatre industry that like why you need to get people more involved earlier on is so that they can be exposed to it and not think I’m gonna do the one thing and obsess on it. So it’s like, no, it’s a gigantic, well-oiled machine and if you can fill in more than one part of that machine, we’re all gonna be better off for it.
So in, in the case of someone who’s like 19 is like, I wanna be an actor, shows up to an acting program, spends three years, as you say, getting broken down and built up again. Then by the end of, they come out and be like, I think I actually wanted to be like a designer
Phil: But you know, you were mentioning that, that, that, you know, you sort of like, you writing was a thing for you and that, that you, you started to wanna write. Um, I. Alongside writing. I wanna, I want to talk about Sing For Your Supper, which is the first time that I kind of encountered you was as the, the hosted curator of, uh, of, of Sing For Your Supper.
How did you get involved with, with that? And I guess we should start by describing what Sing for Your Supper is.
Scott: Yeah. Um, well, uh, so sing Free Supper. Long time ago, kids, uh, there was this, uh, in the theatre, these, these upstarts, uh, who uh, who put on a play in an, uh, empty storefront. And, uh, they were just like, well just, uh, it, it was, it financially for some reason worked out that they’re like, well, if we just like lease this place for like, I don’t know, like a year, then we can put as many places we want.
Um, and they did, and the landlord was game for it. He didn’t care. He didn’t ask any questions. Um, there’s a lot , I dunno if there’s a lot of above board stuff with regards to Sharon’s, but, uh, they, they, they were putting some stuff on under, I believe, red One Collective. And, uh, a bunch of artists were approaching and being like, this is a great space.
Can we put on a play here? And they were like, hold, please. So that’s how they became venue owners. Um, and uh, one of them was the artistic director at the time, uh, uh, Ben Blaze. I, I was in a play with him at the storefront, uh, called As You Like It by really pure theatre directed by the lovely Rosanna Saraccino.
And, uh, he was, uh, he was our fool. And uh, you know, he was, he was a kooky guy. I was a kooky guy. And uh, I was like, this is a cool space. There’s just some great stuff here. He is like, yeah, we’re trying this new thing. Um, uh, it’s a thing we’ve done before, but we’re doing it now that we have a space called Sing For Your Supper.
Um, I went to a couple, ’cause again, I was a writer and I was an actor, so it seemed like fun and, um, they were having a hard time keeping hosts on just ’cause like the hosts were busy. And frankly, I think it was just kinda like, uh, a thing that handed, but I was just like, I saw it and I was like, Hey, I, I could do something with this.
I like this. I think there’s something to be done here with regards to like that mix of talk show host and community member. And, uh, so, uh, I was like, gimme a shot and I did. And I was like, okay, first thing I need is I need a cohost. ’cause if this just relies on me, I’m dead. So, um, I had to take, uh, a time off and I had the great fortune to, uh, uh, contact Kat Letwin, who was also in a show at that space at the time.
Um, it was, uh, KA Sandler.
Retreat, Kat Sandler retreat there. It’s uh, and she blew me away. She’s funniest person in the world. Um, and I was like, could, could you host for a while? I’m away. She’s like, yeah, sure. We met and I heard she did great. And then I was like, do you wanna host together?
She’s like, great. Um, so the event itself was, um, it happened every month, first Monday of every month. Um, and uh, essentially what happened was you would over that month for the three weeks, send in unproduced play scripts or uh, scenes. Uh, no more than 12 pages slash like 15 minutes. And on the day, uh, actors would show up, uh, between six and eight o’clock, they would sign up and we would assign blind cast, uh, parts.
And starting at eight o’clock, we would do, then the next two hours would be, let’s put these on their feet. Um, just, uh, not, uh, cold read style, but not cold read with like the, uh, music stand. It would be like scripts in hand. There’s a tickle trunk over here with like, props and costume pieces and stuff.
It’s a theatre, so, you know, get to play with, play the stage. Uh, we had , we had a, a mentalist slash magician, uh, after the intermission to keep things perfed up and there was a bar in the lobby and, uh, we lived like that, uh, for three years.
Phil: Um, I can imagine that, I mean, you mentioned like if you needed to co-host, ’cause if you didn’t, you’d be, you’d be dead because it’s, it’s a lot of work. Um, curating. Um, is it diff, was it difficult to, um, try to, like did you have to like, this play this play, not this one. Like did you have to leave, leave some out, or did you like leave some out knowing that like, maybe next month I can get that one in, or, yeah.
Scott: Yeah. So again, the, the good thing about kind of, uh, being in that position that I was in and the fact that I was involved at every step was I was also able to kind of curate for myself the relationships in the community kind of thing. Like sometimes we’d have returned writers who it’s just like, you know, like, we need to give someone else a shot.
Uh, is it okay if we just hold this? Or, you know, sometimes like we would get scripts and I would read them and whether it be subject matter or whether it be, uh. Um, style. I would, uh, you know, I’d, I’d have to give them the old, like, uh, I don’t think we can do this. I, I, I had the templates where just like, yes, this’ll be up at this time.
Thank you so much. The other one would be like, sorry, um, we can’t do this this month, but I would like this script for a later month if you’re okay with that. ’cause also, I’m, I’m programming an entire night, so I do try to program an entire night if I have the material for it. And some of ’em were just like, Hey, thanks.
Um, uh, but no, we’re gonna have to pass. But please feel free to submit something else. Um, and if you’d like to talk about it, uh, my door’s always open because the thing is also like, uh, I, I, my motto for Sing Free Supper, I broke it down to the three Cs, which were, uh, community, creativity and craft. And it was, those were the order of importance for me of.
That program. Uh, first and foremost, it’s a community event where everyone can come together and like, just feel safe. Um, but also like, feel free to play because it’s important. Uh, we, we always refer to it as like a playground for actors and writers. Uh, the second was creativity, where it’s just like, I would much rather someone do something fun, outrageous, and in the spirit of cre of, of being, uh, creative, then do something good.
And the last one was K Craft. Just simply that. Just like, this is really good. Yeah. Yeah.
Phil: Um, now you, you hosted for three years?
Scott: Yeah. Approximately, I believe a co-hosted
with Kat.
Phil: Co-hosted with Kat and, um, no. At, at, at a certain point, the, the storefront closed and, um, sink for your suburb became kind of, well, became nomadic, essentially like trying to find a, a, a place.
Was that an additional thing? That was, that that’s an additional thing that went on top of like, trying to curate plays and also trying to find a place to do it.
Scott: That became a cap problem, unfortunately, . Um, I did not leave because, uh, storefront was closing. I decided to leave and said, cool. Um, and, uh, uh, we did kind of a big, like couple of month windup, um, uh, cap brought in some test co-hosts so that they could see it. Um, uh, I eased off just so that they would know how to run it.
And then, uh, on my last sing for Your Supper, right before I went on , that’s when they, uh, we had our staff meeting and they’re like, just so you guys know, um, we have to vacate the premises, uh, before the end of the month. . So I was just like, uh, not only is this my last sink crew supper, uh, this is my last time on this stage,
Phil: Wow. Wow.
That’s heavy
Scott: I, I promise I I’m not running for the exits. I didn’t know this was happening. And then, yes. So on top of that, and this is why I Kat’s a bigger, Kat’s, a far bigger hero than I am. ’cause I had a space that was available to me and full support of that staff, Kat, um, had to do the curation, the co-hosting and the finding of the space for a significant amount of time.
I do believe she managed to find a good partnership with, uh, tarragon. ’cause they have the, uh, the FAR Studio. Um, and then yeah, as time went on, it was like, okay. Uh, I think yeah, time went on. They, we had to put it to bed and then, you know, uh, everything stopped
for three years,
Phil: Yeah, that’ll put a damper on a, on a social community event for sure.
Scott: but then we, then we went digital, which was hilarious ’cause I was like, this thing’s ever gonna die. Is it Nor should it. Um, no. Uh uh Thanks for bringing it up, but, uh, I, I always, I looked fondly on that event. Um, just ’cause it’s more of a marking of a time when there was more stages and opportunities, especially for community stuff. Like, I always, I always referred to it as like we had, we were really building as a Toronto community a possibility for like, what I’d call, like we need our own the talk show circuit.
Like you’ve got because, ’cause we also, like, often if and anytime like a show was like, get, uh, looking for press, I would be like, Hey, do you wanna like send someone. Because part of the night also involved, like, uh, the community board was the second last thing we do at the end of the night. So everyone coming to act, uh, no one’s making any money.
No one’s getting paid. I’m not getting paid. No one’s getting paid. Um, but what you can get is you can, uh, get a little pr. So it’s just like, cool, you got 90 seconds, go pitch your show. Or if like you really are on your stuff, we would be like, come act out a section of the play.
Phil: Hmm.
Scott: So like we had that, um, uh, Toronto Cold Reads was still in effect.
Uh, you know, uh, red Sandcastle was just like open for hire, um, uh, unit 1 0 2, I know they had a bunch of community events that were trying out. Like there was a time when like you could do that. Now, obviously we’re still in recovery, but I do miss a time when we had more community events available.
Phil: I, I feel like, like the, the lack of community event is something that, that I think people are feeling because, um, those kinds of moments where we could, where we could come together and not have it feel like networking
Scott: Mm-hmm
Phil: and where it’s just like, let’s have a drink, we’ll hang out, we’ll read some plays, some things like that.
Um, I think there’s a hunger for that, but also in a lot of ways we’ve lost spaces.
Since the pandemic, uh, we’ve, we’ve lost, there are people who’ve, who’ve just sort of given up on the industry. There’s a lot of stuff that we’ve, that we’ve lost in the years since 2020. And, uh, uh, it, it’s sort of, I think it’s gonna take us a, a little while to try to build that back up.
You, you know,
Scott: Yeah. Well, I mean, it’s, it’s the, the tragedy is, uh, we were the first ones to close down necessarily. So, and we would also be the last ones to come back
Phil: Right.
Scott: and yeah. And again, when we came back, we don’t have space.
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: I’m, I’m glad, I’m glad Assembly is still there. I’m
glad they’re working very hard, but, uh, it is hard to be one of the only affordable spaces in the city.
Uh, I’m, I’m, uh, hopeful to, uh, hear more from, uh, King’s Black Box, uh, especially ’cause they’re also trying to do more community events. They had their own, uh, 48 hour play thing, like what, you know, 1 0 2 does. So I think more of that is needed.
Phil: Yeah,
Scott: Yeah, I, I always, I always referred to it, Phil, as, um, uh, when we were doing the, uh, next stage, um, community, uh, talk, one of the things I kind of commented on was, uh, the, there is a crucial step in artistic development.
That is unfortunately very lacking. And it’s not anyone’s fault. It’s just, it’s the, it’s the thing that we require for more growth. And that’s this, there is more opportunity for the development of a work, the development process, the writing, da, da, da, da, the end of that funding, uh, or programming, being a read of the script.
And then the next stage is put it on. You get that the middle step is, is there’s not a lot availability for it. There might be some workshopping, but it’s not. And, and it’s also like, what does that mean? You know, like it’s, uh, the, the standup community has a better grasp of it where it’s just like, I’ve got a piece, I’m gonna go do it.
Phil: I’m so glad you brought that up. ’cause it’s one of my, um, sort of pet peeves about the industry is that we rush, I think we rush to production,
Scott: mm.
Phil: uh, we try to get there really quick. Like you said, you, you have, uh, some, some writing. You get the, you, you, you do, you do a reading, maybe you have a workshop and then you go straight to production.
We don’t do multiple workshops, so we don’t take the time. There are plays that do and they’ve benefited from it. Kim’s convenience had several workshops
over the years and, and, and it is,
Scott: And it’s back
Phil: it’s, it’s back, but it’s also like . I still remember the moment in the theatre, like when I realized how good this play was and when it, when it ended.
Um, it was a real standing ovation, not one of those ones where those people stand up and then those people stand up and these people go, I guess that’s what we do. It was like, no, everybody stands up because it was, it was that good a play. And I think, you know, INS is a very excellent playwright, but a very excellent playwright benefits from working over time and like, let’s bring in some actors and, and do this.
How does the audience react? Take that feedback and then this
over and over until you get like
Scott: More, more, more opportunities to bring in more bodies. ’cause also like the writing process, like this is what I hate about it, is it’s a lonely time.
And again, like you’re like, yeah, we’ll bring in like a small cast and maybe like advice of people, but it’s just like you, the more bodies you can get into hear it, the better.
In both, in both collaborative, but also in audience, uh, receiving ways. It’s great.
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: Uh, and
Phil: you learn,
Scott: you know well,
Phil: learn so much.
Scott: a, that’s what, that’s what like a sing for you supper or Toronto Cold Reads thing was, is just like, ’cause and, and this is not just to say ’cause uh, we’re talking about in a project by project basis, but this is also true of any artist practicing at all.
Like, uh, I loved, uh, Toronto Reeds did this great exercise every, every month where if, uh, if you, uh, wanted to, you could put your name in for a writer’s challenge. It would be like, cool, there’s a prop. Uh, there’s, there’s a bag of three props. You have to make these for a scene or short play for next time, and that was it Every month, and you know what that is every month.
That’s essentially a writer getting better at their craft and also a group of actors getting better at their craft.
Phil: yeah. No, absolutely. It’s, it’s, we need more, uh, obviously we need more opportunities,
uh, uh, for that. Um, now you . Sort of inherited sing for your supper.
Um, but having done it, do you see yourself wanting to do anything, not sing for your supper specifically, but something similar as far as like, um, developing like community playwrights and actors.
Scott: Yeah, man. Um, I always wanted to, ’cause the thing was when I left Sync for your supper, like obviously there was like, this is what I always wanted it to be like eventually down the road. We didn’t get there, but that’s fine. Um, I wanted it to be a lot more with like that, uh, to, to, uh, put more injections of development.
’cause the thing from, from a funding aspect, like we had a hard time trying to sell the oppor, like to sell any kind of development or dramaturgical support. ’cause it’s like, no, it’s, it’s an open mic night. That’s what it’s, I’m like, okay, but like, could we maybe insert a program where like something’s worked on for a long term kind of thing?
Um, uh, I want, I, yeah, no, I, I, I got something in me that, uh, in the next three years I’m gonna, I’m gonna try, I’m gonna do one night of it, see what happens. Uh, essentially it’s, I wanna do a variety night of. Similar to s Free Supper, but with a couple of curated pieces in there. I want a band. Um, I want one interview and I want
Um, I want, uh, it to be framed like a TV show, like in a dystopian future where we’re just like looking back on the world. Because the thing is, like, I, I just, I, I’ve, I’ve, uh, I’ve been playing with producing for a while. I produced a show at Next Stage. Uh, I produced a French show a couple years ago. And from a, from a marketing standpoint, it’s hard not to just be like, look, everything’s on fire.
Come see you. Play
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: Yeah,
Phil: but on the other side of that, there’s, there’s like, there’s so much like when things are on fire, people need to escape. Right? I. People need, uh, to, to, to, to leave their home
and go see something that will, that, that, that, that, that will take them for a moment out of the dystopia or the, the, the, the, uh, this is
Scott: Or, or, or, or make it or make it more digestible. You know,
because that’s, that’s the other thing is like, uh, I, I think it’s, it’s hard for a lot of people who, and again, like it’s antithetical to the artistic process to be just like, well, I’m gonna tell you what the effect of this is gonna have
before I write it.
It’s just like, no, you’re not, no, you’re not
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: You’re writing an essay. You’re writing an essay right now. That’s what you’re doing. Uh, and that’s, that’s actually one of the, that’s one of the, uh, notes I constantly had for a lot of submissions. First thing for yourself, back in the day, you’d Katch it, you Katch it really early on.
If you had an eye for it, you’d be like, this wants to be an essay. This wants to be an article. This wants to be a poem. Like, you just want to, you wanna talk to me? And you, and you’re forcing two people to contrive a conversation where they’re talking to each other. No, you just wanna go up and like, say something direct to your As.
And that’s cool. You could do that. Um, you know, and that’s also part of the development process. You know, what’s, what’s your scope? What are you doing?
Phil: , uh, it’s great to have a message, but, um, I don’t need you to hit me in the face with it for 60 minutes.
And
Scott: if, if I may, it sounds like you’re one of the things you are, uh, uh, from an audience member. What, what you are verbalizing is a frustration that I think a lot of writers have to remember is that we didn’t, we didn’t use to call the audience the audience. Um, uh, they’re not viewers. That’s, that’s what TV audiences are.
theatre audiences are the last collaborator.
Phil: Yeah, no, absolutely.
Scott: So you saying you designing what their, what the effect on them is going to be in process. Like, you’re, like, this is what they’re going to think and feel as a result of my words. You are robbing them of their input. Which is, which is, it is classic blunder.
Classic blunder, um, you know,
Phil: Yeah. Years ago I was, I was in a, a, a theatre company called Keystone theatre. We did plays in the style of silent
film, and we took this .We took this play across, across Canada, the last man on Earth. And when we first started doing it, um, people would come up to us afterwards and they would tell us what their favorite part of the play was, and they would describe a scene.
We were like, that’s not what was happening. I, and we would, at first, we were like, try to correct them. And then it just became like this fascinating thing of like, each person is enjoying this play, but each and every one is taking something completely different away from it. And so we would just be like, I wanna hear what you, what you thought.
And it becomes really exciting when you don’t have to, when you’re not telling an audience what something means, or, or, or what it is. Even that they just go along for the ride and their brain makes connections that you didn’t expect. It’s
fascinating.
Scott: For sure, for sure.
Phil: , just, a few years ago you were involved with silent protagonist, and you did, uh,
uh, uh, Frankenstein esque.
Scott: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. So, uh, that’s our company. Um, uh, Graham Black Robinson’s the artistic director. He’s the puppet builder, um, Murphy Diggin. She’s the, uh, production manager and also fellow producer. Uh, and she’s currently, uh, working really hard, uh, securing the future of our young actors with, uh, main stage musical theatre, uh, for young people’s program.
They do two musicals every year, uh, and while also being one of the, uh, I can’t remember her title. Some kind of producer with the Canadian Opera Opera Company.
Phil: Right? Right. Right.
Scott: Yeah. Uh, so yeah, and that was, that was a interesting fringe. ’cause that was the first fringe back that didn’t have any, um, creditors from pre Covid times.
Phil: Right,
Scott: because 2022 still had like, Hey, if you had, uh, if you had it in the lottery for 2020, you can still do this.
So 2023 was very, it was very fresh and new in a lot of ways. Um, yeah, a lot of lessons were learned in that one. A lot of lessons were learned in that one. ’cause that was, that was a hugely, there was no script for that.
Um, and I was originally supposed to dramaturg it, but, um, didn’t happen. Um, and then that’s what she got. Final result was very much a result of, uh, the cast and, uh, director Nicole Wilson kind of going together with this beautiful puppet that Graham made. Um, and just like building that thing from ground up.
Phil: Um, had you worked on something that was devised before?
Scott: yes, uh, when I was at university, I worked with, uh, Mike Canard of Bump and Snoot. He, uh, he taught me all about collective creation. There he was, uh, he was a great guy on that. One of my research projects was one yellow rabbit, who’s huge in Calgary, uh, and whose works to this day. Like, oof. You can, if, if anyone in the in the east hasn’t heard of one yellow rabbit, look up some of their stuff, I think you will see some very interesting material.
Uh, and Kevin Kerr, uh, is a, is a dramaturg playwright for, oh God, Vancouver Company, electric Company,
Phil: hmm,
Scott: who have a, who have, uh, many times do devise models, but with a playwright. So, yeah. Yeah.
Phil: Um, that it’s, I mean they, so they were starting from the puppet? Was they? The puppet was the, was where they started and then everything else came from that.
Scott: Yep. Yeah.
Phil: Um,
Scott: Yeah. No, that was,
Phil: Um, sorry,
Scott: was, that was Well, so, uh, from the producer standpoint, ’cause that was the thing where I was just like, I’ll produce it. Um, and we had lofty goals with that one ’cause, uh, we wanted, we, we applied for every grant under the sun. Um, we had a, a contact in No Scotia, who we were actually building the show for.
Um, and we were like, well, if we get one, then we could do others, and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And, uh, every grant rejected us, so we were like, okay, I guess. So we’ll just settle for best of fringe
Phil: I mean, the thing is that, that one of the, one of, one of the wonderful things about Fringe, and it’s on a fringe, it’s like the, the, the, the one time where the audience is like, give me weird, give me weird. Just like the audience is like, it’s the one time of year where they’re like, I want it. I want the weird, and that show really kind of filled.
That, that requirement that a Toronto Fringe audience looking for. Um, it had a, a weird, I think nobody going in really knew what to expect from it. Um, and that sort of freeing for an audience as well.
Scott: Also only one of two puppet shows at that fringe.
Phil: Hmm.
Scott: Mm-hmm . Um, Adam, uh, oh God, he’s so good. He just did, he, he just did the Oloff puppetry track at theatre Aquarius.
Uh, he’s
Phil: From, uh, pucking. TPEs. Right.
Scott: P Yes, yes. He had a, he had a half week run at Toronto Fringe, and we, uh, we co handbuilt and we were just like, puppet solidarity man.
Um, yeah.
Phil: not enough there. There’s not enough
Scott: there’s not enough puppets, especially in theatre. You freaking kidding me, man. You know, you know what? Television gonna ever do better puppets. They can’t, they’ll try.
They’re, they’re doing great. Fraggle Rock, big fan of the Fraggle. Shout out to my boy Brandon Boyd, uh, uh, puppet South Canada.
Um, but, uh, you know, it, that’s, that’s TV puppetry. We’re, we’re doing the, we’re doing the theatre puppetry.
Phil: it’s, it, it is, it is a, a relatively rare thing and, and again, kind of looked down on, I know that, uh, uh, uh, um, uh, uh, the, uh, the Eldridge theatre folks, they’re often, there’s almost always, there’s always puppets in, in the things that they do,
but there’s elements of the industry that, that kind of look down on, puppets on stage, and it’s, it’s kind of, it’s, I think they’re missing out on something
Scott: They are. And I think it’s because they’re, they, um, they’ve been exposed to bad puppetry,
Phil: Hmm.
Scott: you know, like, and, and I don’t wanna, oh, I don’t wanna, I don’t wanna tick people off. Um, I don’t wanna, I don’t wanna step on too many toes, but I’m gonna say it guys. Um, avenue Q really changed a lot of people’s perception of puppetry.
Not necessarily in a good way.
Phil: Hmm.
Scott: It’s, uh, the beautiful puppets. But you’ve got actors next to a puppet singing.
Phil: Yeah,
Scott: you know what? But you know what? When I’m like, actually, if you wanna look at puppetry and what it can do, you know what else came at around that time? Warhorse.
Phil: yeah.
Scott: And, you know, you know, it’s much better than, uh, warhorse on stage, not the movie with the real horse.
Phil: No, yeah. I mean, here you have a show that was built on, built on the magic of the puppet, and the movie just takes the puppet away.
Scott: Yeah.
Phil: Yeah. So with your, your, your, your, your love of puppets.
When, when did that start for you?
Scott: Um, gosh, I mean, I, I’m a big animation head. I love animation. Um, I. I, uh, God, Dom Bluth, uh, I’m a, I I wouldn’t call myself a scholar, but I know so much about the guy and like that era of like the new blood of animators and stuff and what I loved. Uh, what, and, and again, like you and I, uh, kind of like grew up around the time of like the true cartoon wars when like WB and Disney were fighting each other for TV dominance.
And the thing I love about animation is the same thing I love about puppetry, which is, and I’ve directed puppets too. And the best thing in the world is being able to talk to a puppet and be like, here’s what I need you to do. I need you to walk off a branch, defy gravity for a couple of seconds, look down, realize gravity still thing, and then plummet and they’ll do it and they’ll freaking do it.
Um, but also, uh, and, uh, Dahlia Kotz has, uh, has has written her thesis on this, but there’s something e even, I mean, we’re talking about what, what theatre brings that, um, the stream wars will never understand, which is, uh, how much of . A partner in crime, your audience is ’cause uh, the si the silent contract of every theatre play is, hi, we’re gonna come out and pretend to be characters in a play, and you’re going to believe me when I say hello my name is, even though you have a program that says otherwise.
That is an easy agreement to make. It’s like, cool, cool. I’ll meet you there. An even bigger agreement is I need you to accept this pile of felt is a dragon on a quest. And like that requires them to be like, Ooh, I’m gonna have to invest way more into this than not. So it, it instantly the audience goes, like, from maybe from here or maybe from here to like, okay, all right.
Okay. Okay, here we go.
Phil: Yeah, I mean the audience is, is theatre requires more from the audience, but it also like the, I find audiences have an easier time suspending their disbelief than they do in the movies, right?
Scott: because it’s less subtle. They’re like, I, I, if, if I don’t, I’m stuck here for two hours.
Phil: absolutely. Absolutely. You know, there there’ve been times when, you know, um, uh, people, I remember years ago, one of my coworkers and I worked with people in my day job, not theatre people they don’t know.
Um, and one of my coworkers were like, so why, why theatre and not film?
And I said, well, there are two very different things, but my passion for theatre comes from the fact, lemme give you an example. ’cause the audience is right there in the room and they react to things in a way that a, a film audience doesn’t ’cause They’re not passive, they’re active.
If there is any kind of violence on stage, a theatre audience always reacts, they always gasp, they always lean forward. They flinch in, in ways that a film audience doesn’t ’cause the violence isn’t happening in the room and because everything is happening in the room, it’s so much more immediate for an audience and it’s such a fascinating thing to be a part of,
Scott: Yeah. Yeah. I, I always, uh, relegated it to, um, in, uh, on stage, I’m, I’m playing for people, but on, uh, on a sound stage or in tv, I’m playing for an editor. That’s it. Like, that’s my job. Like, it’s just like he’s gonna, he needs to be able to put together a thing. But on stage, like in many ways you are the editor.
Like I, I’ve already done the edits,
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: and I, and I’ll tell you, I, uh, my, one of my hottest years in TV was actually during the pandemic.
Phil: Mm-hmm
Scott: uh, we went away, then I came back, and then I had a year of just steady TV and voiceover gigs. And, uh, what was really telling was between every take. Me trying to like, engage in conversation with like the crew or like trying to make the camera guy laugh or like shit like that.
Like you, yeah, that’s you. You wanna do that. If you wanna do that, just like it’s ’cause you crave an audience, man.
Phil: of course you do. Of course you do. The fact that you’re, that, like you, you’re on film, you’re doing a comedy, and everybody behind the camera might just be like completely deadpan and you’re just supposed to go ahead with it, even though the joke is supposed to be deadly. Like it’s just like one of those, one of those weird, dichotomous things that is, I think.
If you’re a theatre actor first, it, it’s gotta bend your brain a bit.
Scott: Yeah. And it will
Phil: Yeah. Um, now you have, um, you’ve done some voiceover work and you’ve been continuing to do a voiceover for an animated series, um, people watching.
Scott: Winston Roundtree, people watching?
Phil: How did you, I mean, was that just a, a, a role you audition for and, and, and that’s been going on for, you’re working on third season now?
Scott: we just, we just, uh, they’re working on post-production for season three right now. Um, yeah, no season one. So, Winston Roundtree, do you remember, do you remember the comedy website? Um, cracked.
Phil: Yeah, I do. I do.
Scott: So cracked in college humor. They were at the height of their power. Winston was one of the artists for cracked.
Uh, and you’d see like, uh, in their, uh, really fun after hour sketches. He was one of the artists for one of the guys. So when, like, they would be going off one of their, uh, social rants, um, he would have a bunch of their like, thoughts come out and stuff. And his art styles really good, like really good, really detailed, really cool.
Um, everyone’s just like so interesting and attractive. Um, and, uh, yeah, he, uh, he got, uh, some grant money to develop a web series for crack. Um, and they’re like, okay, cool. And yeah, I, uh, I had a new agent at the time, uh, Butler, rest of Bell no longer with us. And, uh, they’re like, yeah. And it was non-union. It was non-union gig auditioned, uh, auditioned for a specific role on that.
Um, and, uh, didn’t get it, but they were really kind and said like, like, you got a good voice and like, you gave us a bunch of different takes. Do you just kinda like, wanna be like, uh, our, like every other guy, guy? I was like, yes, obviously. Like, yes, I’ll be i’ll, I’ll be freaking, uh, God, what’s his name from Simpson’s?
Uh, Dan Castella. I just throw, throw ’em at me.
Phil: Right. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Scott: yeah. Gimme, I’ll be your Billy West. Gimme, gimme every character under the sun. I’ll do
Phil: who’s gonna say no
Scott: a, yeah. And it was so much fun. Uh, he, he uh, he gave me a dream come true in season two, where he had me do the Michigan Frog from Looney Tunes for a bit. And the way we recorded, bless them. The way we recorded, we do it, um, ensemble style. So the cast all records
Phil: Oh, okay. That’s fun.
Scott: So I got to solo the Michigan frog bit, uh, in front of the whole cast who has to silently watch as I’m going. Hello my baby. Hello my honey. Hello. My ragtime gal. And they’re just like, and I believe we did it in one take.
They were just like, okay, Scott, go. It’s just like we did. It’s like, I think we’re good. John Blair’s just like, just eating his fist in the corner. Oh God.
Phil: But doing like ensemble, like recording, like that’s pretty rare,
Scott: Mm-hmm . It is extremely rare. It is extremely rare.
Phil: But I think it’s, it’s an old style of, of having done. I think that’s how the voiceover was done for the Rudolph, the Red Nose reindeer, uh, uh, stuff was like everybody was in one room. It was an ensemble piece. It wasn’t actors in a different spot.
And I think that kind of gives you something, gives you people the play off of and, and that sort of thing.
Scott: Oh God, yes.
Phil: it’s gotta be, it’s gotta be, uh, a lot more fun than just a one learned guy in a room.
Scott: Hmm. Well, yeah, and I mean also like you’re talking about a time when like, I mean, we’re talking about preexisting facilities. That was synonymous with a time when like the radio drama was alive or the radio play was alive. So like those kind of crossovers were very, uh, similar and you got to have fun, like you say, with each other.
And you could do the cutoffs and stuff. I did, um, I did a spot for, um, let’s go Luna. Um, and uh, there’s some pretty big names on that sheet. I never met them. . I did all my things in isolation, uh, and, you know, bless ’em between, uh, between like, uh, first of all practices, like safety practices, like, yes, no, put me, put me in a closed space with this person and their germs please.
It’s like, no.
Phil: yeah.
Scott: Um. but yeah. No, it’s, oh God, it’s so much freaking fun. Uh, no, we, we recorded season three. Um, I don’t know if they have a, um, uh, oh, what do you call it? Uh, a supplier yet, or like a shipper yet. But, uh, when it comes out, I recommend everyone watch it. Uh, it’s so freaking good. I’m, I’m such a fan of the show, which is weird because I’m on it like,
Phil: Do you find it, do you, do you listen back and like recognize your voice and go like, oh, ’cause I. It, it, as an actor when you’re on film, it can be very difficult, um, visually to like watch a show you’re in and even be able to be in the room sometimes,
Scott: uh,
Phil: you’re watching an animated thing that you did a voice for,
Scott: uh,
Phil: do you, do you have that at all or are you, is it like so much distance that it’s,
it it’s not like that?
Scott: I’m more like that for audition tapes I said. But like, it’s, you know, how it is, like in, in this world where we, we are now our own editors for our own tapes. Like you have to get over that very quickly.
Um, you know, I either bite it down or whatever, but also like when it’s done professionally, I’m just like, oh, wow, they got that out of me.
Good.
Phil: right , yeah. Yeah. Same thing for like, um, you know. If you’re like, if you do audio stuff, you have to get past that. My voice sounds like that thing that everybody has the first time they hear themselves on tape and, and, uh, suddenly you have to become comfortable with what your voice really sounds like.
Scott: Well, I mean, talk, talk about something I wasn’t prepared for Went to three theatre schools. Um, not a lot of, uh, not a lot of TV training. And so like, I took a, I took a week in intensive with Lynn Cormack, um, and she straight up was just like, if you’re uncomfortable seeing yourself on film, then you need to film yourself a lot and you need to get comfortable.
Because you’re gonna have to look at it from a expert professional eye. ’cause this is your, this is part of your craft now is being able to tape yourself, look at your thing and say for yourself whether or not this is a good tape or not,
and not good. As in like, am I good? It’s just like, is this an acceptable tape,
Phil: yeah, yeah.
Scott: Yeah.
Phil: Yeah. It’s a tough
Scott: My degree didn’t prepare me for that.
Phil: You know, the, the, the, there are things that, that you find out in the industry that they didn’t prepare you for. And for me, the first one that I encountered, that they didn’t prepare me for at all was a DR,
like doing additional dialogue recording, um, uh, uh, for a, a film, um, which is a lot harder
than you think it is.
Scott: Yeah.
Phil: Um, and nobody does
covers that.
Scott: did they give you the beeps or did they give you the countdown?
Phil: Oh, they gave us the beeps, but it’s still like
Scott: For those, for those who don’t know, for a DR, um. Because they’re trying to get you to match up with something. ’cause I’ve done a DR for my spot on, uh, imposters. Um, and so what they’ll do is they’ll put, uh, you’ll, you’ll have, similar to what Phil’s wearing, they’ll have your, uh, headset on and, uh, you have the line that you have to say, they’re like, okay, you’re gonna say the line and it’ll beep two times and you’ll imagine a third beep.
And then you’ll start talking. And that’s what it is. So it goes, beep how much are the eggs? And they’re like, great Scott. Um, uh, can you say that faster or, okay, great. Scott, can you, uh, have a, have uh, a breath between how and are
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: and it and is that freaking minute?
Phil: Just, Just,
So, much time. So much time. That, that, that nobody ever told you that that was gonna be part of the craft is, is like watching yourself and try to match a performance that you did months ago.
Scott: Oh my God. Uh, like part of part of my training I see it as is I did like a bunch of background work after theatre school and I’m, I’m sitting here just like theatre schools would make a mint if they just went to local production companies. But like, could my entire class just be free background for you for one day?
Phil: Oh, shit. Yeah.
Scott: Just for a day. Just, just like, uh, I know rain is not anymore, but can you imagine just like, okay, everybody go dress up. You’re in background holding kind of thing. And like, ’cause, ’cause the like the first thing you have to get over, we’re talking about like getting over, watching yourself on camera, try getting over, being on a film set for the first time.
Phil: Right.
Scott: you imagine doing that? But you haven’t like been on camera
Phil: yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. It’s wild. It’s a wild thing to ask. It’s a wild thing to, to do. Uh, you know, uh, anytime that I’ve been on that, there was a mix of people. The one I did, I did some background on just to, just to date myself, uh, forever night, back in the day. Um, ’cause I knew a bunch of people in the goth scene and so we were like the people in the goth club there.
And because Goth is such a specific look, they would like, there were a mix of people who were like, . Actors and people who they just pulled out of a, of a goth club.
Scott: Yeah.
Phil: and, and, and, and it’s a very different experience for everybody. Yeah.
Scott: Yeah. No, but, and, and it’s a circus. It’s great. I love it. Um, yeah. Can’t we get back to it?
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: Uh, but, uh, I, uh, share something with you.
Um. Uh, and I’d like to preface this by saying I’m not, uh, I, uh, I am not a, a mental health expert or anything like that, but, uh, I just came back from, uh, a little trip down south to the States.
Um, uh, my, uh, my parents are snowbirds, so they, uh, in their retirement, they spend about like five to six months where it’s warmer. ’cause they, they’ve, they’ve earned that.
Um, yeah, so they, uh, they have a little, uh, 55 plus community where they, uh, just live in a trailer for five to six months outta the year.
And, uh, so I try to go out there every year just to meet up with them and get as much sunlight as possible. Um, and this is something I do every year. It’s, and then, uh, you know, some stuff recently happened
in the world. Yeah. You know, I’m not, I’m not big on the news. Um, but, uh, you know, I wasn’t, uh, I. As, uh, you know, between, uh, and again, I’m flying down there, so between the fly flying, the trade war, um, everything going on, you know, I was getting, I was getting a little nervous going down there.
Um, and I don’t, and, and, you know, I’m working, so I don’t think I was giving myself the time to think about it. And so, in a panic state right before I went out there, I put together something I call the just in case files. Um, which is essentially I, um, ’cause, uh, and, and again, I, I, I have a weird relationship with flying where it’s just like, I always kind of approach it like this could be the ending credits of the movie of my life.
Um, for those of you who watch Cloud Atlas, it’s like Tom Hanks right before the plane explodes . And, and his last thought as a happy one is just like, I think I’m in love with this woman. I’m like, if I have to go, that’s how I wanna go. Just like, kind of just like, I wonder what’s next and then just like yank.
Um, so I’ve always had kind of this, this interesting relationship with it. Um, but this, I was, I’m not gonna, I’m, I’m not gonna lie to you, I was, I was really nervous whether it was the flight or like arriving there or flying back or anything like that. So I, uh, I wrote some short letters to a bunch of people in my life, um,
Phil: Hmm.
Scott: just in case. Um, and it was really freeing, um, because that’s, that’s where my first mind, that’s where my first thought goes to is the people in my life.
Um, and then I spent the entire plane ride thinking about, okay, well that’s taken care of now. What do you miss and regret? And it was an interesting mental exercise.
So, um, yeah. Um, my feeling is there’s a lot going on and it really is going on. You’re not imagining it is
bad, but also the sooner we kind of accept that and the sooner you kind of start processing that, the sooner you can make some bigger, bolder strokes so that you don’t feel regret. ’cause again, paralysis is real. The freeze is
real, but,
but, you need to get through it. Because I think there’s a, there’s also like, I’m not just talking about current events, but like there is a trepidation post post lockdown where there’s a lot of, there’s a lot of this, there’s a lot of tender stuff here and that’s manifesting in a lot of ways.
It’s manifesting in. Safety in, in art, but also like in the way people are interacting with art. Like there’s some people who are genuinely being kind of like, you know, snarky and be like, well, like isn’t it all the same? I’m like,
you do something. Make something. Please make something. Go, go make a thing.
Go make a bad thing, go make more bad things. Make, make just really weird off kilter things. Please do things. ’cause it’s, uh, it’s, I, I I for one, and this is gonna be a LP on me. I, for one, have been allowing just a little bit of paralytic to be happening. And I, uh, I don’t, I don’t want that for anyone else.
Phil: I don’t think you’re, I don’t think you’re alone in that. I think that is a very common thing, being a Canadian and looking at all the things that are going on. Um, I think a lot of us have been having that paralyzing, like, what do I do? How do I, how do I deal with this? How, but. I also think, ’cause if you can get past that, or if you can ignore that for a while, I think there’s also a bit of a, there’s a bit of a, I mean, I don’t, there’s that, that Canadian pride moment, the elbows up and all that sort of stuff.
Um, but I think there’s a, there is something more to that. We, Canadians are not historically a hugely patriotic people. Um, I think that, that, that the majority of Canadians are able to, they don’t have illusions about the com, their, the country being the greatest country in the world or anything like that.
Uh, and I think that, that we can, we’re able to see, we, for the most part we’re like, yeah, we’ve got some problems too. We’ve got some problems. We’re not perfect. Um, and I think that, that, that, um, the one, one thing that, that people are doing is, uh, uh, uh, sort of consuming and making intentional choices about Canadian things.
Consuming, um. I just think that we need that. There’s, there’s not enough of the movement towards, oh, wait, so I’ve bought all my Canadian groceries and, uh, what are the Canadian television shows? What, what theatre things can I see that are also Canadian? Like, how can I consume that as well?
And I, I, I, I look forward to, to that sort of happening.
Scott: Yeah. And, and again, like it’s, uh, we’re, we’re talking about structures that have been in place both from like just our television programming, but like we were just talking about theatre programs.
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: Those theatre programs were largely based off of, uh, foreign imports, be it the, be it the, uh, English old style, which by the way, if you go over there to Lambda or Radha and you’re like, well, you guys do this, right?
They’re like, no, we stopped doing that. Like, we’ve evolved. Like what you think we just keep, do you think we just be like everyone fence and wear cod pieces? No.
Like you want, you wanna see like some cutting edge with regards to like devised entertainment. They’re over on there, they’re on it, and they’re grabbing from other cultures.
They’re doing that over here. We had very much, and again, I think part of that was because a funding also B insecurity is just like, well, this is how they do it at Juilliard. It’s just like, well, I didn’t, I’m not at Juilliard. I’m here, you know, what are we doing? And again, like you say, like one part of it is like, uh, but another part is like, ah, fuck you we’re doing
it. And I, and I, and I will say I’m doing, it doesn’t necessarily have to be anchored to patriotism.
Because this was, this was the argument we always got in whenever we were talking about grant funding and or, or, or theatres where it’s just like, well, we wanna do Canadian programming. What’s a Canadian play?
I’m like, well, by definition, I’m a Canadian in Canada and I wrote a play. Can’t that be the end of it,
Phil: Yeah, yeah,
yeah. No,
Scott: you’re you’re asking a question that will only be answered in the greatness of time. So let’s, let’s, as the kids, as the kids say, fuck around and find out.
Phil: Yeah. . Yeah, absolutely. Like, like what is, especially with theatre, like a Canadian play, as long as it’s written by a Canadian,
Scott: Yeah.
Phil: is that not Canadian enough to be produced by a Canadian theatre? Or like, does, does the subjects matter have to be Canadian enough and what is that
Scott: Yeah. Are you, are you telling Judith Thompson and Norm Foster are like, oh yeah, those are connect, those are the same play Like, no,
Phil: no, no, no, no,
Not at all. Not at all. I do have one question, sort of like along the, the mental health aspect that you were, you sort of alluded to, um, you know, that, that, for you, that that feeling of, of tension, that that, uh, that that buzzing of overwhelm and that freeze. Um, how do you get past that?
Scott: Um, you start by acknowledging it. Um, there’s, there’s a great phrase, um, right now going along for a lot of mental health, which is just like, accept everything. This is happening, this is happening, this is happening. Um, I’ve been, I’ve been experimenting a bit with, uh, shadow work, uh, the Jungian philosophy, um, wherein, you know, um. Anything, you, any, anything you encounter or feel, um, it doesn’t, it never goes away, you know?
Um, so, and if you’re not, if you’re not like coming to terms with it, if you’re not approaching it, if you’re not looking at it, then there’s a chance you’re suppressing it.
Phil: Hmm.
Scott: And if you’re suppressing it, it’s not gonna get better.
It’s just going to come out in different ways,
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: you know? Um, I think, and, and unfortunately, like the, the, the modern, uh, fucking broski internet, uh, Sigma Bros, um, have done a manipulation of, uh, uh, the old stoic philosophy, um, and seem to think that stoicism means you just don’t feel anything. It’s just like, that’s not, that’s not true at all.
That’s,
that’s the opposite of what it’s, and,
uh,
Phil: you don’t feel something, you’re, yeah, if you don’t feel something, you’re kind of, you’re like, listen, the things are still there.
The feelings are still there. Doesn’t matter how far down you push them.
Scott: Yeah.
Phil: They come out and they’re, you can either deal with them now or push them down until there’s a volcano and you don’t even know what it is that you’re angry at, what you’re crying about or anything else like better to just like deal with it now.
Scott: yeah. Well, I mean, and it’s also like, this is to say like some people don’t have the, the benefit of it, but if you can’t deal with it now, you gotta find time.
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: You gotta find time. The, the irony being modern day, uh, the stoicism has been transported, like actual stoicism could be, uh, the equivalent of modern behavioral cognitive therapy,
Phil: Right.
Scott: but it has therapy in the title.
So a lot of those guys just don’t wanna take it. ’cause they’re like, ah, therapy. It’s just like, oh, we should call something else. we
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: call it. Uh, uh, lion Tiger, alpha Sigma, uh, tears of, of freedom. I freaking,
um, yeah. No, but, uh, no, uh, yeah. The reality is, uh, one day at a time, uh, accept all things.
And, um, I, so I have two nephews,
uh, and, uh, I got to see them. They’re, uh, they’re five and seven. Love ’em to pieces and it’s, if you’ve ever been around children that age for a prolonged amount of time, you see that. You see such a range of emotion,
Phil: Mm-hmm.
Scott: um, like seeing a toddler explode because, uh, you gave him a free toy, but he didn’t want that one.
He wanted the one his brother got, and they’re the exact same toy.
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: You can’t reason with that child
and you can’t, you can’t tell him not to be upset.
Phil: Yeah,
Scott: Um, there’s, there’s, there’s phrase that’s been snarly put on the internet, which is your facts don’t, uh, facts don’t care about your feelings, man. But I’m like, actually, the inverse is true. Your feelings don’t care about facts.
Phil: It’s true.
Scott: And if you remind yourself of that for everyone, you’re kind of encountering the world
then, and then you also allow that for yourself.
Then you kind of get to treat a lot of what you’re feeling. Like a, a scared toddler. And the only thing you can do in that situation is kinda sit with it,
Phil: Yeah. Yeah.
Scott: you know, don’t rush it. It, it’s, it’s all gonna be okay.
Phil: Yeah. Yeah. See it sometimes. Listen, the thing that that I always tell people is, is, you know, the pandemic introduced us to the doom scroll, and, uh, it does not help anybody. It, whenever you Katch yourself in the doom scroll, you have to stop.
Scott: Yeah, I, I took, I took a week off. Uh, I, like, I got rid of all of, I suspended all my accounts and then when I came back a week later, we were all still kind of talking about the same thing. And I was like, oh, I’m no longer using this for news
Phil: yeah. Well, it, it is like the, the, the, you know, we used to have the 24 hour news cycle, and now the news cycle is basically just the same thing
Scott: Oh, God.
Phil: forever.
Scott: Yeah. No. Uh, Bo Bo Burnham had the best analogy. Um, comedian, uh, Bo Burnham, uh, hey Bo, we don’t know each other, uh, . But, uh, he had, he had the great analogy of, um, once upon a time, uh, people were fighting for land, but now all the land masses, habitable, land masses are kind of spoken for. Um, so now the new frontier is human attention.
Phil: Hmm
hmm.
Scott: want your attention and they want as much of it as they can get.
Phil: Yeah.
Scott: And, uh, one of my, one of my, okay, uh, we’ve been down talking to theatre school a lot, but one of my favorite lessons in theatre school is this, for everything else that’s outta your control, you as an actor have one thing that is within your control. You get to say no.
Phil: Hmm.
Scott: And you know what, uh, if anyone else is watching, you’re listening to this. If you don’t think you are entitled to that, I would offer you to exercise that power
Phil: Mm-hmm
Scott: when you can,
know’s not a bad word, knows information.
Phil: It is. Yeah. Yeah. Absolutely. Absolutely. Scott, just as we’re, as we’re starting to, to wrap up, um, where can folks find you on the social media?
Scott: I mean, oh God. Uh, don’t, don’t find me. No. Um, I, uh, you can find me on Instagram at, uh, Scott. Don’t got the gram. Uh, and I, uh, just started a TikTok account. There’s nothing on there, um, yet. Uh, but, uh, you can find me at, uh, Scott don’t got TikTok. Uh, you can see a theme
Phil: Thank
Scott: uh, I’m on, uh, I’m on Instagram threads as well.
Under same Scott. Don’t got the gram. Uh, I never had Twitter. I, uh, never, never understood that. I was like, this is just Facebook statuses, uh,
Phil: Y Yeah. Yeah. If you joined at the right time there, like, I try to describe people of what the right time of joining of, uh, what it was like at the right time, joining Twitter when it was beautiful and fun and gorgeous. And then the rest of the time you’re just trying to, trying to Katch that. ’cause it, it will never happen again.
Thanks Scott. I really appreciate that. Um, and thank you, thank you for joining me. Uh, uh, I really appreciate, uh, you coming on the show,
Scott: Yeah. It’s, it’s finally, it happened
Phil: finally. Yes.
Scott: as. I can scratch that off my list. Um, but no, uh, let’s, let’s rub shoulders again. Um, I know, uh, I, I, uh, I’ve, I’ve been saying, um, I’m, I’m, I’m throwing my hat over the wall. That is the next three years just to see some stuff I can do and yeah, I hope to be more active in the community.
I hope to, uh, help more in the community. That’s one thing I do miss from my, my days at s Free Supper was, it really felt like a community service. And, uh, I miss that. I miss serving my community, so, uh, let’s, I look forward to seeing you out there in it.
Phil: Looking forward to seeing you too.
