About Ruby Slippers Theatre
Our Vision
RST imagines an inclusive world where diversity is celebrated through a deeper understanding of each other.
Our Mission
To bring this vision to reality, RST illuminates under-represented perspectives by giving voice to diverse artists from across the country including Quebec works in English translation.
RST defines diversity as all cultural backgrounds, orientations, identities, abilities, and ages.
Who we are
Multi-award-winning Ruby Slippers Theatre was co-founded by a collective of female-identifying artists from various disciplines (Sandra Lockwood, Katrina and Deborah Dunn, Diane Brown) and incorporated in 1992. Katrina and Diane shared leadership for several years as Co-Artistic directors, and then as Artistic Director/Associate Artistic Director. Diane Brown became the Artistic Director in 1997.
Ruby Slippers Theatre’s (RST) vision is an inclusive world where diversity is celebrated through a deeper understanding of each other. Our mission is to realize that vision by illuminating under-represented perspectives and giving voice to diverse artists from across the country including Quebec works in English translation. RST defines diversity as all cultural backgrounds, sexual orientations, identities, abilities and ages.
For decades under the leadership of Diane Brown, Ruby Slippers Theatre has commissioned English translations of provocative Quebec works and/or produced their premiere productions here in Vancouver, fostering cross-cultural exchange and diversity. These highly acclaimed productions include After Me (Après Moi) by Christian Bégin translated by Leanna Brodie; You Will Remember Me by François Archambault translated by Bobby Theodore; Life Savers by Serge Boucher translated by Shelley Tepperman; The Winners by François Archambault translated by Shelley Tepperman; Down Dangerous Passes Road by Michel Marc Bouchard translated by Linda Gaboriau; The Leisure Society by François Archambault translated by Bobby Theodore. Other groundbreaking productions include The Duchess a.k.a. Wallis Simpson by Linda Griffiths; Communion and A Beautiful View by Daniel MacIvor; Trout Stanley by Claudia Dey; The Waiting Room by Lisa Loomer; The List by Jennifer Tremblay. Our goal is to promote independent critical thought, communion, and diversity.
What we do
We choose to produce and commission English translations of crucial voices from the contemporary Quebec canon and produce their premiere productions. With all our work we choose text-based Canadian plays that provoke dialogue and are relevant to our audiences, offering a diversity of perspectives and often cross-cultural pollination. By furthering unique voices that question status quo assumptions about our society and ourselves, we have earned a reputation for smart social satire that is infectiously entertaining. Our distinctiveness lies in our commitment to courageous, provocative French and English Canadian voices which we realize into aesthetically compelling works.
For many years Diane Brown and Ruby Slippers Theatre have consistently championed under-represented voices and diversity in theatre. As Artistic Director, Diane has an extensive history of showcasing works by female identifying and gender non-conforming artists. An example of this was a program she initiated called The Femmes Fatales Series which ran for ten years and focused on Canadian women who create and perform their own work. Some Femme Fatales featured were Denise Clarke, Marie Brassard and Karen Hines. More recently, Diane created and initiated The Advance Theatre Festival, a five-day festival that showcases five new plays written and directed by female identifying and gender non-conforming artists who also identify as IBPOC. RST receives over 100 submissions from across Canada each year for this festival. Diane and RST are working to expand the series to include more works over a longer period of time.
Ruby Slippers Theatre was a founding member of the See Seven Performing Arts Society, and is currently a member of the Alliance for Arts and Culture, The Greater Vancouver Professional Theatre Alliance and regularly engages theatre professionals from the Canadian Actors Equity Association and Associated Designers of Canada. Diane is a past member of the PACT Advocacy Committee, The Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards Society, and was on the Advisory Committee for Langara College’s Theatre Arts Program for many years. She is currently Chair of Theatre Cares Vancouver, and is an Advisory Board member of Vancouver Civic Theatres. Diane is a recipient of the prestigious Bra D’Or Award from Playwrights Guild of Canada for her work with Ruby Slippers Theatre.