Who is Nicole Eun-Ju Bell?
Nicole Eun-Ju Bell is a Toronto-based mixed-race artist. Nicole is a multi-disciplinary artist with a passion for performance and technology. She is, among other things, a projection designer, actor, writer, and stage manager. Nicole is a graduate of the Centre for Drama, Theatre, and Performance at the University of Toronto. Nicole is a member of Crane Creations Theatre Company 2021 Summer Ensemble.
Nicole’s Training
Nicole is an alumnus of the Centre for Drama Theatre and Performance Studies at U of T and spent many of her years at the university involved with Hart House, participating in the U of T Drama Festival and developing her skills as a designer working on Heather’s (assistant projection designer) and Encounters at the Edge of the Woods (projection and set designer).
Past Theatre Experience
As well as working with Crane Creations Theatre Company, Nicole has also worked on shows at Theatre Passe Muraille, CanadianStage, Hart House Theatre, Single Thread Theatre Company, Toronto Fringe, Next Stage, and Summerworks.
Theatre Credits
Nicole’s past theatre credits include, Projections for Chronically (CDTPS), House on Fire (CDTPS), Queen (UC Follies), Bubble Trans Pride (Rhubarb Festival), Ga Ting (Next Stage)
Alien Creature (CDTPS) Gertie and Alice by the Sea (Bodies of Knowledge, Tinsel Town Bartleby (U of T Drama Festival and Lion Womxn (A.M.Y Project/Summerworks)
Technology and Theatre
Nicole also branches out into producing podcasts, delving into live-streaming, and experimenting in AR and VR.
Nicole was part of FOLDA part of the collider project. Collider is an ongoing research & development process in virtual reality theatre, led by Single Thread XR. This is a recording of Collider’s first workshop presentation. It was co-presented at Upintheair Theatre’s rEvolver festival and SpiderWebShow Performance’s StartUp from May 28th – June 5th, 2021. It is produced by Single Thread Theatre Company. The Festival of Live Digital Art (FOLDA) is produced by Spiderweb show Performance. It began in 2018. FOLDA exists to support artists creating theatre in a digital age. Nicole Eun-Ju Bell is an Assistant Production Manager for Theatre Passe Mauraille, as a associate digital strategist specialist for Ghost Light Theatre.
Nicole has a vast amount of experience in varying of theatre, and combines and her expertise and skill to every project she works on. She blends the use of high technology and robotics in a using oldest traditions still alive today.
Nicole’s Recent Projects
Nicole’s Recent projects include a presentation in August 2021 of the play Through the Fairy Circle with fellow 2021 Summer Ensemble Member James Hyett, as Part of the 2021 Theatre Kingston Storefront Fringe Festival
Recently Nicole was a text editor for Streaming Life: Storying the 94. Streaming Life: Storying the 94 is a site-specific truth-activation on the St. George campus of the University of Toronto.
A restory-ation of University of Toronto’s School of Graduate Studies (SGS).
Nicole is the writer of a 15 minute vignette with fellow 2021 Summer Ensemble Member James Hyett. The scene is titled Friendships and Fantasy. The scene premiered in November 2021 as part of the 2021 Alumni Performance Project by University of Toronto Alumni Incubator Project.
What is Friendships and Fantasy about
Four friends play Dungeons and Dragons together for fun and to stay in each other’s lives. Government-imposed stay-at-home orders mean that the four friends have to find ways to keep together using technology. One friend suggests that they should live stream their games so others can join in on the fun. It seems like a great idea, because they all feel isolated and lonely. This is the first time they are all gathering, and they’re still working out some of the kinks, both in their technology and in their relationships…
Friendship & Fantasy is a story about people struggling to carve out space for each other during the pandemic. Developed through an improvisatory creation process that takes the telecommunication technology we are required to use as a potent dramatic proposition, this first stream is a pilot for a larger story we want to tell in the future.
A Fun Fact About Nicole
A fun fact about Nicole is that she is fascinated with cyborgs and Loïe Fuller.
Nicole Eun-Ju Bell: Summer Ensemble 2021
Nicole was part of the third annual Summer Ensemble. She is a member of Crane Creation Theatre Company’s 2021 Summer Ensemble.
What is the Summer Ensemble
The Summer Ensemble is an 8 week training program for theatre artists. In this paid working opportunity artists learn skills required to be a professional artist in Canada, and gain valuable insights into the theatre industry in Canada and abroad. To apply artists must be between 18 and 30 years of age.
This was Crane Creations Third Annual Summer Ensemble and Nicole’s addition as a member of the ensemble, helped make this year a memorable experience for everyone.
Due to lock down restrictions a large portion of the program was conducted over zoom. Nicole as well as the rest of Crane Creations 2021 Summer Ensemble handled the transition beautifully, and Nicole was quickly able to adapt her talents to a Zoom’s online platform.
What Do You Learn In The Summer Ensemble
Learn the basics of Budgeting for the live arts
How do you even start preparing a Budget?
What different types of revenue does a not-for-profit theatre company earn? Which fees do I pay the artists, the director and the designers? These are things that you will discover with the help of Crane Creations Theatre Company Artistic Director Andreja Kovac.
Andreja has worked on projects with budgets over $5 million. She is an expert in project management, has the equivalent of an MFA in directing from her home country of Slovenia, and is also a graduate of Canada’s National Theatre School directing program.
Join us to understand the basics of what it takes to plan, create, and balance a budget for a performing arts project.
Learn the basics of how to write a grant. Then actually write one.
Come and learn about the ins and out of building a budget for a project;
Planning for professional fees (artists, directors, stage manager, designers, etc.)
Knowing how to make grants work together
What funding bodies exist in Canada?
How long should I plan my projects in advance?
Andreja Kovac is a successful theatre director from Slovenia who graduated from the National Theatre School’s Directing program. She is the founding Artistic Director of Crane Creations Theatre Company, and is committed to helping emerging artists transition into the professional field, and understand the business of theatre.
What you will gain:
- Artistic Skills: Explore classical and contemporary text, improvisation, theatre around the world and their relevance and impact on arts jobs and society today.
- Orientation in Arts Jobs: Honest insight into professional organizations, structures and systems in place and how to navigate them successfully
- Financial Skills: Budgeting and financial literacy delivered in a comprehensible and easy to understand way, tailored for theatre artists’ needs.
- Leadership: Debate complex questions and develop ideas and strategies how to build not only your career but theatre ecosystem in Canada and Internationally.
- Touring in the Arts: Discover how artists around the world use international touring as a source of income, and learn how to create shows that can allow you to participate in that market.
- Digital Skills: Discover how blog/content writing can earn you additional income, promote your work, while mastering WordPress, one of the most desired skills in todays job market.
Nicole Bonder Is An Actor In The Summer Ensemble
What is an Actor?
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs in the theatre, film, radio, television, or digital media. The analogous Greek term is ὑποκριτής. The meaning translates to “one who answers”.
What does an actor do?
An actor’s doesn’t just memorize lines and look pretty. An actor has a fun but important role in creating a story. They are responsible for interpreting and embodying the character in a play, television series, or film. To do this well many actors rehearse and train their bodies and voices regularly. They study their script and consult with the director and scene partners about their interpretation of the character.
Their main concern should always be understanding what a character wants or needs and what they are is doing to achieve this action. A want or a need is often referred to as an Objective, or motivation. What an actor is doing is referred to an action or a tactic. An Actor Acts. A good actor makes many different and thoughtful choices about what the character is doing. A very good actor can make many creative out-of-the-box choices, and is always ready to change their actions on the fly.
Actors sometimes require additional special skills. For example, an actor in a Broadway musical may also need to know how to sing and dance. An actor is a puppet show must know how to operate a puppet. Professional Improvisers need to know how to create a character and make up a story on the spot without any preparation. An actor in an action blockbuster film may also be trained in stage combat and martial arts.
What Did Nicole Do During The Summer Ensemble
Nicole is an actor in the 2021 Summer Ensemble. In the 2021 workshop of Twelfth Night, Nicole played the role of Sebastian. Nicole also participated in many activities and project with Crane Creations Theatre Company as a Summer Ensemble Member. She read through plays and assisted in workshops of new work. She was part of important and lively discussion and debates about the Canadian theatre industry. Nicole learned about the industry of theatre and what it looks like to be a professional full time artist. She learned about theatre in Mississauga. Nicole wrote grants and presented pitches for future theatre projects. She participated in a seminar held by Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council and Toronto Arts Council.
With her fellow Summer Ensemble members she explored the arts outside of Canada as well, and conducted workshops and presentations on prominent International and Canadian artists and theatre companies.
Twelfth Night
Nicole Eun-Ju Bell is a Crane Creations Theatre Company 2021 Summer Ensemble Member. She is one of the cast members who was part of the 2021 workshop of Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare. Eugenia De Jong, a core team member of the Crane Creations Theatre Company and former Resident Artist, is an emerging director. Twelfth Night was the first full length play Eugenia has directed and workshopped. Eugenia is also a fellow Summer Ensemble Member. She is a participant of the 2019 and 2020 Summer Ensemble.
Twelfth Night is one of Shakespeare’s most beloved comedies. The play is about two ship wrecked twins who land on an island and must conceal their identities. The play deals with themes of disguise, wealth and class, music, disorder, gender and love.
Nicole plays the role of Sebastian. Sebastian is the twin brother of Viola and one of the siblings who is shipwrecked on an island. Sebastian is assisted by the faithful Antonio, who cares for Sebastian and risks his life to help him.
Homosexuality and Shakespeare
Scholars believe that Antonio’s feeling for Sebastian are more than just friendship. Antonio has romantic feelings for Sebastian. Antonio is not the only Shakespearean character, who Shakespeare scholars believed had romantic feelings towards of the same gender. Another character names Antonio in the Merchant of Venice is thought to be in love with another male character, Basssanio. Our modern ideas of sexual identity is actually quite new. There are many LGBTQ+ Shakespeare characters. It is even speculated that Shakespeare liked both women and men.
Nicole’s interpretation of the character Sebastian took added nuance and a new perspective to the character. Nicole played a traditionally male character as a woman. Nicole’s Sebastian was a queer masculine presenting woman. Nicole helped bring the character of Sebastian to life, in this gender bent version of Twelfth Night.
Why we love Nicole
Talking to Nicole is always a great experience. She is full of incredibly interesting and engaging conversations about cyborgs, technology and AR and VR. Her forward thinking approach to theatre, helped bring in new perspectives and brand new ideas of what theatre can be.
Nicole is a brilliant and exciting emerging mixed race artist. She represents the best and the brightest of the next generation of Canadian theatre. We at Crane Creations Can’t wait to see what she does next.
Nicole is a memorable team member of Crane Creations 2021 Summer Ensemble, and helped bring Theatre in Mississauga back during the Covid pandemic.
