unit
What is it?
The Wildfire Development Unit is a curated dramaturgical opportunity for playwrights and interdisciplinary artists under 30 who seek to develop their work over a year-long period with the Major Matt Mason Collective.
MMMC provides ongoing dramaturgical support, hires artists for workshopping & research purposes, provides producing mentorship, and publicly disseminates the work to help gauge audience response.
Our 2024 Unit Participants:
Jason Cabueños - Stories by the Wildfire
Jason Cabueños (he/him) is a 4th year drama student at the University of Calgary. He is a Calgary based Filipino theatre artist that specializes in the direction of intimate, interactive experiences with theatre audiences. After wanting to be a game developer for so long, he has found a new passion for the theatre and seeks to combine the two mediums of expression to create a new to expression of his truths and experiences through a new lens! He values the exploration of the strange and "the new"; no idea is too crazy if it means creating a better, more interesting world to be in.
Stories by the Wildfire is a theatrical game mash up where audiences share each others’ stories and cultures in the form of an original tabletop card game. The piece seeks to be a fun, meaningful, and insightful way to make the ordinary, extraordinary and for voices to be heard under an equal playing field through the shared emotions molded by the audience and players themselves.
Day Chase - untitled
Day Chase (she/they) is an emerging theatre artist, playwright, and animator based in Southern Alberta. Her recent works have been producing her play “The Estate Sale” and devising/acting for Incendiary Festival’s Islands Disappear. Through their artistic endeavors Day has experimented with prose, puppetry, visual arts, object theatre, mask, and is now ready to dive into animation! Day enjoys creating work that is both silly and meaningful, and is especially passionate about theatre created by or for youth.
Have you ever had an imaginary friend? Good thing you’re here, because this scientist is conducting research on imaginary friends, and asking all the important questions. What are their favorite colors? Why are they so tall? How come some are quiet and others so loud? But, are all imaginary friends filled with sparkles and sweet things? Not quite. When the scientist meets Shadow from the basement, they begin to feel more nervous than ever before! Intended for young audiences, this project blends theater with animation, and aims to create a unique performance centered around anxiety and friendship.
Shyanne Duquette - Skinhead
Shyanne Duquette (they/them) is a Cree mixed-blood multidisciplinary artist based in Amiskwacî (Edmonton). Since graduating from the University of Alberta (BA Drama, 2021), they have explored a variety of roles within the theatre industry, including acting, administration, assistant directing, playwriting, and producing. They are a community-focused artist who aims to break down barriers of entry in their practice and beyond. Their work often focuses on themes of identity, community, and topics that set people's teeth on edge. Currently, they are a 2024 IBPOC Writer in Residence with Alberta Playwrights Network and have participated in developmental groups such as Nextfest's Emerging Artists Producing Program (2023), Common Ground Arts’ Riser (2023), and Tarragon Theatre's Young Playwrights Unit (2022).
Skinhead follows a group of friends navigating the challenges of growing up and joining groups that prove to be much more insidious than initially expected.
Here’s a list of our previous unit participants:
2022 - 2023
Saeid Asgarian - Absence
Sage Cannon - Un/Welcome
Donovan Hayden - Suitable Climate
2021 - 2022
Ashleigh Hicks - MINE
Vishesh Abeyratne - The Resource
Keira Forde - No More News for Nancy
Faggeur Collective (Wesley Reibeling & Nathaniel Hanula-James) - Flux in the City
2020 - 2021
Makram Ayache - The Green Line
Yousuf Liepert - Messenger
Brett Dahl - Unlimited Intimacy
Morgan O’Neill-Sharp - Hugh, Juko, and Chuck
