A short note from your Training Center Director
I used to find it absolutely terrifying to stand in front of a crowd and talk. In high school, I auditioned for my first play shaking so severely that my voice couldn’t even read the words on the page. I used to avoid eye contact with people so that I wouldn’t have to have a conversation. I was severely shy.
Despite my fear, I always loved the idea of being an actor and doing comedy. My dad used to rent a reel-to-reel projector and show us Laurel and Hardy on the living room wall. We’d scan the TV to see if we could determine if a commercial was actually a deft SCTV satirical parody or just the Canadian broadcasting reality. I made gods in my head of Phil Hartman and Tim Medows watching SNL.
In my early 20s hanging out with my friends, I felt relaxed. Those moments of laughing, doing characters, and bits filled me with longing at the thought of creating the type of comedy that Mr. Show or Kids in the Hall did. Unfortunately, what seemed amazing in my head the night before was reshaped as I let my own fear and anxiety stop me before I even started.
Here are a couple of things I really want you to know.
I want you to know that we provide a safe space for a diverse community of artists. People from all backgrounds, types, sizes, and identities are not only safe but celebrated here.
I want you to have excellent teachers, community, tools, know-how, confidence, and everything that it takes to create professional-level art of any kind on a stage or video and make it something an audience not only understands but genuinely enjoys.
As the director of our training center, I want you to know how amazing it feels to create something new with your own voice, even if you're not painfully shy.
Mike McGettigan
Training Center Director, Planet Ant Theatre