Applications for the Joel MacMeekin Memorial Scholarship through Tweed & Company Theatre close on Aug. 31.
This is the second year the scholarship is being offered.
The scholarship awards $500 to two students, one in Tweed and one in Bancroft, who are pursuing a career in the arts and have previously been involved with Tweed & Company, the Marble Arts Centre or the Village Playhouse in some capacity.
The scholarship is open to students of any artistic discipline, not just theatre.
“The community component is one of the most important parts of the company for us, and it’s what’s missing in a lot of professional theatre environments across Canada,” said Artistic and Co-Executive Director Tim Porter.
“We’ve developed and love this hybrid model that we have, of the theatre’s not exclusive in any way. It’s still professional-caliber productions, professional performers, but then there’s opportunities for local talent, and Young Company in particular, to really get involved and invested in the theatre.”
He said youth in rural communities often do not have the same artistic opportunities as youth in urban centres, and Tweed & Company wants to help remedy that with their programs.
Koda Carriere was Bancroft’s inaugural recipient of the Joel MacMeekin scholarship in 2024. He is studying musical theatre performance at St. Clair College and has appeared in four shows with Tweed & Company.
Carriere said he loves small towns and appreciates the company’s dedication to them.
“[Bancroft] is very community-based, especially Tweed & Co. is very community-based, which is something that I value a lot,” he said.
“Everything that comes out of Tweed & Co. is made with love, it’s like Grandma’s cookies,” he said with a laugh.
Porter said that the funds for the scholarship come from the tips left at the bars at their venues, as their bartenders are volunteers. He said that with how supportive the communities are, the scholarship could continue to grow.
The scholarship honours Joel MacMeekin, who was a founding member of Tweed & Company Theatre before his departure during the pandemic to focus on his health. He sadly passed away from an illness during that period.
“[Joel] wrote our first play that we ever produced and used to paint all the sets. And when we did Salt Water Moon, Joel used to paint custom season graphics for us for each production, and Joel’s artwork is now the cover of the published play Salt Water Moon,” he said.
“He was just an incredible artist, not just as a theatre performer, but as a visual artist, as a writer, as a creator in general.”
