Who is she?
Sarah Kitz is a Canadian artist, performer and theatrical director. She is the artistic director of the Great Canadian Theatre Company in Ottawa.
What’s her background?
Kitz is originally from Toronto where she worked with the Artists Mentoring Youth Project as co-director. She was also a mentor at various companies including Crow’s Theatre, Tarragon Theatre and the Canadian Stage company. Kitz also has experience with teaching and directing at Toronto Metropolitan University, the University of Windsor and Sheridan College. Kitz has worked at the Stratford and Shaw festivals and with groups such as Shakespeare in the Ruins in Winnipeg.
What is she known for in Ottawa?
Kitz also champions IBPOC, female, trans, non-binary and other underrepresented voices in theatre. In Ottawa, Kitz has paid special attention to curating stories and art about this city’s history and contemporary experience as a society.
In an interview for Intermission Magazine, Kitz said, “we have ‘Canadian’ in our title, so we have to be reflective, and critical about what the mythmaking of Canada is, how we built this place we call Canada. We have a responsibility to react to the power structures that created this state, and what we want this place to be moving forward.”
Kitz said she is making efforts to discuss politics, challenge audiences and deconstruct systems of power through her theatrical work. Recently, she worked on GCTC’s newest show, Laurie Fyffe’s Beowulf in Afghanistan, which premiered Nov. 12.
What do people say about her?
Kitz has won several awards, such as the RBC Rising Star Emerging Director Prize and the Women’s Auxiliary Award at the Stratford Festival for her directorial work.
Kate Smith, a long-time colleague and friend, said, “she’s done a lot of work to intentionally engage the local community and that has been one of the key tenets of her leadership.”
“She’s incredibly intelligent and thoughtful and a really strong artist in her own right.”
Smith said that, as a director, Kitz is interested in asking the community what it needs and finding a way to address those needs.
What’s a lesser-known fact about her?
Although Kitz grew up in Toronto, she loves nature and the outdoors. In an interview with Laurie Fyffe for the PGC Women’s Caucus Newsletter, Kitz said, “trees, water and rocks provided a different cognitive space. I breathe deeper in those spaces.”
