Sandra Oh To Play Paulina In 'Death And The Maiden' - Theater

Yesterday, Sandra Oh hinted in an interview that she will be doing a play "in a year or so", and today the Victory Gardens Theater in Chicago could confirm that they will be setting up a production of 'Death and the Maiden' by Ariel Dorfman with Sandra Oh as the lead character, Paulina. The production will run between Jun 13 - Jul 13, 2014 and will be directed by Chey Yew.

Here's more info about the play courtesy of the Victory Gardens Theater:

Ariel Dorfman ’s explosively provocative, award-winning drama is set in a rocky new democracy. Gerardo has just been chosen to head the commission that will investigate the crimes of the old regime when his car breaks down and he is picked up by a kind doctor. Sandra Oh (the award-winning star of ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy) plays Gerardo’s wife, Paulina, who thinks she recognizes the doctor as the man who tormented her as she lay blindfolded in a military detention center years before. A riveting, haunting play about revenge, trauma and forgiveness..

Sandra Oh At Public Theater's 50th Anniversary Gala - Photos

Pics of Sandra Oh as she arrives at Delacorte Theater for the 50th anniversary of the New York City summer tradition Shakespeare in the Park, on June 18, 2012 in New York City.

Sandra participated in a special reading of Romeo and Juliet, starring Kevin Kline as Romeo and Meryl Streep as Juliet. 

Photos: Zimbio.com

Sandra Oh Joins Meryl Streep and Kevin Kline for Public Theater's 'Romeo and Juliet' Reading

To celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Shakespeare in the Park, a gala with a special one-night-only reading of Romeo and Juliet - featuring Kevin Kline as Romeo and Meryl Streep as Juliet - will be held on Monday, June 18 at Delacorte Theatre in Central Park, New York.

Sandra Oh will participate in the reading as Lady Montague, Romeo's mother. Lady Montague appears twice in the play, in act one and act three.

In addition to Sandra and the mighty Meryl Streep and Kevin Kline, Theater Mania reports that the reading will feature these cool people in the following roles:

Murray Abraham (Friar Laurence), Christine Baranski (Nurse), John Cullum (Capulet), Raúl Esparza (Sampson, Apothecary, Watchman 1), David Harbour (Abraham, Capulet Servant, Paris' Page), Bill Irwin (Montague), Jesse L. Martin (Gregory, Friar John, Watchman 2), Sandra Oh (Lady Montague), Phylicia Rashad (Lady Capulet), Jerry Stiller (Peter), Michael Stuhlbarg (Paris), Christopher Walken (Mercutio), Sharon Washington (Stage Directions), Sam Waterston (Benvolio), and Jeffrey Wright (Tybalt), along with an on-stage band playing the music of Jeanine Tesori.

The Anniversary Gala serves to honour Al Pacino for his work with the Public Theater. The evening will also include "dinner al fresco and a party immediately following the performance". The tickets start at $1500. Click here for more information.

Sandra Oh Attends The Premiere Of "Poor Behavior"

Sandra Oh with actors Joanna Day, Chad Coleman and Reg Rodgers at the opening night performance of 'Poor Behavior' at Center Theatre Group's Mark Taper Forum on September 18, 2011 in Los Angeles.

Sandra Oh and Joanna Day co-starred together in the play Satellites by Diana Son in 2006.

In The Sight Of Red, Red, Red. Red Blood.

Random pic of the week:

Sandra Oh as Adela in the play The House Of Bernarda in Los Angeles, in July 2002.

Said about Sandra's performance in a review in Variety:

Below the main platform on three sides are pits of red gravel, and when characters step into these areas, we know they're being overwhelmed by their passion.

The character who feels most at home in the blood-red part of the set is Adela, the youngest of the daughters and the object of the desired young man's lust if not his courtship. Sandra Oh delivers a superb, physically expressive performance: She's a woman incapable of holding back her sexual passion, and most at risk of becoming like her grandmother Maria Josefa (an outstanding, white-wigged Tsai Chin), an insane elderly woman whom Bernarda keeps locked up.

Madness

Random pic of the day:

Sandra Oh in the play Mad Forest in 1992 at the National Theatre School in Canada.

Photo: André Lecoz

It Was The Beginning Of Everything

...and then the rest of life happens.

Sandra Oh on what going to The National Theatre School in Canada meant to her:

Sandra Oh And Kevin McKidd Have Theatre Plans

Recently Kevin McKidd did a Q&A with his fans over at Kevin McKidd Online where they had a few questions about Sandra. For those of you who've been wanting to see Sandra and Kevin in a project outside of Grey's, there's hope. This is what he said:

KEVIN ON SANDRA OH

Kevin was asked If Sandra enjoyed her visit to London

[Kevin] - she did love London - we hung out and introduced her to my friends and stuff

members express that Sandra Oh was amazing

[Kevin] - she is - i concur!

Kevin was asked if he and Sandra will ever work on a project together outside of Grey’s

[Kevin] - i hope so - we keep talking about doing a play some time...

To read the entire chat, visit Kevin McKidd Online.

Sandra Oh At Ojai Playwrights Conference

Last Saturday Sandra attended the Ojai Playwrights Conference winter gala and benefit, and here is a video from the event:

Ojai Valley News has more details from the event:

Saturday’s Ojai Playwrights Conference winter gala and benefit, “Hearts on Fire,” featured stars Sally Field, John Glover, Dana Delany, Sandra Oh, Steven Weber, Noah Wyle, Amanda McBroom and Jane Kaczmarek on the Matilija Auditorium stage, performing selections from a number of plays by Terrence McNally.

The winter gala is intended to raise funds for the summer workshop program. The OPC believes that the value of theater as it is developed is linked to the value of theater as it takes its final form, and engages audiences, challenges ideas and changes the world.

The visuals for the show, which came before the food and festivities at St. Thomas Aquinas Center, relied on pared-down, grown-up elegance. The stars wore mostly black (accents included a grey sweater on Glover, Weber’s subtle lavender shirt and Oh’s lavender stockings, Delany’s pink and Field’s red shoes). The rich, red light-reflective curtains were like an open candy box, delivering differently concocted valentines, inspired treats, though glimpses of the human experience can’t be compared to sugary confections. Even so, the presentations were satisfying vignettes, not pessimistic.

Artistic director and producer Robert Egan said that he prepared for the event by trying to read through all of the plays of honoree playwright McNally. “I was struck,” Egan said, “not only by this man’s incredible output, but by his form, which is a mixture of naturalism and realism, and by the size of this man’s heart.”

At a row of black music stands, actors brought the scenes to life, with no costumes and very minimal stage direction. Introductions to the individual plays were brief; with each scene the audience was without much context, right in the middle of things.

It was a testimony to the ability of the actors and the honesty of the writing that convincing relationships appeared, and interactions created small affecting climaxes.

McNally would not want to credit the written play above the actors’ gifts for creating lives from thin air. Later in the evening he said, “I learn from my actors, my director, what the play is about. Theater is the most collaborative art.”

It is February, the month of Valentine’s Day, and the gala allowed for many examples of what it means to be relational.

...

McNally’s work does not focus only on romantically involved couples. “Lips Together Teeth Apart” displayed a relationship between a brother and sister with ties both simple and complex, a brother-in-law and sister-in-law sharing a confidence, and the tendency for couples to compare their relationships. There was even mention of the relationship with one’s unborn children.

...

Throughout the evening, words worked to create believable lines of affiliation, even with few actions to accompany them. The actors were chosen well: their voices, faces and minimal gestures offered the audience characters whose hearts became visible just beneath, and even in tandem with, the workings of the ego. Perhaps that is why McNally’s characters are so beautiful, they aren’t big dissimulators.

Highlights of the after-party were cranberry and pomegranate martinis, a glimpse of timelessly sweet and strong Field, Oh with her beautiful manner and voluptuous hair, the smile and wit of Delany and Weber, the hilarity of Glover and the brilliance of McBroom. The food was prepared by celebrity chef Michael Hollingsworth. A surprise: typically dense carrots can become a light and frothy mousse as a cinnamon-topped souffle.

The stars appeared to be having fun, genuine fun, well cared for by the OPC staff and volunteers. McNally said, “There is nothing more joyful than being in rehearsal with great actors. American stage needs the kind of development that places like Ojai provide.”

And more from here:

It was announced at the start of the show that Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen had to bow out of the cast due to a death in the family. But the benefit performance still offered the chance to see actor John Glover reprise his Tony Award-winning role from McNally’s “Love! Valour! Compassion!”; to see “Desperate Housewives” star Dana Delany as a well-meaning but culturally incorrect American traveling through India in “The Perfect Ganesh”; and to see “Grey’s Anatomy” star Oh as a woman whose brother has just died of AIDS, leaving her a Fire Island home she isn’t sure she wants to keep for reasons she knows are offensive in “Lips Together, Teeth Apart.”

Sandra Joins Ojai Playwrights Conference

If you have a few bucks to spare, you can purchase tickets to Ojai Playwrights Conference Board's benefit gala Hearts on Fire and get the opportunity to see Sandra act. Here are more details about the event from the official site:

The Board of Directors of the Ojai Playwrights Conference is pulling out all the stops to launch its 13th season with its benefit gala Hearts on Fire!

Honoring four-time Tony Award winning playwright Terrence McNally, "Hearts on Fire" celebrates the passion and power of the human heart.

Scheduled for Saturday, January 30, 2010, the evening begins at 5:30 pm with comedy, drama, and inspired acting featuring award-winning Dana Delany (Desperate Housewives, China Beach), John Glover (Brothers & Sisters), Jane Kaczmarek (Malcolm in the Middle), Amanda McBroom, Sandra Oh (Grey's Anatomy), Zachary Quinto (Heroes, Star Trek 2009), Steven Weber (Wings), Noah Wyle (ER), plus just announced ... Ted Danson and Mary Steenberg!

An original production created and directed by Robert Egan, “Hearts of Fire” promises to be heart-breaking, heart-lifting and heart-throbbing, with an eclectic mix of works by some of America’s greatest playwrights, including McNally.

Fore more details about the event and tickets information visit http://www.ojaiplays.org.


About the Ojai Playwrights Conference:

THE OJAI PLAYWRIGHTS CONFERENCE is a developmental program that values the reading and workshop process as an important avenue through which playwrights can more fully realize their intentions with a play. Ours is a conference centered around playwrights and their new plays. We believe the theatre can be a vital and essential forum for the exchange of new and challenging ideas about the world in which we live. We seek out plays and playwrights who share this vision.

Theater And Bagels

The Canadian newspaper, The Globe and Mail, published a Q&A with Sandra in today's paper where she talks about possibly going back to the theater:

Sandra Oh in Satellites.

Sandra Oh graduated from Montreal's National Theatre School in 1993,but the Grey's Anatomy star had never stepped on its venerable Monument National Stage until a week and a half ago. (It was under renovations the three years she studied there.)

The Ottawa born actor Finally got to tread its boards in order to accept the Gascon-Thomas Award, given each year bythe NTS to those who "have made an exceptional contributiontothegrowthof theatre in Canada and whose examples serve as an inspiration for the students of the school." Previous winners include actor Christopher Plummer and playwright George F. Walker.

Oh, a Golden Globe and Genie winner, talked to The Globe and Mail from Los Angeles.

How did it feel to receive this award from your alma meter?
It was really moving for me, mostly to speak with the students. You look back on your life and where you come from and you're not in the same place.

At NTS, you were studiying for thestage. did you think that you'd end up with most of your career in film and television?
No, uh-uh. But you can't live as an actor and just do theatre. I haven't done a play in three years. The last was Diana Son's Satellites at the Public Theatre in New York.

When your Hollywood career cools down - not that anyone wants it to cool down -would you come back up to Canada  to do a play, maybe at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival?
Stratford's quite a commitment. I'm actually trying to go back to work with Peter Hinton at the National Arts Centre. We've been in contact about maybe putting a play up together. Peter was one of the first directors I worked with after I moved to Toronto; I was in his production of the Jacobean play The Witch of Edmonton. Peter's doing some great stuff at the NAC, building a company. I would love to come back.

What plays did your class cut their teeth on at NTS?
For our third year, we did Chekhov's Three Sisters (I was the youngest, Irina); we did Wycherley's The Country Wife, the Restoration comedy. Then it was Mad Forest by Caryl Churchill. The fourth project I missed - I went to Vancouver to shoot The Diary of Evelyn Lau. I left early, but I still graduated.

Did you reunite with any of your classmates or teachers while receiving the Gascon-Thomas Award?
I have wonderful friends who came to see me. Kristen Thompson was a classmate of mine. She was doing a show in rep at Soulpepper, The Guardsman. She did a show in Toronto on Thursday, flew out Friday, hung out with me all Friday, and Saturday she returned and closed the show. And that was like a vacation for her.

And how was it reconnecting with Montreal?
What a fantastic city. It's changed a lot. It feels much more alive. I used to live between the two best bagel joints in Montreal: Fairmount and St-Viateur. When I was living there, we had no money. This time I went and I got six bagels from Fairmount and six from St-Viateur and brought them back to Los Angeles.

And which bagel wins out?
Sentimentally, I would say Fairmount - because I lived slightly closer to Fairmount. But it's - they're different, slightly crispier. They're both good.

By J. Kelly Nestruck, The Globe and Mail. November 2, 2009

Sandra's Acceptance Speech

Here is Sandra Oh making the audience laugh in her acceptance speech from the Gascon-Thomas Awards last week:

Thank you to whoever recorded this.

Sandra Oh's Theater Lessons

We have got another new Sandra interview for you. The original interview was published in French at Cyberpresse.ca, and we have used Google Translate for the English translation which you can read below. But Google Translate isn't perfect so if you come across a sentence - or many - that don't make sense, that is the explanation. If there is anything that you think that we should correct, please let us know.

Every week for five years Sandra Oh is Cristina Yang, a doctor cold, arrogant and pushy in the TV series, Grey's Anatomy. But last Friday in Montreal, Sandra Oh is again a simple graduate of the National Theater School when she received the Gascon-Thomas Award with Paul Buissonneau. Meeting with a star bilingual and easy.

Sandra Oh will never forget the scene. It was in 1990 during her first year in interpretation in the English section of the National Theater School. Wounded Knee, the evening of her first performance in the attic of a National Monument, still in ruins, it had reached the top of the stairs in the arms of a classmate.

"I knew that my father had driven two hours from Ottawa to come see me play. And I was frightened because he had already hinted that in his mind, actress was a notch higher than whore. But that night, I played just a whore! "Says the 38 years old actress, her great burst of laughter perched high in a vast hall of a National Monument it does not recognize. "My God, look at those beautiful varnished floor," she exclaimed on arriving, dressed in a white pirate shirt and baggy black pants signed Alexander McQueen.

First surprise: Sandra Oh's French is surprisingly clear and fluid. The actress has yet grown into English in suburban Ottawa, the second of three children of immigrants from South Korea. Oh's Dad has long been an economist for the federal government while Mom worked as a biochemist. Like many immigrants, they dreamed of having their children having long and serious university studies. But at 18 years and despite a father who pushed her to study journalism at Ottawa, Sandra Oh arrives in Montreal to audition at the National School. If she were to get refused, plan B is to complete her academic training at Concordia history to reassure her parents. Fate decides otherwise.

The first penny of the abacus

"The day I received my acceptance letter from the National School is like the first penny of the abacus had fallen and was put in place. Despite the fears of my parents and mine too, I decided I could not live with the regret of not trying. No, that I could not. Since I was little, I felt that I had no choice, that I had to be an actress. And even if my parents saw it a bad eye, my desire was stronger than them. Play was my only way to breathe."

In fall 1990, Sandra is a pad on the Boulevard Saint-Laurent in front of the deceased Lux. She has no money, dressed in black, do not always eat their fill but finds that the National School is an incredibly exciting. She is forging friendships with classmates, Patrick Gallagher (Glee, Night at the Museum, True Blood), Shawn Mathieson, Elizabeth Robertson, Kari Matchett and Kristen Thomas, many people with whom she remained in contact some of whom are attending the discount price.

"My classmates are my community, my roots. They know who I am and what I am worth. They know my strengths and weaknesses. They know when I lie. They saw me in the rough. Their opinion matters to me more than anything."

In addition to providing beautiful memories, the National School Sandra Oh learned two valuable lessons: "Learning to become a better player is not everything, still need to know how to take care of the actor in us. That, I learned that here, "she said. More importantly, the school showed me there were a thousand and one ways to do this job and how we could do to achieve what we wanted with the tools we had."

Leaving School in 1993, Sandra Oh sees a chance to smile. Chosen from among 1,000 competitors, she won the primary role of the TV movie The Diary of Evelyn Lau, the true story of an Asian teenager becoming a drug addict and prostitute in the streets of Vancouver. Two other television movies for CBC, including one on the life of Adrienne Clarkson, complete this card game winner and the push to try her luck in Hollywood. "In Canada, nobody ever told me that because of my difference, I find it difficult to penetrate. But in Los Angeles, I have been told for 12 years."

A marriage and separation

Yet since 1996, having returned to live in Toronto, luck smiled again. HBO offered her the role of assistant to a sports agent in the series Arliss. This role will help her earn a good living for six years. Meanwhile, she met director Alexander Payne whom she married in 2003, who directed the popular film Sideways, whom she left two years later. The character of Cristina Yang has distracted from the pain of his love and especially to a television star in the United States.

One day, Sandra Oh knows she must learn to live without the lessons Grey's Anatomy. Meanwhile, it is clear evidence that the difference did not matter and that there is life and beautiful roles after the National School.

Source

Sandra Oh Honoured

Sandra is big in Canada. Here is another article from the Gascon-Thomas Awards:

Actress Sandra Oh wipes back tears while accepting
an award from the National Theatre School in Montreal. (CBC)

Sixteen years after her graduation, Ottawa-born actress Sandra Oh was finally able to hit the stage of the National Theatre School Friday.

The Grey’s Anatomy star was in Montreal to be honoured by her alma mater with the Gascon-Thomas award for 2009 Friday. The award honours people who have made an "exceptional contribution" to theatre in Canada and who "serve as an inspiration to students of the school."

"Finally I get to be on the monument stage," exclaimed Oh while receiving the award on the stage of the historic Monument National Theatre.

During her time at the school, the stage was under renovations. Instead, Oh said her class performed for each other up in the third-floor attic.

"This place used to look like crap," marveled Oh in an interview with the CBC.

Despite having won Emmys for her role in Grey’s Anatomy, and a Golden Globe for her role in the 2004 film Sideways, the Gascon-Thomas recognition is "the best award ever," said Oh.

"I feel very, very moved just being here and seeing familiar faces, and to see the students walk into the school," the Ottawa-born actress said.

"Because it is my history and it is really important. My parents were here at the very beginning — they saw every show. And for them to come back 15 years later for me to receive this award — it is history for me as well."

School not her first choice

Oh turned down a full journalism scholarship from Carleton University to attend the National Theatre School.

Oh described how she applied to the school after seeing a pamphlet about it.

“It seemed like a perfect warm-up audition for my real audition to Concordia [University in Montreal] — which, by the way, I didn’t get into.”

In addition to providing her with a network of colleagues she said she can always trust to tell the truth, Oh said the major thing the school taught her was how to take care of herself as an actor.

"Because after this I’m telling you — it is all on you to figure this all out. No one is going to take care of you. No one is going to hand you success."

Oh acknowledged her parents were worried her chances of success as someone of Korean-Canadian origin.

"I think you think of that if you grow up in a predominantly white society, and you’re not white."

But, Oh said she didn’t let that hold her back.

"It becomes a part of your makeup. And it certainly is a part of mine but … that is not the part that leads me."

Oh shares the Gascon-Thomas Award with singer and artistic director Paul Buisonneau.

Source

Sandra Oh: Back In The Days

Here is a brand new and very fascinating interview with Sandra from the Montreal Gazette where Sandra looks back on her career and talks about being famous:

MONTREAL - When I spoke with Grey’s Anatomy star Sandra Oh from her home in Los Angeles this week, she wasn’t just thrilled about being chosen as this year’s anglophone recipient of the National Theatre School’s Gascon-Thomas outstanding achievement award. She was also eagerly looking forward to finally treading the boards of the Monument National’s Ludger-Duvernay theatre to accept it.

“I want to be on that friggin’ stage,” she exclaimed, prior to yesterday’s ceremony.

Her graduating class of 1993 had been robbed of a chance to perform in the magnificent Ludger-Duvernay because it was undergoing $18 million worth of renovations that year.

At yesterday’s ceremony, Oh said: “This award is very special to me because it is where I came from. It is who I am.”

Earlier this week, Oh said she was looking forward to having her Ottawa-based, Korea-born parents in the audience, and eager to renew bonds with former classmates such as actor/playwright Kristen Thomson, who flew in from Toronto to spend yesterday afternoon with her.

“It was just so great to spend this week thinking about people – hearing from Shawn Mathieson and meeting with Patrick Gallagher (who, like Oh, now lives in L.A.) and talking to Waneta (Storms). We had an amazing class.”

Read more »

More From The Gascon-Thomas Awards

More details from the awards ceremony from the Montreal Gazette:

Grey's Anatomy star Sandra Oh visited her alma mater this afternoon to receive the National Theatre School's Gascon-Thomas award for lifetime achievement.

Dressed in a white musketeer blouse with puffy sleeves and black knicker-pants with heels, she looked casual, elegant and theatrical. But the fashionista didn't look worried about her makeup as she hugged old friends like actor Kirsten Thomson, who had flown in from Toronto for the occasion (she's due back tomorrow night for the final performance her starring role in Ferenc Molnar's The Guardsman at Soulpepper Theatre) , Elizabeth Robertson, associate producer of Radio-Canada's C'est la vie, and Monique Mercure, former general director and mother-to-all at NTS.

Oh broke away from her Global TV interview to embrace Mercure and tell her how great she looked as a blonde. Mercure, who continues to work steadily in French television, said it was so much easier to be a blonde now that her hair is white.

In the interview, Oh said that the Gascon-Thomas Award was in a class of its own. "This one is special because its where I came from. It's who I am," she said.

Meanwhile, Oh's devoted parents (John Oh and Young-Nam Oh), who had arrived from Ottawa for the occasion, were waiting in the theatre's green room, where we had a chat. They said they don't take in all of Oh's award ceremonies. The family takes turns as to who attends. It was her sister and husband who attended the Golden Globes and the parents who went to the Emmies. But Sandra won the Golden Globe and not the Emmy Award, so the family joke is that mom and dad are a jinx. In this case, however, the Gascon-Thomas award was a sure thing. So it was safe for them to come. And only two hours drive away.

The award, which has been given out annually since 1990 to two accomplished and influential artists, one francophone, the other anglophone, is named after the schools founders Jean Gascon (later to become the first Canadian artistic director of the Stratford Festival) and Powys Thomas.

In his accceptance speech, Paul Buissonneau, who was this year's francophone recipient, drew attention to the fact that while Oh was making her belated debut on the Ludger-Duvernay stage due to the fact that it had been undergoing renovations when she had graduated, in 1993, to him, it was a return to the place where he had made his Montreal debut in the 1940s performing with Edith Piaf. His speech was very down-to-earth full of advice to the next generation of NTS students. Buissonneau, in addition to being a co-founder and artistic director of Théâtre de Quat'Sous, was a seminal figure in the development of Quebec francophone theatre. He was introduced by graduating student, Rachel Graton.

Oh, too, gave a highly inspirational speech, aimed directly at the students. She remembered the first day she walked into the school for her audition, thinking, "This is the most exciting place ever." Until then her sights had been set on Concordia University (where the drama department delivers a bonafide university degree.), she said. Ultimately, she admitted, Concordia had turned her down anyway. (Note to self: research this. Is there a Concordia prof somewhere willing to admit that he or she turned down Sandra Oh? Not likely. If it were me, I'd carry the secret to my grave.)

Oh introduced Thomson and Robertson in the audience and stressed how important her NTS class was to her. (See list below.)

Ron Klappholz, the NTS graduating student who introduced Oh at the ceremony, gave a dynamite speech, too, replete with well-timed quips. He's employable, no doubt about that.

Oh said it was one of the best introductions she'd ever had.

After the ceremony, there was a beer-and-sandwiches bash on the café on the ground floor of the Monument National. Oh didn't slip away after five minutes as one might expect of a Hollywood star. Half an hour later, there she was holding court in a corner, surrounded by a dozen NTS students who were hanging on her every word.

If she wasn't so busy portraying Dr. Cristina Yang on Grey's Anatomy, Oh would be one terrific teacher.

Here's the complete list of the NTS graduating class of 1993:
Woody Dalrymple, Jude Foster, Patrick Gallagher, Neil Girvan, Matthew Godfrey, Ruth Madoc-Jones, Kari Matchett, Shawn Mathieson, David McGoran, Sandra Oh, Elizabeth Robertson, Waneta Storms, Andrew Tarbet, Kristen Thomson

Source

So Inspiring

Sandra seems to like the Canadian media (lucky bastards!) and this time she talks to them about receiving an award from her former school:

MONTREAL - Sandra Oh had a homecoming of sorts Friday, being honoured at the National Theatre School of Canada where she honed her acting skills nearly 20 years ago.

The star of "Grey's Anatomy" was one of two recipients of the Gascon-Thomas Award given annually to people who have contributed to the growth of theatre in Canada.

Oh, who graduated from the school in 1993, hesitated for several seconds when asked what it felt like to be an inspiration to young students.

"Honestly, that question I don't think about it a lot," she told The Canadian Press, "because I find that strange to think about.

"You know - I'm an inspiration. I'm an inspiration. Look, I'm so inspiring! I don't really think about that," she said, laughing.

"All I really think about is doing my work and doing it well. But, yes, the opportunity to come back here and to think about my life ... that started at this school, and where I am now, has brought a tremendous amount of satisfaction."

The other recipient of the award was Paul Buissonneau, who founded his own theatre company Le Theatre de Quat'Sous in 1956.

Previous winners include Robert Lepage, Christopher Plummer, Michel Tremblay and Gordon Pinsent.

The award is named after two of the school's founders, Jean Gascon and Powys Thomas.

Source

Sandra At The Gascon-Thomas Awards

Here is an article with some details from the Gascon-Thomas Awards ceremony that Sandra attended today:

One of the stars of Grey's Anatomy with a Montreal connection was in town today.

Sandra Oh was presented with an award from her alma mater, the National Theatre School of Canada.

The Gascon-Thomas Award goes out to performers who are singled out and honoured, not only for the way they've shaped the world of theatre and the live and visual arts, but also for their status as role models to NTS students.

Oh, looking Shakespearean in a white puffy-sleeved blouse and black shirred pantaloon-style pants, recounted how her journey to NTS started with a school flyer in the mail.

"All I knew was that it was in Montreal, and it seemed like a perfect warmup audition for my real audition to Concordia. Which by the way, I didn't get into," Oh said, prompting gales of laughter from an audience of over 150 current and former students and teachers, that included her parents in from Ottawa.

"The major thing this school taught me was not how to be a better actor. But how to take care of myself as an actor. Because after this, it's all on you to figure it out," Oh said.

"And not in a scary, 'you'll never have the safety and satisfaction of a generous and collective experience', but no one is going to take care of you. No one is going to hand you success. And even when it looks like success, you still need to know how to navigate through that."

The Ottawa-born actress has also worked on 50 other tv and film projects including the film Sideways, which was nominated for five Academy Awards and won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay.

Source

Sandra To Receive The 2009 Gascon-Thomas Award

The Gascon-Thomas Award is handed out every year by The National Theatre School of Canada (NTS) and Sandra Oh is one of the recipients this year.

The awards ceremony will be held in the Monument-National’s Ludger-Duvernay Theatre in Montreal on Friday, 23 October 2009 at 1:00 p.m.

More on the award from the press release:

Every year, the National Theatre School awards its Gascon-Thomas Award to two theatre figures who have made an exceptional contribution to the growth of theatre in Canada and whose examples serve as an inspiration for the students of the School.

Created in 1990 by the NTS Board of Governors, the Award is named after two of the School’s founders, Jean Gascon and Powys Thomas. Inspired visionaries, each was passionate about his art and generous in his enthusiasm for sharing it. Both teachers made an impression on their students, and their influence is still discernable at the School. The award is given each year to one anglophone and one francophone artist.

The prize is symbolic and honorary. Its list of past recipients forms a small group of individuals without whom Canada's theatre would not be what it is today. Each recipient receives his award from a student, followed by a speech given to the entire student body of the School.

NATIONAL THEATRE SCHOOL

The NTS is one of the few schools in the world that unites all the theatre arts under one roof. Established in 1960 and situated in Montreal, it offers, in both English and French, professional training in Acting, Playwriting, Directing, Set and Costume Design and Production. NTS thanks the ministries and arts councils of the different provinces across Canada who contribute to the financing of the School, including the Department of Canadian Heritage.

Sandra Oh Captivates Magnetic North Audience

She came, she saw, she charmed our socks off.

Sandra Oh visited the Magnetic North Theatre Festival on the weekend and, in a warm-hearted and all-too-brief hour spent on Saturday afternoon with a couple of hundred fans at Performance Works, proved why this beautiful Korean-Canadian actress is so popular.

Wit and wisdom were balanced by a hard-nosed practicality as she spoke about a career that's less than 20 years old and yet already filled with a lifetime's worth of achievement.

Marcus Youssef was an appropriate choice to host the chat, as he's an old friend who had graduated from the National Theatre School in Montreal a year before Oh. He started by telling us of the legend of her graduation from the NTS, which almost didn't happen.

Before she'd even finished school in 1993, Sandra landed the coveted title role in the CBC TV film The Diary of Evelyn Lau; stern NTS director Perry Schneiderman had a hard and fast rule that students who landed work could take it, sure - but you couldn't return to the school.

"I had to leave and I missed the last production," Oh told her audience. "My classmates were so supportive, and since I was too young to know you couldn't ask for stuff, I asked the CBC to rearrange the shooting schedule so I could fly back for grad."

The Diary of Evelyn Lau (and a Gemini nomination) was quickly followed by Mina Shum's film Double Happiness (and a Genie award) and the title role in the CBC bio-pic Adrienne Clarkson Presents. Filled with confidence, Oh made the leap to Hollywood - and landed what would prove to be a seven-year gig on the HBO comedy Arli$$.

"It was kind of like HBO's bastard child," she said. "They didn't give a s--t about it, but it had a coveted spot between Sex and the City and The Sopranos. After the first year of Arli$$ it was back to acting class, because I thought I was dying. In a series, let's face it, you're selling soap, and you must figure out how to stay true to yourself. The business of it is challenging to the creative spirit."

Featured in such indie hit films as Sideways and now headed for her fifth season as Cristina Yang on the popular ABC series Grey's Anatomy, Oh was asked about racism in Hollywood.

"I'm proud of Grey's Anatomy," she proclaimed, "with its multi-ethnicity, and co-lead characters that are not all white, and it's run by a 37-year-old African-American [creator and producer Shonda Rhimes]. But who we see on screens speaks to who is in power, and when I was judging American dramatic films at Sundance this year, I saw that the gay community has made big strides, which was noticeable and awesome, but there were not enough women and minorities."

Youssef asked Oh if she has seen more Asian-Americans hired in film and television.

"There are a handful of us," she replied, "and there you go."

"How do you feel about being a poster-person?" Youssef continued.

"I feel a definite responsibility," Oh said. "I think people need that."

Oh cited a string of auditions for films in which she would be the star's best buddy, but no more than that.

"It seems to be that no one's telling Sam Jackson that he can't play a cop," she said, and the crowd roared.

Since Magnetic North is a theatre festival, the audience was also appreciative of Oh's dedication to working on stage as often as she can. She starred in the premieres of Jessica Hagedorn's Dogeaters at the La Jolla Playhouse and Stop Kiss at the Public Theatre in New York (and has further work planned with Stop Kiss playwright Diana Son), and made it clear to budding thespians that their film and TV work must be grounded in stage experience.

To quote: "Essential, essential, essential, essential. You gotta do plays, you gotta do plays, you gotta do plays. Theatre will constantly and always feed me."

Brava, Ms. Oh!

Source: The Vancouver Sun