Gabrielle Martin chats with Gabi Gonçalves, producer from Corpo Rastreado of Renata Carvalho’s piece, Transpofagic Manifesto, at the 2025 PuSh Festival, January 23 - February 9. Transpofagic Manifesto will be presented with Latincouver at the Waterfront Theatre on February 7 and 8. A special film marathon of Renata Carvalho’s work will also be show…

Gabrielle Martin chats with Tom Arthur Davis and Jiv Parasram, co-creators of SWIM by Pandemic Theatre and Theatre Conspiracy. SWIM will be presented at the upcoming PuSh Festival, January 23 - February 9 in Vancouver. SWIM runs from January 30 to February 2 at VanCity Culture Lab and is presented with Touchstone Theatre and The Cultch. Show Notes …

Gabrielle Martin chats with Patrick Blenkarn and Milton Lim, co-directors of asses.masses. Show Notes Gabrielle, Patrick and Milton discuss: How did your relationship with PuSh start? What are the importance of youth programs across various festivals? What is asses.masses and what was the process of creating it and bringing it to PuSh? What is the …

Gabrielle Martin chats with lighting designer, photographer, writer and performer Itai Erdal. Show Notes Gabrielle and Itai discuss: How did your relationship with PuSh start? What inspires the effects and choices in your work? What is the world of international touring like? What was the genesis and process of How to Disappear Completely? What is …

Gabrielle Martin chats with composer Njo Kong Kie. Show Notes Gabrielle and Njo Kong Kie discuss: How did your relationship with PuSh start? What was the process of presenting work at PuSh? How do you interpret and react to the source material? How did you pivot to digital work during Covid? How does the work transition back to the live stage? How …

NOTE: Due to technical difficulties, the audio quality for this episode is not at the usual standard for PuSh Play. Gabrielle Martin chats with Fay Nass, Artistic and Executive Director of the frank theatre and Artistic Director of Aphotic Theatre. Show Notes Gabrielle and Fay discuss: How did your relationship with PuSh start? How do we explore th…

Gabrielle Martin chats with Miriam Fernandes, co-artistic director of Toronto’s why not theatre. Show Notes Gabrielle and Miriam discuss: What was the process of creating Prince Hamlet and bringing it to Vancouver? What does it mean to create work with and for those hard of hearing? How do you take a huge show that isn’t built to tour on tour? How …

Gabrielle Martin chats with performance artist Ralph Escamillan. Show Notes Gabrielle and Ralph discuss: How did you come to know about PuSh and get a commission for Hinky Punk? How do you elevate the performer into the visually iconic? What is Hinky Punk? How do you embody aspects of queerness in one performer? How do you work with restriction? Wh…

Gabrielle Martin chats with Owen Underhill, Artistic Director of Turning Point Ensemble. Show Notes Gabrielle and Owen discuss: How did your relationship with PuSh begin? Why was interdisciplinary work important? What was Norman Armour’s role in the early stages of Turning Point Ensemble? How did the company evolve in terms of process, practice, po…

Gabrielle Martin chats with Dana Gingras of Animals of Distinction. Show Notes Gabrielle and Dana discuss: How did the relationship with PuSh start and develop? The personal meaning of Dana Gingras’s work for Gabrielle How was “Monumental” a culmination of previous work? What does it mean to have a performing band’s live energy in rehearsals? How d…

Gabrielle Martin chats with Sylvain Émard of Sylvain Émard Danse. Show Notes Gabrielle and Sylvain discuss: How did your relationship with PuSh begin? What was the impact and legacy of the show, Le Grand Continental? How do you organize and prepare for a truly large project like Le Grand Continental? How does line dancing fit into the origins and c…

NOTE: Due to technical difficulties, the audio quality for this episode is not at the usual standard for PuSh Play. Gabrielle Martin chats with Josh Martin, Artistic Co-Director of Company 605. Show Notes Gabrielle and Josh discuss: Collision between separate people, bodies and ideas How did the relationship with PuSh begin? What does it mean to be…

Gabrielle Martin chats with Vancouver-based playwright, artistic director and author Marcus Youssef. Show Notes Gabrielle and Marcus discuss: Questions of difference, belonging and dissent Dismantling systems of oppression Crime and Punishment in 2005 How did your relationship with PuSh start? How to bring vastly different perspectives, styles, for…

Gabrielle Martin chats with Canadian singer-songwriter and longtime PuSh collaborator, Veda Hille. Show Notes Gabrielle and Veda discuss: How did the relationship with PuSh begin in 2007? How did Theatre Replacement and Neworld help with this introduction? How does a company become a true ensemble over time? How did Twenty Minute Musicals come to b…

Gabrielle Martin chats with David Pay, Artistic Director of Vancouver’s Music on Main. Show Notes Gabrielle and David discuss: How did David’s relationship with Push start and develop over the years? How has Vancouver changed over the years? “Terminal City Soundscape” in 2011: how did this project get realized for PuSh? Importance of improvisation …

Gabrielle Martin chats with Maiko Yamamoto and James Long, co-founders of Vancouver’s Theatre Replacement. Show Notes Gabrielle, Maiko and James discuss: How did Norman Armour supported the company, which started the same year that PuSh started its first series in 2003? How did Theatre Replacement emerge from Boca del Lupo? What are “Chamber Works”…

Gabrielle Martin chats with Tim Carlson, co-founder of Vancouver’s Theatre Conspiracy. Show Notes Gabrielle and Tim discuss: How did the relationship with PuSh begin? What was the “PuSh aesthetic” in the early days? How did Theatre Conspiracy’s practice and questions evolve over the years? How did the surge of creative and entrepreneurial energy in…

Gabrielle Martin chats with David Hudgins and Kevin Kerr, co-founders of Vancouver’s Electric Company Theatre. Show Notes Gabrielle, David and Kevin discuss: The beginnings of Electric Company Theatre and its early collective model Why the fledgling theatre company had to “bite the bull by the horns” The function of interchangeable roles in the cre…

NOTE: Due to technical difficulties, the audio quality for this episode is not at the usual standard for PuSh Play. Gabrielle chats with Julie-anne Saroyan, co-founder, artistic director and creative producer of Vancouver’s Small Stage, which broke through in the early PuSh Festivals. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin and Julie-anne discuss: The origin o…

Gabrielle chats with Sherry J. Yoon and Jay Dodge, Artistic Directors of Boca del Lupo, about their early productions at the PuSh Festival from 2006, and how they’ve witnessed change over the years. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin, Sherry and Jay discuss: Collaboration as a core tenet of creativity Collision and confluence of difference Norman Armour’s…

Gabrielle chats about the early beginnings of PuSh with Camyar Chaichian, who helped create one of the shows from the first festival in 2005. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin and Camyar Chaichian (Neworld) talk about: Norman Armour’s influence in developing both PuSh and Vancouver’s theatre scene The veritable artistic renaissance occurring in Vancouver…

Inbal Ben Haim (Episode 3) and Julia Taffe of Vancouver’s Aeriosa Dance Society chat about the intersection of rock climbing and aerial/vertical dance. This episode is sponsored by the French Consulate in Vancouver as part of Paris 2024. Sport climbing is one of the new disciplines of the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Show Notes Gabrielle Mart…

Diana Lopez Soto discusses how ecology and land can connect to art. See NOMADA at the 2024 PuSh Festival from Feb 1-3. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin discusses the upcoming PuSh co-commission, NOMADA, with creator Diana Lopez Soto. Gabrielle and Diana discuss how aerial dance contributes to NOMADA’s dramaturgy, the research and development process beh…

Bruce Gladwin discusses how a disastrous first showing influenced the show’s creation. See The Shadow Whose Prey The Hunter Becomes at the 2024 PuSh Festival from Feb 1-3 at the York Theatre. Co-Presented with Neworld Theatre and The Cultch. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin chats with Bruce Gladwin, director and co-author of The Shadow Whose Prey the Hu…

Cherish Menzo discusses her work’s consideration of the Black body in the context of post-humanism. See DARKMATTER at the 2024 PuSH Festival Jan 29-31. Co-Presented with SFU Woodward’s Cultural Programs. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin discusses DARKMATTER with co-creator and choreographer Cherish Menzo. The show will be presented at the 2024 PuSh Fest…

Jean Abreu and Naishi Wang discuss how language shapes and reflects identity. See Deciphers at the 2024 PuSh Festival from Jan 24-26 at the Scotiabank Dance Centre. Co-Presented with New Works. Show Notes Gabrielle, Naishi and Jean dive into the development of this piece and how it was influenced by language and digital technology. They also discus…

Guy Régis Jr. sits down with Cory Haas, Artistic Director of Théâtre la Seizième, to talk about L’Amour telle une cathédrale ensevelie, which will be presented as part of the PuSh Festival from February 3-4 at the SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts. Co-presented with Théâtre la Seizième and SFU Woodward’s Cultural Programs. About the Show With stagge…

Adam Tendler discusses the unorthodox inspiration for his collaborative composition. Show Notes David Pay, Artistic Director of PuSh partner Music on Main, chats with Adam Tendler about Inheritances, which will be presented at the 2024 PuSh Festival from January 24-25 at Annex. Co-presented with Music on Main. David and Adam ask the following quest…

Vanessa Goodman and Simona Deaconescu chat about their show, BLOT - Body Line of Thought, which will be presented at the 2024 PuSh Festival from January 22-23 at Left of Main. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin chats with Vanessa Goodman and Simona Deaconescu about their show, BLOT (Body Line of Thought). They discuss how this unconventional performance d…

Rakesh Sukesh discusses bringing Indian dance traditions to a European performing arts context. Show Notes Listen to Gabrielle Martin in conversation with Rakesh Sukesh about his show, because i love the diversity (this micro-attitude, we all have it). Gabrielle and Rakesh discuss topics including the philosophy of creating and moving through chaos…

David Mesiha and Gavan Cheema discuss the fluid boundary between witnessing and participating in performance. Same Difference runs Jan 24th-28th at PuSh Festival. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin chats with project lead David Mesiha and dramaturg Gavan Cheema about their show, Same Difference. They speak to a wide range of topics, including how audience…

Basel Zaraa discusses his intimate, one-on-one storytelling practice. Dear Laila runs Jan 20th-Feb 3rd at PuSh Festival. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin chats with Basel Zaraa about the installation Dear Laila. They talk about how this intimate installation uses objects to connect with patrons; how we use art to deal with personal and collective trauma…

Milton Lim and Patrick Blankarn discuss the role of democracy in theatre. asses.masses runs Jan 20th-Feb 3rd at Push Festival. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin discusses asses.masses with co-creators Patrick Blenkarn and Milton Lim. Their show, a performance that takes the form of a participatory video game. They talk about their collaboration, the demo…

Ben Target discusses his belief in entertaining an audience above all. LORENZO runs Jan 18th-20th at Push Festival. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin chats with Ben Target, writer and performer of LORENZO. They discuss how we treat the concept and theme of loss on stage, how Ben’s work has evolved from Fringe Festivals and standup comedy to his broader t…

Nellie Gossen discusses her playful interruption of consumer fashion processes. Returns runs Jan 7th-Feb 3rd at PuSh Festival. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin chats with Nellie Gossen about her intriguing performative installation Returns at the Dance Centre, which will be part of PuSh and showing for the duration of the 2024 Festival. Co-presented wit…

Donna-Michelle St. Bernard discusses refusing to prioritize comfort over authenticity. Sound of the Beast runs Feb 20th-23rd at PuSh Festival. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin chats with Donna-Michelle St. Bernard’s new work Sound of the Beast. Donna-Michelle shares why people are creating work that looks more like itself and less like each other and he…

Inbal Ben Haim discusses the theatrical power of creating danger onstage. PLI runs Feb 2nd-3rd at Push Festival. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin chats with Inbal Ben Haim, the Israeli circus artist behind PLI. They discuss how Inbal’s work draws connections between the intimate and the spectacular, what defines a work as “circus,” the power and origina…

Christopher Morris discusses the humanizing power of narrative. The Runner runs Jan 24th-26th at PuSh Festival. Show Notes Gabrielle Martin chats with Christopher Morris, artistic director of Human Cargo and writer of The Runner. Urgent, visceral and complex, The Runner invites us into a nuanced exploration of our shared humanity and the value of k…

Gaby Saranouffi and Simona Deaconescu discuss how dance can serve as an act of protest. Ramanenjana runs Jan 19th-21st at PuSh Festival. Show Notes A captivating docufiction performance, presented with The Dance Centre and Inner Fish, Ramanenjana is about a dance that made history, when thousands of people in Madagascar danced to drums in the capit…

Some of the most inspiring and empowering conversations occur among a group of people when they have formed their friendship based on their shared goals of making a positive impact through the work they do and the community they’re building. Join me in a fun and reflective conversation with my two badass friends, Caterina Rizzoni and Lindsay Melete…

How might one’s identity and cultural background shape the way someone approaches their design, and how might community building help strengthen and evolve one’s design philosophy? In this episode, my dear friend Ana Mengote Baluca, a designer, educator and activist, joins me in a conversation to talk about how she uses design as a medium to weave …

The pandemic has triggered many people to reassess their current work and life, resulting in nearly a third of the people in the U.S. looking for a new opportunity that feels more aligned with their values and beliefs in the last year and a half. Changing jobs is never an easy transition, and it can be overwhelming to evaluate whether your next job…

In this episode, I spent some time talking to two of my favorite designers, Hector Silva and Mauricio Garcia Villaseñor from Advanced Design about a topic that’s been trending in the digital art world for the last couple of months—NFTs. We talked about how NFTs started and how it gained so much popularity within last few months, how it has impacted…

This episode is a continuation of the conversation I've had with Hector Silva and Mauricio Garcia Villaseñor about NFTs. We talked about how NFTs started and how it gained so much popularity within last few months, how it has impacted the digital art world as well as our environment, actions we need to take from an individual, corporation, and gove…

This episode is a continuation of the conversation between Mari and myself where we dive deep into the history of anti-Asian violence, discuss the importance of solidarity, and share our suggestions on a few actionable suggestions we have for people who’d like to support the AAPI community. Note the prohibition of the entry of Chinese women to the …

In this episode, I shared two announcements as I become the host of this podcast and join the "That's Not Canon Productions", and spent some time talking to a friend of mine whom I admire and look up to—Mari Miller—to discuss the recent waves of violence towards the AAPI community in the United States, a topic that has been close to our hearts and …

We've all had to change our habits and behaviors in the past year due to COVID. We got used to wearing masks in public and front-liners wear intense PPE on a daily basis. Many of us are ordering takeout and grocery delivery more frequently as well. All of this means more waste. Takeout containers, plastic shopping bags and wrappers, gloves, disposa…

We welcome our first guest, Tiffany Do, as we discuss the topic of gender disparity and inequality in the design industry. This episode was inspired by the discussion surrounding Yanko Design's post sharing gender disparity metrics and the response of many male designers in the comments. We discuss our reactions to the post, and share our experienc…

Prototypes, group projects, late studio nights, oh my! In this episode we reflect on our design education and how it has shaped us as designers today. How our college experience was affected by other aspects of our lives and the role our professors played in our education. We discuss what we might change in hindsight, and how design education shape…

In this episode we share the inspiration behind the name Push&Play and reflect on changes in our lives since miss Rona had us all quarantining. We also reflect on some of the inequities in how our world is designed that have been highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. We discuss how we have adjusted to a new work culture and some of the positive cha…