Picture of Pamela Haig Bartley

Pamela Haig Bartley B.F.A., M.F.A.

Professor Emeritus

School for the Arts professor emeritus

Research Area(s)

  • Clown and commedia
  • Play development
  • Actor training
  • Acting methodology
  • Physical theatre

About me

Favourite acting roles include: Sophia in The Bay at Nice (Beau Jest Theatre, Boston), Val in Road (Station Street Arts Centre, Vancouver), Doreen in Girls in the Gang (Alberta Theatre Projects, Calgary and Theatre Network, Edmonton), Lussurioso in The Revenger’s Tragedy (Northern Light Theatre, Edmonton), Paulina in Death and the Maiden (The Globe Theatre, Regina), Kate in Shrew and Lady M in Macbeth (Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan), Madam in Encore (Dancing Sky Theatre, Meacham), Jane Bingham in Having Hope at Home (The Globe again), Vanessa Bell in Angel in the House (Interdisciplinary/Multidisciplinary Woolf Conference, U of S), Katrina in My Chernobyl (Persephone Theatre), and Mom in True West (Mead Hall Productions).

Some of the productions she’s directed for the Greystone Theatre at the U of S include: All My SonsThe Three SistersReckless, [SIC], Cosi, The Rivals, One Flea Spare, The Mill on the Floss, Loveplay, Machinal, The Diviners, Arcadia, You Can’t Take It With You, The Country Wife, The Winter’s Tale, Our Country’s Good, The Beaux’ Stratagem and You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown.  Pam also freelance directs e.g. A Skull in Connemara, Proof, Three Days of Rain and The Secret Life of the Octopus for Persephone, as well as Leaves of Glass, This Is Our Youth and Animals and Plants for Theatre Ecstasis, Underneath the Lintel for By the Book Productions, Filling Holes for Broadway Mime Theatre, and Look Back in Anger for Bricks & Mortar Theatre.  Whenever possible, Pam also enjoys working on play development, most frequently with the Saskatchewan Playwrights' Centre.  For instance, she recently workshopped Rosalie Woloski's The Diner and Heather Morrison's Thicker Than Water at SPC's 2014 Spring Festival of New Plays in Regina.  A recent U of S collaboration was the direction of The New Normal: Living With Lymphedema, which toured to St. John, NB, Ottawa, Montreal and Toronto.

Pam is endlessly interested in actor training, and to that end has done several clown and commedia workshops with Chris Bayes (Yale), Viewpoints with Michael Greyeyes (Banff) and has received her Meisner Teaching Certification with Larry Silverberg (True Acting Institute).  This summer, she attended a "Shakespeare in Italy" course at Urbino University in Italy, instructed by a number of RSC actors, a former RSC artistic director and a RSC musical director including Michael Pennington, Bill Alexander, Josie Lawrence, Julian Curry, Mary Chater and Martin Best.

Upcoming projects include the direction of Wendy Lockman's Willow Road for the Paper Cranes for Charlotte company in the 2014-2015 Live Five season.
 

Artistic Works

SELECTED DIRECTING:

THE NEW NORMAL: LIVING WITH LYMPHEDEMA -- Dept. of Sociology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Regina, St. John, Ottawa, Toronto

LOOK BACK IN ANGER -- Brick & Mortar Theatre, Saskatoon

FILLING HOLES -- Broadway Mime Theatre, Saskatoon

THE SECRET LIFE OF THE OCTOPUS -- Persephone Theatre, Saskatoon and provincial youth tour

LEAVES OF GLASS -- Theatre Ecstasis, Saskatoon (Canadian premiere)

A SKULL IN CONNEMARA -- Persephone Theatre, Saskatoon

UNDERNEATH THE LINTEL -- By the Book Productions, Saskatoon and Canadian Fringe Festival tour

ANIMALS AND PLANTS -- Theatre Ecstasis, Saskatoon

PROOF -- Persephone Theatre, Saskatoon

THIS IS OUR YOUTH -- Theatre Ecstasis, Saskatoon

THREE DAYS OF RAIN -- Persephone Theatre, Saskatoon

 

SELECTED ACTING:

TRUE WEST -- Mead Hall Productions, Saskatoon

MY CHERNOBYL -- Persephone Theatre, Saskatoon

WHITE RABBIT, RED RABBIT -- Kamikaze Theatre, Saskatoon

ANGEL IN THE HOUSE -- Interdisciplinary/Multidisciplinary Woolf Conference, University of Saskatchewan

HAVING HOPE AT HOME -- Globe Theatre, Regina

ENCORE -- Dancing Sky Theatre, Meacham

CORONATION VOYAGE -- Last Exit Theatre, Saskatoon

THE BAY AT NICE -- Beau Jest Theatre, Boston

THE DUCHESS -- Persephone Theatre, Saskatoon

DEATH AND THE MAIDEN -- Globe Theatre, Regina

ROAD -- Station Street Arts Centre, Vancouver

LES BELLES SOEURS -- Studio 58, Vancouver

BAAL -- Banff Festival of the Arts, Banff

THE REVENGER'S TRAGEDY -- Northern Light Theatre, Edmonton

GIRLS IN THE GANG -- Alberta Theatre Projects, Calgary and Theatre Network, Edmonton

STEEL MAGNOLIAS -- Stage West, Edmonton

TAMING OF THE SHREW -- Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan

OLDEST PROFESSION -- 25th Street Theatre, Saskatoon and Theatre Network, Edmonton

Teaching & Supervision

DRAM 118.3 -- Acting I

DRAM 119.3 -- Acting II

DRAM 218.3 -- Acting III

DRAM 219.3 -- Acting IV: Scene Study and Textual Analysis for the Stage

DRAM 286.3 -- Studies in Theatre Centres (In Spring 2015: New York City, NY)

DRAM 318.3 -- Acting V

DRAM 319.3 & DRAM 419.3 -- Acting VI & Acting VIII: Combined Third- and Fourth-Year Acting Company

                                               -- In 2014: OUR COUNTRY'S GOOD

                                               -- In 2010: THE WINTER'S TALE

DRAM 340.3 -- Play Directing

DRAM 363.3 -- Voice and Speech for the Actor III

DRAM 418.3 -- Acting VII

DRAM 462.3 -- Voice and Speech for the Actor III

DRAM 463.3 -- Voice and Speech for the Actor IV

Research

clowning directing speech theatre voice

Directing, acting methodology, clowning, Viewpoints, physical theatre, voice and speech.

Education & Training

B.F.A. (Acting) -- York University, Toronto, ON

M.F.A. (Acting) -- Brandeis University, Boston, MA

"Teaching the Meisner Approach" Certification -- True Acting Institute, Willamette University, Salem, OR

Awards & Honours

  • Achievement in Design (Set), awarded by Saskatoon and Area Theatre Award Committee September 2007
  • Teaching Excellence Award, awarded by University of Saskatchewan Students' Union May 2001
  • Jessie: Ensemble Cast Acting Award for ROAD (Actors Resource Group), awarded by Jessie Richardson Theatre Award Committee June 1994