Theatre director Bobby Garcia remembered for the mark he made on stage in Vancouver, the Philippines, and across Asia
The UBC Masters alumnus and Philippines stage leader helmed the Arts Club’s Million Dollar Quartet, Beneath Springhill, and Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol
Bobby Garcia
THE ARTS CLUB THEATRE COMPANY is dedicating all the remaining holiday performances of its Dolly Parton's Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol remount to stage director Bobby Garcia, who died on December 17 at 55 years old.
“Our thoughts are with Bobby's family, friends, and the wider theatre community that was touched by his work around the world,” the Arts Club said in a statement yesterday.
“Bobby not only created beautiful productions, he also took great care of his colleagues while doing so,” Arts Club artistic director Ashlie Corcoran recalled in a statement posted today. “He was a kind and generous soul, and I am going to miss him."
Tributes were pouring out online yesterday from theatre artists and companies around the globe for the director, who was remembered as much for his accomplishments as his kindness. There has been an outpouring, in particular, among stage voices from the Philippines, where “Direk Bobby” was credited with building world-class theatre that harnessed and celebrated Filipinx talent.
No cause of death has been released and his family has thanked friends and fans for their condolences and asked for privacy.
The theatre artist, who had worked around the world and established one of Asia’s most prolific theatre companies, had helmed the original production of Smoky Mountain in 2021. At that time, Stir spoke to Garcia and found him experiencing a new appreciation for creating theatre and embracing inclusivity post-pandemic. “I used all that downtime to think about how I would do things when I came back…to take theatre into the future,” Garcia said. “One of my personal missions is that we make sure that theatre becomes an inclusive place for everyone. This is a musical about community and family and faith and hope and redemption and the need to reconnect with people: so it’s very immediate in that sense.”
Garcia also directed the Arts Club’s critically acclaimed productions of Million Dollar Quartet and Beneath Springhill: The Maurice Ruddick Story. Corcoran recalled the latter as “a piece he created with so much sensitivity. I remember being swept away by Bobby’s artistry and care.”
In an interview with Stir at the time, Garcia said the story celebrating a Black mining hero resonated with him amid racial activism in 2021, when the production was presented at the Granville Island Stage. “We listen to stories based on the lens of the times we’re living in, and I think that this show in this period has very different meaning because of what we’ve been through. We’ve had really important conversations over the last couple of years about race relations and about injustices and about diversity, and I think it’s important we now come back into the rehearsal room, into theatre…having really listened to those conversations and really making sure that we take action on them.”
Garcia, who lived in Manila until he was 17, studied in New York before coming to Vancouver three decades ago to pursue his master’s of fine arts at UBC. He founded and became artistic director of the Philippines-based Atlantis Theatrical Entertainment Group, one of Asia’s most prolific theatre companies, splitting his time between that region and Canada’s West Coast for more than 20 years. Garcia also worked as a casting consultant for the Broadway revival of M. Butterfly, the international tour of Disney's The Lion King, and the London revival and tour of The King and I.
Garcia had been preparing to make his directorial debut at Ontario’s Stratford Festival in 2025, helming Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.
“We were greatly looking forward to seeing his work on our stages,” Stratford Fest posted in a statement yesterday. “He was an extremely accomplished director, brimming with talent, and also an extraordinary, kind and gentle human being.
“We will be dedicating the 2025 production of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels to Bobby’s memory. We know the entire cast and creative team, led by Tracey Flye, who has stepped in to direct, will make his spirit proud of the beauty and joy that he set in motion.” 
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