Vancouver’s Théâtre la Seizième announces Cory Haas as new artistic and managing director
The bilingual performer-director succeeds Esther Duquette, who was with the company for over a decade
Cory Haas. Photo by Gaëtan Nerincx
APRIL 2023 MARKS the start of Cory Haas’s new role as artistic and managing director of Vancouver French-language theatre company Théâtre la Seizième. The bilingual performer, director, theatre maker, acting coach, and long-time Seizième collaborator takes the reins from Esther Duquette, who was with the organization for over a decade and had been artistic director since 2016.
Having worked in the francophone and anglophone theatre scene, Haas, who was previously artistic assistant for La Seizième, has a master of fine arts in actor training and coaching from the Central School of Speech and Drama in London and a bachelor of performing arts from Capilano University. In 2020, he received the National Theatre School of Canada prize for artistic development, and in 2022 he earned the Roland Mahé prize, awarded by the Foundation for the advancement of francophone theatre in Canada (ATFC).
Haas performed in the recent La Seizième presentation of Mani Soleymanlou’s Un.Deux.Trois. He has participated in other productions over the years, including Nombre, le NoShow Vancouver, Deux ans de votre vie, or Statu Quo. The artist directed the young audience production of Simon a toujours aimé danser.
“I have a long relationship with this company: they gave me my first professional contract as an actor 10 years ago this month,” Haas tells Stir. “I have worked as a freelancer for la Seizième since then, as an actor, director, creator, translator, and associate artist. When the opportunity came up, I decided to go for it. I felt like it would be a fitting next step in my journey personally but it also allows me to participate in wider conversations that are happening in the arts. I love this company—the work we do, what we represent, the people, the community that it fosters. I hope to carry that forward during my mandate.”
Born in Trail, B.C., Haas split his time between France and Vancouver growing up and spent his teens in the Lower Mainland. He studied to be a pilot, then, wanting a university experience, followed a love of drama that high school fostered. He especially liked the feeling of making people laugh.
“Theatre programs seemed like the place where I could do that and not be out of my depth,” Haas says. “I auditioned for two schools, including New York University, and went to Capilano University in the end. It may be cliché, but I love the live-ness of this art form, the endless possibilities of going into a space with people and experiencing something together. As an artist, the process is something that feels even more powerful than seeing the end product—something audiences don't get to experience, yet is crucial to the performance.
“After coming out of theatre school, I quickly realized that I needed to take ownership of my career if I was going to make a living being an artist,” he adds. “I started a small company and began directing and creating my own work, among other things. Directing, working with actors more precisely, is something that took up more and more space in my practice. I wanted to get a master’s degree, and the actor training and coaching MFA at Central came up when I was looking at schools and felt like a good fit. I spent two years learning about the pedagogy of acting and the various approaches that exist to support actors and creators. It has contributed greatly to my directing and coaching practices trying to support artists to take more ownership in their own practice.”
Esther Duquette. Photo by Gaetan Nerincx
During Duquette’s leadership of La Seizième, she initiated programming dedicated to very young children, supported and developed more than 10 original works, and created a network dedicated to presenting international works produced in the French language across the North American West Coast. In collaboration with Gilles Poulin-Denis, she also directed highly successful works, including Le Soulier by David Paquet (2018) and Straight Jacket Winter (2016).
“After more than a decade in Vancouver my personal life was due for a change”, Duquette says in a statement. “I leave this beautiful city with a heavy heart but am filled with gratitude for the 11 wonderful years spent with the company. My affection for this small but fearless team, its generous Board of Directors, its warmhearted artists, its open-minded, diverse and loyal public is enormous. I am handing over the reins with peace of mind knowing that the company enjoys an enviable level of financial stability supported by exceptional individuals throughout the company.
“When I observe the world and what the future holds, it is clear to me that we must create change,” Duquette says. “But how to do so is the challenge. I find comfort in the certainty that the theatre continues to be a transformational space. It affects us and the world in a gentle manner: through words, light, emotions…”
Haas and Duquette are currently in a transition period, the two working together on next season’s programming.
“My vision will remain true to our values, providing high quality work in French to our audience but I will of course bring my own flavour to it,” Haas says. “It's important for me to keep doing work that we don't see often in Vancouver and to make that work accessible to a large range of audiences, even if they don't speak French. I also want to keep supporting Francophone artists the way the company has supported me over the years.
“It's worth reminding that our work often gets recognized by our peers yet the language barrier is often the thing that comes up when I talk to people about the work we do,” Haas adds. “I want to remind people that we offer shows with surtitles most nights and we have many English speakers who come to La Seizième who love their experience.”
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