All in TD Incubator
Having lived in Calgary for a little over two years, I was not fully aware of how thriving the city’s arts scene was. I was also primarily focused on the theatre industry so any kind of art form beyond that was unfamiliar to me. Imagine my surprise when I was introduced to the vast array of artists in the city through Arts Commons’ TD Amplify series.
In a world where our origins are integral to our expression, TD Incubator Fellow, Migguel Anggelo, invites both artists and audiences to delve into deeply personal questions of identity and belonging. With the first show of the 2024-25 TD Amplify series coming up on November 22, we asked Migguel for a peek behind the curtain of Origins: Mind, uncovering an exploration of artistic reflection and introspection that will guide the performers on a journey into their inner worlds.
Arts Commons is thrilled to welcome Migguel Anggelo as our 2024-25 TD Incubator Fellow, providing artistic guidance and curation for the interdisciplinary artist development program! Read on to learn about his vision for the 2024-25 season of the TD Incubator program.
Wakefield Brewster Presents, Pt. 3 sends a passionate invitation from four beloved local female artists to relish in the power of wellness and art. Soul-affirming Indigenous songs swirl with sculptures made of newspapers, joyfully brought to life with performance, poetry, and the beating hearts of ideas beautifully in-sync.
When people talk about Calgary and its arts scene, the story that often gets told is that emerging artists usually leave our city; they don’t choose to stay or move here to practice their art. There’s no support; they can’t make a living.
While that story may have had some truth to it at one time, it’s no longer accurate. Assistance for these artists has expanded significantly. Local organizations such as Arts Commons have created programs to provide educational and mentoring opportunities to accelerate emerging artists’ careers.
This past November, if you had ventured into the Engineered Air Theatre, tucked away in the lower levels of Arts Commons, you would have encountered something special. Under the simple name of Wakefield Brewster Presents, Pt. 1, Calgary’s Poet Laureate went about creating artistic collaboration on stage with some of Calgary’s most exciting interdisciplinary artists. Patrons walked away from this first presentation of the TD Amplify season saying that “the show was beyond expectations” and featured an “outstanding selection of new artists” even going as far to say that they’d “love to see more creations like this in Calgary.”
It's the time of year when trees start to glow, the mountains turn white, and we take time to reflect on another year at Arts Commons. From captivating performances to inspiring exhibitions, this year has been filled with creativity, community, and connection. Join us as we reflect on 12 highlights that made the 2022-23 season at Arts Commons truly unforgettable.
Poet Laureate Wakefield Brewster is not a fresh face in the artistic community. Since moving to Calgary 18 years ago, he has been racking up awards and recognition for his outstanding spoken word and poetry pieces and has had no desire to move to the traditional artistic epicentres of Canada, like Toronto or Montreal: “I couldn’t have done this anywhere else,” he says, “there is something very special about Calgary.” And now, as Arts Commons’ newest Incubator Fellow, Wakefield aims to encourage Calgary’s budding artists to grow where they are planted.
