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Thursday, January 7, 2016 - The IFP - H alton H ills - w w w .theifp.ca Page 3 2012 Ford Focus + HST/LIC • Auto/4 cyl • Certified & E-tested • A/C • Power Door Locks $12,000 2010 Nissan Sentra $9,600 + HST/LIC • Auto/4 cyl • Certified & E-Tested • A/C • Sunroof/Moonroof e-mail: hassellsauto@bellnet.ca www.hassellautomotive.com CALL 2007 Suzuki SX4 • Auto/4 cyl • Certified & E-tested • A/C • Power Windows $7,300 + HST/LIC 45 Mountainview Road North Georgetown, Ontario 905.877.7958 ONE WEEK SPECIAL! $13,000 $10,600 $8,300 NEWS To Be Determined spreads Norval star's love for theatre A Norval native's star is rising in the dramatic arts scene. Georgetown District High School alumna Alexandra Heck has combined her love for theatre and teaching youth to create the To Be Determined (TBD) Theatre Co. The former local resident's company is currently in its fifth season, offering theatre perfor- mances for young audiences across Ontario and out to the east coast of Canada. "I've worked very hard to follow my passion for theatre and youths and to never stop striving to learn more," said Heck. "I love that there's al- ways more to do, more to try and more to challenge me in this field." The 30-year-old first pur- sued post-secondary educa- tion for dramatic arts in On- tario, achieving an Honours BA in Theatre from the Univer- sity of Ottawa before moving to New York City to attend the American Musical and Dra- matic Academy to broaden her onstage training. She then re- turned to Canada and achieved her Masters in Performance Studies from the University of Toronto. The extensive schooling gave Heck perspective on what the- atre and performance can ac- complish, both on and off stage. Since then she has worked as an actor, director and dramatic arts teacher. "When I began my theatre career I thought acting would be my passion, but when I started teaching and direct- ing dramatic arts I discovered the challenge, excitement and eventual rewards that occur in these roles," she said. "The pos- sibility to teach a craft that I love so much myself soon became my new profession." Heck went on to teach in pri- vate schools, workshops and festivals and designed curricu- lum for municipal programs. And while she enjoyed differ- ent aspects of all these roles, something was missing. "I realized if I wanted to try it my way, I had to take a leap and give it (my own company) a go," she said. And from there TBD Theatre Co. was born-- an eight-person company based in Guelph that offers theatre classes, work- shops, summer camps and school performances. Heck-- the company's artistic direc- tor-- said she draws from all of her previous experiences to develop quality and creative children's programming. "Watching the kids realize how awesome they are is so much fun to do on a daily ba- sis," she said. TBD Theatre Co. has toured in Halton many times, said Heck, with their elementary school production of Alexan- der and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day being performed in Georgetown and Acton. "It's such a fun piece," said Heck. "It talks a lot about re- silience; you have a bad day and realize yes, things do happen, but you find strat- egies to get through those things." The company has also per- formed at Georgetown Dis- trict High School with a show about mental health, delivering Heck back to the very stage she started on as a student all those years ago. The current show for high school and college students, Out in the Open, uses hu- mour to discuss a variety of serious subjects, including homophobia, gender stereo- types, stigma and acceptance. The production was written by playwright Dave Deveau and directed by Tom Slater, both critically acclaimed Ca- nadian artists. "This is an incredible piece of Canadian theatre. The per- formance is followed by a fo- rum theatre exercise in which the audience is invited to help find an alternative outcome or solution to scenes involving oppression or conflict," said Heck. "This allows the stu- dents to have their ideas heard and to practise what it feels like to be an ally or a catalyst for change." With Ontario's curriculum on the above topics recently changing, Out in the Open has become a very timely perfor- mance, Heck said. "I think we picked the right show at the right time," she not- ed. "The message of the show is universal. It's not just about sexuality; the idea is that you're accepted for who you are, no matter the race, religion, sexu- ality, or anything that makes you different." While the production's co- medic approach helps lighten the mood, it does seriously ad- dress some very difficult topics. "The use of humour and the vernacular of teenagers are so important to access our target market," said Heck. "And the- atre is an amazing medium. The arms-length aspect of it allows us to talk about things they might not want to talk about." The show comes with an extensive educational package created to support school staff before the performance and continue conversations in the classroom, incorporating the topics into their lesson plans. Out in the Open is currently booking into school boards and colleges across Ontario, including nearby Upper Grand District School Board. Heck is hopeful the Halton boards will take an interest in the show in 2016. For more information on the To Be Determined Theatre Co. visit www.tobedeterminedthe- atre.ca. By Melanie Hennessey Special to The IFP Creating To Be Determined (TBD) Theatre Co. came easily to former Norval resident Alexandra Heck, above. Her company is currently in its fifth season offering theatre performances for youth all over Ontario and eastern Canada.