Stage Door News
Stage Door News
Toronto, September 18, 2014 – following a successful world premiere run in
Toronto in the fall of 2013, the producers of the play TAINTED are thrilled
to announce that a provincial reading tour of seven cities will kick off in
Toronto on Saturday, October 18th, including private performances at Queen’s
Park and Parliament Hill for MPP’s, MP’s, and political staffers.
The tour begins just two days before the Voluntary Blood Donor Act is
scheduled to have a second reading in the provincial legislature.
An original work by writer/producer Kat Lanteigne, TAINTED first premiered
in September of 2013, on the eve of the twentieth anniversary of the
historic Krever inquiry into the tainted blood scandal that rocked Canada
for almost thirty years. Inspired by the true stories of families who
endured the worst public health disaster in our history- the tainted blood
crisis - the play puts a human face on an epic tragedy. Following a family
fighting to stay intact when the unimaginable happens and three hemophiliac
brothers are all infected with HIV and hepatitis C from their clotting
treatment (Factor 8), Tainted is a story about love, loss, justice and the
enduring power of forgiveness.
Tainted is written and produced by actress, writer, and producer Kat
Lanteigne who was inspired to write the play by an extended family member
directly affected by the crisis. To research the play, Lanteigne travelled
across the country over the course of many years interviewing survivors and
those who testified at Krever.
Lanteigne’s outreach into the communities most affected by the tainted blood
crisis led to an ongoing role lobbying for the protection of Canada’s
voluntary blood donation system. She became a leading advocate for the
Voluntary Blood Donation legislation that was introduced into Queen’s Park -
originally by former provincial Health Minister Deb Matthews in March of
2014 - working alongside leaders including Michael McCarthy, former
Vice-President of The Canadian Hemophilia Society, now principal of Grosso
McCarthy, a leading public affairs, communications, and strategy firm in the
health care field. McCarthy was the national spokesperson for Canadians
infected by blood tainted with Hepatitis C. His tireless efforts resulted in
a landmark $2.4 billion settlement with the federal government on behalf of
the victims of tainted blood.
Commenting on Kat Lanteigne and the play’s impact on raising awareness for
the dangers of re-privatizing blood product collection, McCarthy said,
“Tainted provided the public with a jarring reminder of the emotional
devastation of families impacted by the tainted blood crisis, at a time when
it really needed to be reminded. It was instrumental in galvanizing support
for advocates to successfully convince the Ontario government to introduce
legislation to ban paid plasma in the province. And as we move forward to
hopefully bringing the Volunteer Blood Donation Act into law, it is an
excellent time for the play reading tour to remind even more citizens and
lawmakers of what is at stake.”
The TAINTED tour is directed by the multi Dora Award-winning Vikki Anderson
(4.48 Psychosis, The Doll House, Turn of the Screw) who directed the
original production, and features an all-star Canadian cast including Beryl
Bain, Dmitry Chepovetsky, Dillan Chiblow, Neil Foster, Kat Lanteigne, and
original cast members Alex Furber and Maria Vacratsis.
The tour will commences on October 18th at The Foundery in Toronto and runs
through October 30th wrapping up in Thunder Bay. All performances are free
and open to the public (with the exception of the performances at Queen’s
Park and Parliament Hill). To reserve a space at any reading email
contact@moyotheatre.com. A complete list of tour dates, locations, and
times follows.
The TAINTED tour is produced by Moyo Theatre and sponsored by the Ontario
Public Service Employees Union. Representing Ontario workers at Canadian
Blood Services, OPSEU is proud to support this play as part of its ongoing
efforts to keep Canada’s blood system public, not-for-profit and based on
volunteer donation.
TAINTED
IT WAS MEANT TO GIVE THEM LIFE…
Written and produced by Kat Lanteigne
Directed by Vikki Anderson
featuring an all-star Canadian cast: Beryl Bain, Dmitry Chepovetsky, Dillan
Chiblow, Neil Foster, Alex Furber, Kat Lanteigne, and Maria Vacratsis.
“It’s frightening, charming, and finally very moving.”– The National Post
Website: moyotheatre.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GromkatProductionsMoyoTheatre
Twitter hashtag: #tainted
Youtube: http://youtu.be/vMk4p4yZDgs <http://youtu.be/vMk4p4yZDgs>
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDs78rcZXnA
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDs78rcZXnA>
Photo: Owen Mason in Tainted. ©2013 Colin O’Connor.
2014-09-19
Toronto: Kat Lanteigne's play "Tainted" to go on reading tour starting October 18