Introduction from Russ

Our Team

Battle of the Bards was founded by John Milne, an accomplished actor and musician who has performed in many KWLT productions. He was succeeded by Russ Wong, who lacks John’s acting abilities, but makes up for it by being, amongst other things, shorter.

You wouldn’t think that’s an advantage, and it probably isn’t. Either way, you’re stuck with Russ until John moves back to KW or we find someone better than both of them.

Russ is supported by a fantastic team of five people (Albert O’Connor, Carrie Elg, Carrie Warner, Chris Rovers, and Jessica Koteles) who manage front of house and technical requirements for the show.

Our Performers

The best part of Battle of the Bards is our constantly changing roster of performers. For every show, we welcome between 6-8 acts, all of which get seven minutes to do their thing (whatever that thing may be). Some have appeared on the Bards stage numerous times, while others are trying it out for the first time.

At the end of each show, the audience votes for the best two performances, with the winners receiving tickets to an upcoming KWLT production.

As for the performances themselves, we’ve had:

• Lots and lots of musicians, poets, jugglers, and actors

• Comedians and magicians

• Performance carpenters

• Fruit carvers (I don’t know what else to call this)

• Contortionists and escape artists (actually, those were both Russ)

In our view, almost anything can be performance art. The only question is what you have to do to make it entertaining, and that’s what we try to find out at Bards.

Intrigued? E-mail us if you’d like to try your hand.

Our Feedback Form

We love hearing what our audience thinks, both about our performers and the show. In addition to voting, we ask audience members to provide feedback on their voting ballots. However, we know that some people prefer to think about what they want to say and tell us later. If you’re in the latter group (or you just forgot to mention something), fill out our online, anonymous feedback form.

Click here to tell us what you think about the most recent Battle of the Bards!

Upcoming Shows

Bards is scheduled around KWLT’s main stage productions. Our show dates for the 2012-2013 are:

Friday, October 5, 2012

Friday, November 9, 2012

Friday, December 14, 2012

Friday, February 15, 2013

Friday, March 22, 2013

Friday, June 28, 2013

Doors open at 7:30pm, and the shows start at 8pm (typically ending between 10-10:30pm). No reservations are required, but you can RSVP via KWLT’s Facebook events page.

Admission

One of our goals with Bards is to bring new people to KWLT, and we don’t want any barriers to participation. As such, admission is free! Donations are appreciated to cover the theatre’s operating costs, but it’s more important that you come out and join in the fun.

For More Information

Got questions? Hopefully we have answers. Contact us to learn more about Battle of the Bards, and how you can get involved in the fun.