Congratulations Riel! Winner of the 2021 Rita Joe Playwriting Award

Originally posted on July 2021 Drumbeat Newsletter

Shoutout to our very own Riel Reddick-Stevens for winning the first ever Rita Joe Playwriting Award along with her co-collaborator Aaron Jan for their new basketball musical Lay Up !

From Highland Arts Theatre:

"Rita Joe was a national treasure who is often referred to as the “poet laureate of the Mi’kmaw”. She grew up right here in Cape Breton/Unama’ki and went on to impact the world through her powerful writing. We seek to honour her memory through this award with the hopes that she can help inspire a new generation of Canadian writers and playwrights from the BIPOC community.

This prize is designed and intended to provide support to BIPOC voices in the Canadian theatre community and provide stability for the chosen creators to focus on the monolithic task of getting a show off the ground."

Watch Riel’s acceptance speech here