Brennan Campbell

Brennan is a creator of collaborative plays, devised performances, and physical theatre. His work is to challenge the audience with the present and to remind them that the world is a playground, where possibility is currency and moments can sustain us. He doesn’t create in any one given way. Each project’s creation process is different. His work is a blend of writing, improvisation, Viewpoints, butoh, long walks on the beach, and ol’ fashioned mayhem.

Trickster Theatre Residency Artist and Technical Director

Trickster Theatre is an Albertan TYA company that leads week long residencies in schools. Each artist is assigned three classes a week and devises a five minute performance per class. All the performances are then presented with full lights, sound, and costume on the Friday. The Trickster process involves a lot of improvisation, collective decision making, movement, and fun. Brennan has been working with the company since 2017 and participated in nearly fifty residencies. During Covid, the company pivoted to devising films with the students. Through this process thirteen short films with students and five youtube videos for Trickster.

Youtube videos:

Always Never There, Never Always There
written and performed by Antonio Bavaro
directed by Brennan Campbell

This solo show is about a local Edmonton drag queen’s lifelong relationship with Methamphetamine. A non-narrative experience told through a wild variety of vignettes: backstage at a local gay bar before a drag show, game shows about mental illness, scramblings in the search for enlightenment, rumbling childhood images of drugs in St Albert, and more. No reviews were given for this beautiful and important show at the 2019 Edmonton Fringe.

SmartyPantz Escape Rooms
written and directed by Brennan Campbell

SmartyPantz was a live-action, puzzle entertainment provider with three locations in Vancouver, Edmonton, and Calgary. Their immersive, themed rooms range in difficulty, from moderate to diabolical. Guests had 45 mins to solve puzzles and riddles related to the theme and story in order to complete the unique objective of each room. Each room had a character host which delivered story points, gave puzzle assistance, and elevated the experience above the average Escape Room. Brennan wrote and directed performances for five fully realized rooms, in addition to the table top escape game, Indiana Jeans. During his time at SmartyPantz Brennan’s official title was Clown Whisperer. He oversaw the flagship Vancouver location, headed narrative and performance for room development, created the Policies and Procedures for the company, and developed an actor training for all locations. He also went with the company to present on Dragon’s Den Canada (pictured).

Assistant Direction: Pericles
adapted and directed by Lois Anderson
presented by Bard On The Beach

Lois Anderson completely overhauled of Shakespeare’s least popular texts into the thrilling tale of Marina – a young girl saved from a brothel by the old magician Cerimon. Cerimon then tells her the epic tales of Pericles by reanimating clay dolls with his magic. Through Bard On The Beach’s Apprectice Director program, Brennan provided assistant direction, cast instruction of Butoh dance, and advised on Butoh aesthetic in relation to the clay dolls.

“Anderson’s Pericles is a stunner” – Colin Thomas, Georgia Straight, (link)

“Lois Anderson’s ingenious conception of Pericles reminds us of the joy and power of storytelling.” – Zoe Grams, Vancouver Presents, (link)

Assistant Direction: Little One
by Hannah Moscovitch
directed by Amiel Gladstone

When 4-year-old Claire is adopted into the family, 6-year-old Aaron has to learn to “love” his new monster of a sister. Told through the now adult voices of its two main characters, Little One weaves stories of childhood horror and teenage humiliation into a twisted, wryly funny, and ultimately haunting narrative. One that asks how far you’d let a psychopath control your life, and what you’d do to regain it. Brennan stage managed and provided Assistant Direction to acclaimed Vancouver director Amiel Gladstone.

“This production is riveting throughout … deeply disturbing but laced with humor and surprising twists.” – The Georgia Straight [FULL REVIEW]

“The Must-See Show of the Fringe. Such a compelling and boldly intense show … Daniel Arnold and Marisa Smith give off brilliantly riveting performances. This 60-minute edge-of-your-seat psychological thriller.. will continue to haunt you, long after you have left the theatre.” – FunFunVancouver [FULL REVIEW]

The Abominable Autumn
by Brennan Campbell and Billy Stewart-Keed

A two-hander originally written for The Anywhere Theatre Festival in Brisbane, Australia. The Abominable Autumn is a dark comedy which follows the rise and fall of a celebrity chef, a very hungry gay couple, and an ancient secret from the Canadian wilderness. The audience witnesses two narratives set on crash course with each other, culminating in a horrifying climax under the lugubrious moon. Uproariously funny, this show currently has plans to be imported to Canada for a Fringe Tour in the near future.

“The acting in this show is flawless. The performers draw upon their considerable physical theatre to great effect and combine them with fine facial expression and vocal quality. Campbell speaks in different accents with aplomb.” – Merissa Kerr, Anywhere Festival Reviewer [FULL REVIEW]

Breathing Room
by Pocket Atlas

Breathing Room is a duet, co-created by Brennan Campbell and Nicole Shafenecker, exploring isolation and connection within relationships. A romance leads to an unforgiving precipice. The moment where one’s projection of a person and the truth of a person meet. The couple finds themselves in free fall. What lies at the bottom? The edge of a knife, a moment of unison, or another Saturday on the couch? Created through devised process and The Viewpoints, Breathing Room is a visual exploration of the subconscious minds of lovers.

First presented as a fifteen-minute experiment into dancing without sight, the piece has been developed through two workshop presentations with Good Woman Dance Collective over the last year. In its current incarnation, the show runs roughly twenty minutes and features live music.

R.I.S.K.
By Michael Davidson
Directed and Dramaturged by Brennan Campbell

Michael Davidson’s one man show about the nature of risk taking. Experimental in nature, the show is part improvisation, part scripted manifesto, and part post modern performance. With a medium is the message approach, the show’s festival description was notoriously “Take a risk.” Brennan’s direction involved creating an environment where anything could happen. The show featured a stage manager actively working on stage with the performer whose job was to cue the tech and to attempt to throw off the performance via re-ordering scenes, creating improvised text, and encouraging heckling from the audience.

Mythic
By Brennan Campbell and Michael Davidson

Local Pizza Boy Kale has hit rock bottom. Freshly dumped and out of a job, his mediocre life has shifted down a notch. Little does he know that his actions will determine the fate of all mankind. Mythic is the tale of an ordinary man made extraordinary through mythical plot devices, physical theatre, and rhyming narrators.  This slapstick comedy deconstructs creation myths and races to save the world in one rapid-fire hour. Originally produced for a three-city Fringe Tour of London, Winnipeg, and Regina.

“Fantastic energy, strong character work, and clever staging… they’re clearly talented writers” – Joff Schimdtt, CBC Review Crew Winnipeg

“Let’s start by saying ‘physically awesome’…. The witty speech in the show is a second highlight. The guys use heroic verse to absolute perfection. (Heroic verse consists of the rhymed iambic line or heroic couplet. To put that in context, it’s harder to write than Shakespeare.)… With some very funny pieces and an overall fun, real story told as if it were a heroic quest, Mythic is a very funny, smart show.” – Eli Grendal. The Jenny Revue Winnipeg

“The on-stage dynamics of Campbell and Davidson make this a show worth seeing alone, as they play off each other perfectly and seem to just have a really good time telling a story that’s important to them.” – Jeffery Preston, Theatre In London

That Greek Thing
By Brennan Campbell, Michael Davidson, Daniel Stilwell, Kayla Whittingham

Prepare yourself for a comedic romp through Greek Mythology. Pandora has unwittingly unleashed all of the horrors found within her Box. Humanity is no longer safe as Ancient Greece, pop culture, and 70’s dance music are gloriously ripped apart in order to find and contain the evils. Utilizing ideas found within Keith Johnstone’s Impro, this sketch show promises nothing short of bloody victory. Originally performed at the Edmonton Fringe Festival.

“Suffice to say, that the comedic foursome deliver a hilarious onslaught of Greek mythology and philosophy through a screen of pop culture references… Four out of Five Stars” – Derek Logan, See Magazine

 

@Life
by Brennan Campbell, Michael Davidson, and Daniel Dobranski

The No Snowcones Production Company is proud to present their comedic examination of the role of technology in modern life. Through scripted vignettes, @Life explores the daily relationship between people

and technology, including the pros and cons of video game culture, computer dependence, and the role of the Internet in contemporary society. Written and performed by a team of fresh graduates from the Grant MacEwan Theatre Arts program. Originally performed in NextFest 2009 and the Edmonton, Victoria, and Vancouver Fringes.

“One heck of a fast-paced, relentless show pairing physical comedy with geeky jokes…with [the audience] on the edge of their seats seemingly on the verge of jumping up and shouting ‘TESTIFY!’… Four out of Five Stars” Iain Ilich, Edmonton Journal

“Hilariously entertaining…Truly the geek shall inherit the Earth, and then we shall worship their Halo 2 skill.” – Vue Weekly Edmonton

“A stellar performance…The No Snowcones Team is clearly well-versed in theatre.” – Plank Magazine Victoria