1986 Saint John Spring Convocation
Pollock, Mary Sharon
Doctor of Letters (D.Litt.)
Orator: Logan, Alan
Citation:
CONVOCATION, MAY, 1986
MARY SHARON POLLOCK
to be Doctor of Letters
As a mother of 6 grown-up children and grandmother of 4, and with an impressive list of accomplishments behind her, Sharon Pollock might well be excused for contemplating an early retirement. Yet nothing could be further from the thoughts of this dynamic and ebullient lady, whose exploits as actress, director and playwright have led to widespread national acclaim by her peers. Needless to say, we are delighted that she has been able to make the long trip from her home in Calgary to be with us today on this important occasion.
Sharon Pollock was born in Fredericton and is the daughter of well-known local physician Everett Chalmers. Following a childhood in Quebec’s Eastern Townships she returned to the Maritimes to attend UNB in the early sixties, where she first became involved in amateur theatre. After she won the Best Actress Award at the Dominion Drama Festival in 1966, she knew it was time to devote all her energies to the theatre. From acting she moved in natural progression to directing, where she put on a series of plays at major theatres, such as the Manitoba Theatre Centre, the National Arts Centre, Theatre Calgary and the Vancouver Playhouse. The evolution of Sharon Pollock as the complete theatrical was finally achieved when she became a playwright in the mid-seventies and has since written over 15 plays, many of which have won awards. From a long list of accolades one could single out the 1982 Governor General’s Literary Award for English Drama for her play Blood Relations. However, it is for her intensely personal drama of domestic recrimination, Family Trappings, that Sharon Pollock is best known to Theatre New Brunswick audiences, this production marking the first time she has directed her own creation.
Perhaps more significantly for the future of Canadian theatre, Sharon Pollock has recently emerged as a committed spokesperson for national dramatic talent, having served as Vice-Chairman of Playwrights Canada, Chairman of the Canada Council Advisory Arts Panel and Director of the Playwright’s Colony at the Banff Centre of Fine Arts.
It is almost 20 years since the theatre critic for the Globe and Mail wrote: "There is no future for an actress in Canada –- the meccas are elsewhere." While Noel Coward’s sage advice to the mothers of ingenues should never go unheeded, Sharon Pollock has devoted much of her time to creating a climate of confidence and opportunity for talented performers and playwrights in Canada. Playwrights, like university orators, are constantly searching for le mot juste. Sharon Pollock’s workshops ensure that young aspiring authors can achieve just that, by honing their basic scripts to the point where they are ready for theatre production.
As New Brunswickans we are proud that one of our own has made her mark so indelibly on Canadian theatre and wish her well in her future endeavours. As a measure of our respect and admiration for her accomplishments we take great pleasure in bestowing on her the degree of Doctor of Letters.
Insignissime Praeses, Amplissima Cancellaria, tota Universitas, Praesento vobis Mariam Sharon Pollock ut admittatur honoris causa ad gradem Doctoris in Litteris in hac Universitate.
From: Honoris Causa - UA Case 70, Box 2
MARY SHARON POLLOCK
to be Doctor of Letters
As a mother of 6 grown-up children and grandmother of 4, and with an impressive list of accomplishments behind her, Sharon Pollock might well be excused for contemplating an early retirement. Yet nothing could be further from the thoughts of this dynamic and ebullient lady, whose exploits as actress, director and playwright have led to widespread national acclaim by her peers. Needless to say, we are delighted that she has been able to make the long trip from her home in Calgary to be with us today on this important occasion.
Sharon Pollock was born in Fredericton and is the daughter of well-known local physician Everett Chalmers. Following a childhood in Quebec’s Eastern Townships she returned to the Maritimes to attend UNB in the early sixties, where she first became involved in amateur theatre. After she won the Best Actress Award at the Dominion Drama Festival in 1966, she knew it was time to devote all her energies to the theatre. From acting she moved in natural progression to directing, where she put on a series of plays at major theatres, such as the Manitoba Theatre Centre, the National Arts Centre, Theatre Calgary and the Vancouver Playhouse. The evolution of Sharon Pollock as the complete theatrical was finally achieved when she became a playwright in the mid-seventies and has since written over 15 plays, many of which have won awards. From a long list of accolades one could single out the 1982 Governor General’s Literary Award for English Drama for her play Blood Relations. However, it is for her intensely personal drama of domestic recrimination, Family Trappings, that Sharon Pollock is best known to Theatre New Brunswick audiences, this production marking the first time she has directed her own creation.
Perhaps more significantly for the future of Canadian theatre, Sharon Pollock has recently emerged as a committed spokesperson for national dramatic talent, having served as Vice-Chairman of Playwrights Canada, Chairman of the Canada Council Advisory Arts Panel and Director of the Playwright’s Colony at the Banff Centre of Fine Arts.
It is almost 20 years since the theatre critic for the Globe and Mail wrote: "There is no future for an actress in Canada –- the meccas are elsewhere." While Noel Coward’s sage advice to the mothers of ingenues should never go unheeded, Sharon Pollock has devoted much of her time to creating a climate of confidence and opportunity for talented performers and playwrights in Canada. Playwrights, like university orators, are constantly searching for le mot juste. Sharon Pollock’s workshops ensure that young aspiring authors can achieve just that, by honing their basic scripts to the point where they are ready for theatre production.
As New Brunswickans we are proud that one of our own has made her mark so indelibly on Canadian theatre and wish her well in her future endeavours. As a measure of our respect and admiration for her accomplishments we take great pleasure in bestowing on her the degree of Doctor of Letters.
Insignissime Praeses, Amplissima Cancellaria, tota Universitas, Praesento vobis Mariam Sharon Pollock ut admittatur honoris causa ad gradem Doctoris in Litteris in hac Universitate.
From: Honoris Causa - UA Case 70, Box 2
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