Burning Passions Theatre will premiere a new play about the lives of Ottawa seniors with four performances (2 and 7 pm each day) at the wheelchair accessible Rideau Rockcliffe Community Resource Centre Drama Room on March 26 and 27.
A Circle Complete, written by company Artistic Producer and director Laurel Smith, is the last in a trilogy of works produced by the company’s Seniors Sharing Stories project, an arts in the community training initiative which since 2024 has produced works based on input from community elders who represent Ottawa’s fastest growing demographic. The plays have toured Ottawa community centres and seniors’ residences.
“I love this moving and darkly humorous production,” says performer Joanne Veillette, who also appeared in the trilogy’s first production, A Circle of Care. “In this play, a dying mother’s final days bring two strong-willed women face to face — her long-absent sister and the devoted daughter who never left her side. As old wounds resurface and tensions rise, sharp wit gives way to raw emotion.”
Smith says she was inspired to write the play about a difficult subject shrouded in social taboos, yet which happens to every single person on the planet. “What happens when our parents are reaching end of life?” she asks. “How do we cope when powerful feelings of love, anger, denial and grief arise? How do we get through it with compassion, and even – dare we say it – a sense of humour and joy?”
The play also features Tammy Southin, who plays the dutiful daughter of a crusty mother with whom, relations have always been on the edge of conflict. “Aging doesn’t need punishment, it needs patience and empowerment,” she says, reflecting a theme that has run throughout the trilogy, which seeks to counter the ageism and barriers faced by Ottawa seniors. “This project focuses on the nuances of a demographic all too often stereotyped at best and overlooked entirely at worst. Performing in this play is not only an honour but a wonderful opportunity to participate in a project that shines a warm and dignified spotlight on our senior community.”
Playing the crusty mother of A Circle Complete is Bonnie McDougall, who says, “As an aging woman, I was drawn to the well-written family dynamic between the mother-daughter-sister trio, along with the ‘almost family’ caregiver. There’s fear and fireworks in this show, a compelling combination that I’m happy to be part of.”
The caregiver is played by Deborah Bolton, who has been involved in all three productions.
The project’s goals dovetail with priorities identified in the Ottawa 2025-30 Older Adults Plan: ending community invisibility while confronting social isolation and ageism and providing meaningful learning and volunteer opportunities.
A seniors “AI-art” group that meets at Rideau Rockcliffe will generate ideas for show logos and marketing materials to promote the show. They’ve been involved since the start of the project.
Smith notes that much research documents the pro-social benefits of involving seniors in the arts, resulting in improved cognition and moods, more positive outlooks, better quality of life, and fewer medical issues arising from isolation and depression.
“We see this training project as an opportunity to build in protective care factors through the process of group work, education, outreach, and artistic creation for participants and audiences alike,” Smith says. “Modeling active, engaged seniors naming and overcoming their challenges through a theatre piece has ripple effects among peers. We see the potential to engage larger groups of seniors with important messaging, building back self-esteem, empowering marginalized voices, promoting healthy and active elder years, and encouraging mutual aid networks that can tackle the obstacles that seniors face.”
For over 25 years, Burning Passions Theatre has led community-engaged arts projects in rural and urban areas with diverse communities, addressing social issues through theatre, dance and song. Among those projects are a touring group of “at-risk” teens in Lanark County addressing depression, suicide, youth homelessness, and gender identity; working with elementary students on projects involving economic inequality; and staged play readings with communities facing racial profiling. This work runs alongside the theatre company’s professional theatre activities, including productions (having staged the Classic Theatre Festival from 2010 to 2023), and new work development for Ottawa playwrights.
“We’ve been blessed to work with folks who may never have been a part of a play, but who are learning new skills, sharing wonderful insights, and putting their all into a project in which they feel wholly invested,” Smith says. “It’s been a joy working with them.”
The hour-long play will include a talkback session where audience members can ask questions of the senior performers. All performances take place in the wheelchair accessible second floor drama room of the Rideau Rockcliffe Community Resource Centre (the former Rideau High School) at 815 St. Laurent Blvd.
Tickets are pay what you can and available online or at the door.
