Interview With Ruth Smillie & Dawn Bergstrom of Darke Hall
Join us for a conversation with Darke Hall’s CEO Ruth Smillie and Creative Director Dawn Bergstrom as we discuss some of the history behind the iconic performing arts centre. Ruth and Dawn also share with us what the future of Darke Hall has in store for performers and patrons alike!
Darke Hall Theatre, 2024.
What is some of the history behind Dark Hall?
DB: January of 1929 is when it opened. It was a project by Francis Darke who was a local businessman and politician. There is an archived letter where he is quoted as saying that he wanted to build a temple to the arts in Regina. So, he had this building built and he is the namesake for it. He then gifted it to what was Regina College at that time, now the University of Regina which is how it became a university-owned building.
RS: He envisioned that this would be a gathering place for the community. The original Darke Hall had a flat floor in the theater because it was used for community dances.So, not great for sight lines but great for community. He had a very strong sense of civic pride and a desire to give back.
From Live music to theatrical performances, what kind of productions can the building facilitate?
DB: It can host pretty much anything! We've had theater, dance, comedy, music of all kinds from classical, country, pop, rock, folk and pretty much everything in between. The space is probably best for music, but theater works well in here too. It is a lower ceiling and a small wing space so not gigantic productions but smaller theater productions work well in here. Dance has also been really embraced by some of the local studios. Pretty much anything can be on this stage!
Darke Hall under construction
Capitol Studio, Regina, Saskatchewan, 1928. Image courtesy of the University of Regina archives
3. How has Darke Hall changed over the years to better accommodate performers and patrons?
DB: one of the big goals of the renovation was making it an accessible building. It wasn't before! You had to go up a flight of stairs to get in and to get backstage. That was one of the big focuses of the renovation so that not only those who are attending shows but anyone who wants to participate in a show is now fully able to access all the backstage spaces and the auditorium.
RS: There's also an accessible dressing room on the same level as the theater. I would say too is that this is a project that was highly supported by the community. There are so many people including Dawn who performed here when they were children and then adults. It was heartbreaking to not have this venue when it closed. The other piece of it for the performing arts community is that there was no other dedicated performing arts space in the city. Darke Hall was meant to be that. For example, Globe Theatre was a post office that was adapted. Regina Performing Arts Center was a school. This is the only purpose built concert space and performance space so it's beloved in this community.
4. What are some of the ways Darke Hall supports artists and performers?
DB: We have a presentation series of our own where we reach out to local artists and present their performances. People like Jeffery Straker and Jack Semple. We also act as a rental venue. we are filled probably over 100 days a year with local community groups and artists who are using our space. It's more than just “here's the space and here you go,” we support them fully. We help them with their ticket sales, event planning, scheduling, marketing, and we have a technical director who provides supports for the tech side of things. We provide all the staff, the front house and volunteer staff. We do everything we can to support them so that their event is a success.
RS: Our philosophy when we proposed that Darke Hall operate as a not-for-profit is that we wanted to raise all boats together. Historically the performing arts community has been really disenfranchised by the fact that they didn't have appropriate performing spaces and those that were available were quite expensive to rent. The rental fees start at $500 a day at Darke Hall and that includes everything.What the groups using our space are seeing is that their audiences are growing. Darke Hall is a very desirable space for audiences to come and we also put a lot of care into our marketing. The idea is that the community is going to be better off because of Dark Hall.
5. Both of you have a lot of experience working in Regina’s performing arts community, what have been some of the wins and losses you have both encountered?
RS: the strengths are the resilience of the arts organizations and the artists that live here. The other thing I would say is there was a mass exodus when the province cancelled the film tax credit and that directly impacted everybody. It impacted the Globe Theatre; it impacted all the other performing arts organizations because you don't have that pool of people here to do the work anymore. The community is really being hit hard by what I would call regressive policies around cultural funding, arts funding, both at the city level and the provincial level. So, the fact that so many artists stay here, they work here, they create their own work here, they're highly resilient. Dawn and I are so determined that we're going to make this space a win for artists because they have had so few wins.
DB: I think another strength is that the community really supports each other. You will see whether it's music, theatre, dance, that everyone is supporting each other. We hold each other up and celebrate with each other. It's not a competition, we succeed, and we fail together.
Exterior of Darke Hall, 2024.
6. How do you go about selecting the performers and productions you would like to showcase at your venue?
RS: The curatorial priorities for Dawn and I are to uplift women-led productions and women performers. So, women-led theatre, women-led musicians and so on. We also prioritize uplifting marginalized voices especially the voices of Indigenous and Saskatchewan based artists. When it boils down to it, those are the areas that we're really focused on.
7. What word of advice would you offer to aspiring artists and performers?
DB: Go out and see everything you can. I think you learn so much from seeing what other people are doing. I remember when I was pursuing a career my thing was always learning about every organization there was, what they were doing and how I could get involved. When you're starting out it's on you to get the knowledge, reach out, let them know that you're here and that you're interested.
RS: One of the first things I say to artists is nobody can tell you that you are an artist or not an artist, only you can. Also, don't wait for the phone to ring. Make your own work because the killer is if you're just waiting for others to give you a job. Learning how to produce your own work is a great skill.
8. What would you like visitors to Darke Hall to take away from their experience at the venue?
DB: That it was just a perfect evening from the moment they arrived to the moment they left. Everything was as they wanted it to be, and they enjoyed themselves. Our new tagline is “if it's at Darke Hall it's worth seeing.” We believe that even if you're taking a chance on something that that you hadn’t seen before that you walk out of here saying “I had a great time.”
RS: From the minute you go online to book your tickets or pick up the phone, we’re really focused on the experience! There are tons of studies done about why people do or don't attend performing art events. Some reasons are people don’t know what to wear, they don't have anybody to go with and they don't want to look out of place. The reason they may feel out of place is if they don't know where to go when they come in. We have greeters out in the link space and Dawn is constantly coaching them to talk to patrons. We want to make sure that they don't have to ask for help and that our staff is making the offer before they even have to ask. We know that not everyone is going to like everything, but you can love the experience.