Calgary Young People’s Theatre – Cannonball Festival

Here at CYPT, we are so grateful for the support given by Field Law’s Community Fund in developing our Cannonball Festival of youth-created theatre.  Three years later, the Cannonball Festival is now an annual and much-beloved part of our programming, all thanks to the support we received that first year.  The Festival has become a place where young people can explore their own creativity, tell their own stories, and push themselves to become leaders and innovators.  Our kids have created the most innovative, wild, and playful performances, including a thriller inspired by the works of Edgar Allen Poe, a verbatim docudrama about the future, an existential drama about love and possession, and even an Ocean’s 13-style heist adventure, all written by kids.

Robert Morrison was 15 when he started directing his first show as part of our inaugural Cannonball Festival:

“Cannonball gave me an opportunity that no other organization affords young artists.  It gave me the tools and support and mentorship that allowed me to succeed as a director for the first time, and we were allowed the space and trust to achieve our own visions.  Most excitingly, it gave us a chance to create theatre that nobody else lets us create.  Cannonball doesn’t put any limits on where kids can go or what they can achieve.”

Years later, Robert is now going off to university to study drama, having taken his first steps at CYPT.

Jamie Dunsdon
Artistic Producer