Ronnie Burkett, Measha Brueggergosman-Lee among laureates for Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards for Lifetime Artistic Achievement

SCTV’s Andrea Martin, rapper Wes “Maestro” Williams, and choreographer Mélanie Demers also recognized

Measha Brueggergosman-Lee, Wesley (Wes) “Maestro” Williams, Diane Juster, Andrea Martin, Ronnie Burkett, Jenny Belzberg, and Mélanie Demers.

SEVERAL PERFORMERS with long associations appearing on Vancouver stages have been named as laureates of the Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards for Lifetime Artistic Achievement.

Ronnie Burkett, the Order of Canada-winning puppeteer, playwright, designer, and performer whose shows like The Daisy Theatre and Little Willy have been a hit at the Cultch, was named. He was praised for “provocative, topical, compassionate and entertaining” work that has “revitalized puppet theatre, consistently attracting adult audiences who are enthralled by the colourful characters”.

Soprano Measha Brueggergosman-Lee, who has appeared here with Vancouver Recital Society and Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, as well as singing at the opening ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics, was praised for her “exceptional musicianship and powerful voice”.

SCTV (Second City Television) comedy legend and Broadway star Andrea Martin; “godfather of Canadian hip hop” Wesley (Wes) “Maestro” Williams; and singer, composer, and pianist Diane Juster were also named laureates.

Meanwhile, choreographer and multidisciplinary artist Mélanie Demers, whose La Goddam Voie Lactée made an impact at the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival and the Dance Centre two years ago, is receiving the National Arts Centre Award, recognizing the work of an “extraordinary nature by an individual artist or company in the past performance year”. Her Montréal contemporary-dance company is called MAYDAY.

The Ramon John Hnatyshyn Award for Voluntarism in the Performing Arts went to Jenny Belzberg, a community activist and philanthropist who has been a crucial force for the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity.

Elsewhere, the G-Gs announced that for the 2024 Mentorship Program, in which past GGPAA recipients guide a chosen mid-career Canadian artist, will feature Inuk singer–songwriter Susan Aglukark mentoring musician Angela Amarualik.

Awards will be celebrated at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa, in a gala June 8.

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Janet Smith

Janet Smith is founding partner and editorial director of Stir. She is an award-winning arts journalist who has spent more than two decades immersed in Vancouver’s dance, screen, design, theatre, music, opera, and gallery scenes. She sits on the Vancouver Film Critics’ Circle.

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