Yvette Nolan facts for kids

Yvette Nolan, born in 1961, is a talented Canadian playwright, director, actor, and educator. She lives in Saskatchewan, Canada, and was born in Prince Albert. Yvette has played a very important role in creating and performing Indigenous theatre in Canada.

About Yvette Nolan

Early Life and Education

Yvette Nolan was born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. Her mother was Algonquin, and her father was an Irish immigrant. She grew up in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Yvette earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Manitoba. In 2024, she completed a Master of Public Policy degree. This degree focused on how Boards of Directors work in arts organizations.

Yvette became very interested in Indigenous and feminist live art after a special experience. She saw a Native character on stage for the first time. This was during the Royal Winnipeg Ballet's show, The Ecstasy of Rita Joe.

Starting Her Career

Yvette Nolan began her career as a playwright in 1990. Her first play, Blade, premiered at the Winnipeg Fringe Festival. This play was so popular that it was shown again at the Best of the Fringe in 1990 and the Women in View Festival in 1992.

She has worked with many different theatre companies across Canada. These include Agassiz Theatre, the Manitoba Theatre Centre, and Native Earth Performing Arts.

Directing and Leadership

As a director, Yvette has helped a lot in developing Aboriginal theatre. She has directed plays by famous writers like George Ryga (The Ecstasy of Rita Joe). She also directed plays for groups like Turtle Gals Performance Ensemble and by writers like Marie Clements.

Yvette has also held many important leadership roles. From 1998 to 2001, she was the president of the Playwrights' Union of Canada. This group is now called the Playwrights Guild of Canada. She was also the artistic director of Native Earth from 2003 to 2010. She led the Indigenous Performing Arts Alliance and served on several arts boards. In 2010 and 2011, she hosted the Matariki Development Festival in New Zealand.

She is an Artistic Associate at Signal Theatre. In 2017, she co-directed a dance opera called Bearing with Michael Greyeyes at the Luminato Festival. She also directed Nôhkom with Signal Theatre.

Recent Work and Recognition

In 2017, Yvette received an Honorary Lifetime Membership from the Canadian Association for Theatre Research (CATR / ACRT). In 2021, she taught at the Canadian College of the Performing Arts in Victoria, B.C. That same year, she was honored with the Gascon-Thomas Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Theatre School of Canada.

In 2022, she was the Interim Co-Artistic Director for Shakespeare On The Saskatchewan. She is also a Senior Fellow at Massey College in Toronto.

Her play The Unplugging was performed in 2023 at the Belfry in Victoria and the Great Canadian Theatre Company in Ottawa. It was also produced in 2025 by Burnt Thicket Theatre in Saskatoon.

Yvette continued her work with Donna-Michelle St. Bernard on The First Stone. This play was shown at Buddies in Bad Times in 2022 and at Great Canadian Theatre Company in 2023.

In 2023, she directed Frances Koncan's Women Of The Fur Trade. This play was performed at the Stratford Festival and the Globe Theatre Regina. From 2016 to 2022, she was the Company Dramaturge at Sum Theatre in Saskatoon.

Plays Written by Yvette Nolan

Yvette Nolan has written many plays, including:

• A Marginal Man
• Annie Mae's Movement
• Blade
• Child
• Job's Wife
• Shakedown Shakespeare
• The Unplugging
• Donne In
• Owen (a radio play)
• Toronto Rex
• Ham and the Ram
• Prophecy
• Alaska
• from thine eyes
• Henry IV Pt 1: (an adaptation)
• Hilda Blake (a libretto)
• The Birds: (an adaptation)
• Scattering Jake
• Finish Line
• Video
• What Befalls The Earth

Awards and Honors

Yvette Nolan has received many awards for her contributions to theatre:

• John Hirsch Award for Most Promising New Writer (nomination), 1995.
• James Buller Award for Playwrighting (nomination), 1997.
• Maggie Bassett Award for service to the theatre community, 2007.
• City of Toronto's Aboriginal Affairs Award, 2008.
• George Luscombe Award for mentorship in professional theatre, 2011.
• Bob Couchman Award for direction (for Café Daughter), 2011.
• Jessie Richardson Award for Outstanding Original Script (for The Unplugging), 2013.
• Mallory Gilbert Leadership Award, 2014.
• Woman Of Distinction (nomination) - YWCA Saskatoon, 2017.
• Dora Mavor Moore Award for Shanawdithit, 2020.
• Gina Wilkinson Prize, 2021.
• Gascon-Thomas Lifetime Achievement Award, 2021.