Vern Thiessen (born c. 1964) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

playwright. Born in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749, ...

Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Winn ...

, Thiessen studied at the

University of Winnipeg The University of Winnipeg (UWinnipeg, UW) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, that offers undergraduate faculties of art, business and economics, education, science and kinesiology and applied health as well as gra ...

and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts. He later attended the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta, also known as U of A or UAlberta, is a Public university, public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford,"A Gentleman of Strathcona – Alexande ...

, where he obtained a Master of Fine Arts degree. Thiessen previously lived in

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

and was formerly a drama instructor at the University of Alberta. He is a past president of both the

Playwrights Guild of Canada Playwrights Guild of Canada (PGC) is a Canadian charity that works to advance the creative rights and interests of professional Canadian playwrights; promote Canadian plays, and foster community of writers. It was founded in 1972. History PGC has ...

and the Writers' Guild of Alberta. Thiessen is the recipient of numerous awards, including the

Governor General's Award for English-language drama The Governor General's Award for English-language drama honours excellence in Canadian English-language playwriting. The award was created in 1981 when the Governor General's Award for English-language poetry or drama was divided. Because the awar ...

(''Einstein's Gift''), the Carol Bolt Award for Best Play (''Vimy'') and the Sterling Award for Outstanding New Play (''Apple''). He has also received the City of Edmonton Arts Achievement Award and the Alumni Award of Excellence from the University of Alberta. He has been nominated several times for other awards including the

Siminovitch Prize in Theatre The Siminovitch Prize is Canada's largest theatre award recognizing excellence in mid-career directors, playwrights and designers. $100,000 is awarded annually, and for recipients, who are given the public recognition and financial resources, it i ...

, and was a finalist for the Governor General's Award for ''Lenin's Embalmers''. Thiessen's work has been translated into several languages including German, French, Polish and Hebrew. His plays are performed regularly in Canada, the United States, the UK and Europe. He has also been produced in Australia and Asia. ''Shakespeare's Will'' has been produced twice at Canada's Stratford Festival. ''Lenin's Embalmers'', ''A More Perfect Union'' and ''Einstein's Gift'' have been produced Off-Broadway. Thiessen has served as playwright in residence at the Citadel Theatre and Workshop West Theatre in Edmonton. He is currently an associate artist at Epic Theatre Ensemble. He is also project associate for the New Play Frontiers program at People's Light at Theatre in Malvern, PA. Thiessen is currently at work on several commissions for the Ensemble Studio Theatre (New York), Touchstone Theatre/Patrick Street (Vancouver),

Soulpepper Theatre Company Soulpepper is a theater company based in Toronto, Ontario. It is the largest non-profit theater in the city. History Soulpepper was founded in 1998 by twelve Toronto artists aiming to produce lesser-known theatrical classics. Soulpepper has sinc ...

(Toronto) and Epic Theatre Ensemble (New York.) His plays are published by Playwrights Canada Press. From 2007 until 2014 he lived in New York City. He is married to novelist

Susie Moloney Susie Moloney (born February 27, 1962 in Winnipeg, Manitoba) is a Canadian author of horror fiction. The film rights to her book, ''A Dry Spell'', were purchased by Cruise/Wagner Productions in 1997, for a reported seven figures. Moloney was the ...

. Vern returned to Edmonton to serve as the Artistic Director of Work Shop West Theatre in 2014. In 2014 he won the

Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Play The Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Play is an annual award celebrating achievements in Toronto theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to prese ...

for his theatrical adaptation of

W. Somerset Maugham William Somerset Maugham ( ; 25 January 1874 – 16 December 1965) was an English writer, known for his plays, novels and short stories. Born in Paris, where he spent his first ten years, Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German un ...

's novel ''

Of Human Bondage ''Of Human Bondage'' is a 1915 novel by W. Somerset Maugham. The novel is generally agreed to be Maugham's masterpiece and to be strongly autobiographical in nature, although he stated, "This is a novel, not an autobiography; though much in i ...

''.

Theatrical works

* 1987: ''The Courier'' * 1990: ''The Resurrection of John Frum'' * 1996: ''Blowfish'' * 2002: ''Apple'' * 2003: ''

Einstein's Gift ''Einstein's Gift'' is a 2003 play written by Canadian playwright Vern Thiessen and published in 2003 by Playwrights Canada Press. Through the recollections of Albert Einstein, the play focuses on the life and career of German chemist Dr. Fritz Ha ...

'' * 2005: ''

Shakespeare's Will William Shakespeare's last will and testament was signed on 25 March 1616, just under a month before his death. The document has been studied for details of his personal life, for his opinions, and for his attitudes towards his two daughters, Su ...

'' * 2006: ''Back to Berlin'' *2007: ''Vimy'' *2007: ''Bird Brain'' *2007: ''Rich'' (with composer Olaf Pyttlik) *2009: ''A More Perfect Union'' *2010: ''Lenin's Embalmers'' *2011: ''The Last Tree of Rapa Nui'' (with composer Olaf Pyttlik) *2012: ''Do Not Disturb'' *2014: ''Of Human Bondage'' (adaptation)

References

External links

Vern Thiessen
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thiessen, Vern 1960s births Living people 20th-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights Writers from Winnipeg University of Alberta alumni University of Alberta faculty University of Winnipeg alumni Governor General's Award-winning dramatists 21st-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights Canadian male dramatists and playwrights Dora Mavor Moore Award winners 20th-century Canadian male writers 21st-century Canadian male writers Canadian Mennonites Mennonite writers