Janet Munsil is a

Canadian Canadians () 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 their being ''C ...

playwright based in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

.Amy Smart
"Playwright puts own touches on condensed classic"
. ''

Victoria Times-Colonist The ''Times Colonist'' is an English-language daily newspaper in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It was formed by the September 2, 1980 merger of the ''Victoria Daily Times'', established in 1884, and the ''British Colonist'' (later the ' ...

'', October 1, 2014. She is most noted for her plays ''That Elusive Spark'' and ''Be Still''. Munsil is also a theatre director and has served as artistic director of

Intrepid Theatre Intrepid Theatre is a not-for-profit organization in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, that produces the annual Victoria Fringe Theatre Festival, Uno Fest: Canada’s Singular Live Theatre Event, and a year-round series of international theatre pr ...

and the

Victoria Fringe Festival Intrepid Theatre is a not-for-profit organization in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, that produces the annual Victoria Fringe Theatre Festival, Uno Fest: Canada’s Singular Live Theatre Event, and a year-round series of international theatre pr ...

Early life and education

Munsil was born in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

and raised in

Port Alberni Port Alberni () is a city located on Vancouver Island in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The city lies within the Alberni Valley at the head of the Alberni Inlet, Vancouver Island's longest inlet. Port Alberni currently has a total popu ...

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are of land. The island is the largest ...

. She completed a BFA at the

University of Victoria The University of Victoria (UVic) is a public research university located in the municipalities of Oak Bay, British Columbia, Oak Bay and Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. Established in 1903 as Victoria College, British Columbia, Victoria Col ...

in 1980. She would go on to complete an MFA there in 2019.

Career

Munsil's play ''That Elusive Spark'' was a

Governor General's Literary Award The Governor General's Awards are a collection of annual awards presented by the governor general of Canada, recognizing distinction in numerous academic, artistic, and social fields. The first award was conceived and inaugurated in 1937 by the ...

nominee for English-language drama at the

2014 Governor General's Awards The shortlisted nominees for the 2014 Governor General's Awards for Literary Merit were announced on October 7, 2014,Elizabeth Lazebnik Elizabeth Lazebnik is a Latvian Canadian filmmaker from Toronto, Ontario, whose full-length feature debut '' Be Still'' was released in 2021. The film, which premiered at the 2021 Vancouver International Film Festival, was a Vancouver Film Critic ...

into the 2021 film '' Be Still''. Her other plays have included ''Emphysema (A Love Story)'', ''Circus Fire'', ''Influence'', ''I Have Seen Beautiful Jim Key'', ''Sveva'', ''Act of Faith'', ''The Ugly Duchess'', and a stage adaptation of ''

Pride and Prejudice ''Pride and Prejudice'' is the second published novel (but third to be written) by English author Jane Austen, written when she was age 20-21, and later published in 1813. A novel of manners, it follows the character development of Elizabe ...

''. ''Act of Faith'' is a mixed-ability play. She was formerly the artistic director of Victoria's

and the

, until leaving these roles in 2016. Munsil is also a theatre director. Her directorial credits include ''

Twelfth Night ''Twelfth Night, or What You Will'' is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written around 1601–1602 as a Twelfth Night entertainment for the close of the Christmas season. The play centres on the twins Viola an ...

'' with the Greater Victoria Shakespeare Festival in 2016, '' Born Yesterday'' with Blue Bridge Repertory Theatre in 2017, and the Canadian College of Performing Arts' 2019 production of ''

Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) ''Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet)'' is a 1988 comedic play by Ann-Marie MacDonald in which Constance Ledbelly, a young English literature professor from Queen's University, goes on a subconscious journey of self-discovery. Constanc ...

''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Munsil, Janet 20th-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Canadian women writers 21st-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights 21st-century Canadian women writers Canadian women dramatists and playwrights Canadian theatre directors Canadian women theatre directors Writers from Victoria, British Columbia Living people Year of birth missing (living people) University of Victoria alumni Canadian artistic directors