Leah Cherniak (born 1956) is a Canadian playwright, actor, and teacher. She is a co-founder of Theatre Columbus (now called Common Boots).

Early life and education

Cherniak graduated from the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

with a BA in 1979. She later studied at École Jacques Lecoq, where she met Martha Ross.

Career

Cherniak co-founded Theatre Columbus with Martha Ross in 1984. Originally, the company was called The Gargoils. In 2015, Theatre Columbus changed their name to Common Boots Theatre.

Teaching

Beginning in 1985, Cherniak taught clown at the

National Theatre School The National Theatre School of Canada (NTS, ) is a private institution of professional theatre studies in Montreal, Quebec. Established in 1960, the NTS receives its principal funding from grants awarded by the Government of Canada and cultural ...

. In 2001, Cherniak began teaching dance at

Ryerson University Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU, or Toronto Met), formerly Ryerson University, is a public research university located in Toronto, Canada. The university's core campus is situated within the Garden District in downtown Toronto, although i ...

(now Toronto Metropolitan University) and

George Brown College The George Brown College of Applied Arts and Technology is a public, fully accredited college (Canada), college of applied arts and technology with three campuses in downtown Toronto (Ontario, Canada). Like many other colleges in Ontario, George ...

Directorial credits

Theatre

* ''Up Against the Wallpaper'' –

Nightwood Theatre Nightwood Theatre is Canada's oldest professional women's theatre and is based in Toronto. It was founded in 1979 by Cynthia Grant, Kim Renders, Mary Vingoe, and Maureen White and was originally a collective. Though it was not the founders' o ...

(1989) * ''The Tell-Tale Heart'' – Theatre Columbus (1995) * ''Froth'' (1996) * '' Three Birds Alighting on a Field'' – George Brown Theatre (2000) * ''Lonely Nights and Other Stories'' – Theatre Columbus, co-directed with Maggie Huculak (2001) * ''Rue Alridge'' –

Tarragon Theatre The Tarragon Theatre is a theatre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and one of the main centers for contemporary playwriting in the country.

(2004) * ''Edward the "Crazy Man"'' –

Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People Young People's Theatre (YPT) is a professional theatre for young audiences located in Toronto, Toronto, Ontario. The company produces and presents a full season of theatre and arts education programming, performing to approximately 150,000 patr ...

(2008) * ''6 Essential Questions'' –

Factory Theatre Factory Theatre is a Theater (structure), theatre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded as Factory Theatre Lab in 1970 by Ken Gass and Frank Trotz, and it was run for almost 20 years by Dian English. Factory theatre was the first to anno ...

(2014) * ''Clown'' – Ryerson School of Performance (2018) * ''The Ward Cabaret'' –

Harbourfront Centre Harbourfront Centre is a cultural organization on the waterfront of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated at 235 Queens Quay West. Established as a crown corporation in 1972 by the Government of Canada to create a waterfront park, it became a no ...

Theatre (2020), co-directed with

David Buchbinder David Buchbinder (born 1947) is professor of Masculinities Studies at Curtin University in Perth, Western Australia, and adjunct professor of English and Cultural Studies at the University of Western Australia. Education Buchbinder gained his ...

* ''Perpetual Archaeology'' – Crow's Theatre written by and starring

Alex Bulmer Alex Bulmer is a Canadian playwright and theatre artist. Bulmer is the co-founder of the theatre companies SNIFF Inc. and Invisible Flash. She wrote the play ''Smudge'' and was a writer for the 2009 Channel 4 series ''Cast Offs''. Early life and ...

(June 2023)

Film

* ''Things Dead People Say –'' short film (2020)

Acting credits

Theatre

Plays

* ''Until We Part'' – co-written with Martha Ross * ''The Anger in Ernest and Ernestine'' – co-written with Robert Morgan and Martha Ross * ''Still Clowning'' – co-written with Martha Ross * ''The Fragments'' – co-written with Suvendrini Lena and Trevor Schwellnus * ''The Theory of Relatives'' – co-written with

Daniel Brooks Daniel Brooks (23 June 1958 – 22 May 2023) was a Canadian theatre director, actor, and playwright. He was well known in the Toronto theatre scene for his innovative productions and script-writing collaborations. Early life Brooks was born in To ...

Diane Flacks Diane Flacks is a Canadian comedic actress, screenwriter and playwright. Early life and education Flacks was raised in the Jewish faith. Her early education took place in Jewish parochial schools. Flacks studied drama at Leah Posluns Institu ...

, Richard Greenblatt, Leslie Lester, and Allan Merovitz * '' The Attic, The Pearls, and Three Fine Girls'' – co-written with Jennifer Brewin, Martha Ross,

Ann-Marie MacDonald Ann-Marie MacDonald (born October 29, 1958) is a Canadian playwright, author, actress, and broadcast host who lives in Toronto, Ontario. Life and career MacDonald is the daughter of a member of Canada's military; she was born at an air force ...

, and

Alisa Palmer Alisa Palmer is a Canadian theatre director and playwright. She was the artistic director of Nightwood Theatre from 1993 to 2001. Palmer served as the artistic director of the English section of the National Theatre School of Canada for eleven ye ...

* ''More Fine Girls'' – co-written with Brewin, Ross, MacDonald, and Palmer, sequel to ''The Attic, The Pearls, and Three Fine Girls'' * ''Scadding'' ' co-created with Jennifer Brewin,

, Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah, John Gzowski, Maggie Huculak, Anand Rajaram, Jenny Salisbury and Stephon Smith * ''The Betrayal'' – co-written with Oliver Dennis, Maggie Huculak, Robert Morgan, Martha Ross and Michael Simpson

Awards

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cherniak, Leah Living people University of Toronto alumni Academic staff of Toronto Metropolitan University Academic staff of the National Theatre School of Canada Academic staff of George Brown College L'École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq alumni 20th-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights 21st-century Canadian dramatists and playwrights Canadian women dramatists and playwrights 1956 births Canadian theatre directors Canadian women theatre directors Dora Mavor Moore Award winners 20th-century Canadian women writers 21st-century Canadian women writers