Two RSA grads receive notable awards

By Laureen F. Guenther Times Contributor

Two Rosebud School of the Arts 2017 graduates received notable awards in June.
Emily Marisabel received the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Emerging Artist Award, and Sarah Robertson was named the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award Protégé for 2018.
Marisabel and nine others received the award at a ceremony in Government House in Edmonton on June 1. The award includes a medal and $10,000.
The 2018 Emerging Artist adjudicators said in a statement, “Emily created Light in the Dark theatre to bring theatre to young, rural audiences across Alberta focused on stories of hope. A strong vision for theatre in building community.”
According to Marisabel, her focus for Light in the Dark theatre is to tell stories which illuminate hope.
“Stories which make the glimmer of the world brighter, and stories which inspire an infectious flicker that continues to spread even after the curtain goes down,” she said. “I am so passionate about telling stories through theatre. I need to make art, and the world needs my art and my voice.”
Marisabel thanked the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Emerging Artist Awards for acknowledging that the arts in Alberta and in the world matter. She also stated that for Light in the Dark theatre to bring stories of hope to small rural communities in Alberta can now become a reality.
Sarah Robertson was acknowledged as the 2018 Protégé at a ceremony in Rideau Hall and a Gala Celebration at the National Arts Centre, June 1 and 2.
“This honour includes a year-long mentorship with Tom Jackson, where we will work together on an artistic project of our mutual choosing,” said Robertson. The award also includes an honorarium and grant totalling $15,000.
This mentorship has no application process. Jackson himself chose Robertson as his protégé.
“I met Tom Jackson in Rosebud just over a year ago and we had a very palpable connection,” said Robertson. “I was so arrested by his love, by his generosity and by his still and commanding presence. I wrote a letter to Tom to express my thanks for that experience. Tom mentioned this opportunity and told me to start dreaming.”
“When you encounter Sarah, you encounter a vehicle that transports talent, compassion and a flame of fury,” said Jackson in a press release. “She will command a better world. God only knows what her influence will have on the lives of her audience. I am honoured to provide some fuel to the fire.”
Paul F. Muir, Rosebud School of the Arts’ education director, said Marisabel has “this marvelous passion to tell stories to, and take stories out into, rural communities. Emily also has the administrative skills to pull that off. What a perfect opportunity (this award is) for her, to go, ‘Yes, my vision, my dream, my passion, is a good thing. And it’s worth investing in.’”
Robertson’s gifts are entirely different, he said. “She is one of these people who is able to think outside the box. If there’s a normal way to do something … Sarah’s inclination is to make it something unique. She’ll find another unique, and equally, sometimes more effective, way to achieve that thing.”