SUSAN SHILLINGFORD

(Book)

Born in England and raised in eastern Canada, Susan trained as an actress at the Vancouver Playhouse Theatre School with National Theatre School founder, Powys Thomas from 1975-77. She has acted at The Vancouver Playhouse, City Stage, Vancouver, BC; Centaur Theatre; Montreal, PQ; The Bathhouse Theatre, Seattle,WA; Cider Mill Playhouse, Endicott, NY, and Mermaid Theatre, Nova Scotia. In 1983, She directed ‘Waiting for the Parade’ for the Bridgewater Players (NS).

She then formed the Chester Theatre Society in 1983, opening with a one-act double bill- ‘The Dear Departed’ and ‘Will’o the Wisp’  at the Leading Wind Theatre in Chester, NS. She had the idea of creating a play based on the classic 1928 novel, ‘Rockbound’ by Rhodes scholar, FP Day.  The rugged setting and timeless theme of FP Day’s book, inspired by the nearby Mahone Bay island of East Ironbound, had captured her imagination, leading her to follow a friend’s advice to find a way to stage FP Day’s book. Little did she know it would become a lifetime obsession!

After returning to university and garnering two degrees, she created two documentaries for Acadia University, Wolfville, NS. and Carleton University, Ottawa, Ont. In 1997, she founded Whistling Fish Theatre Productions in Mahone Bay, NS, with the mandate to explore both new and traditional forms of theatre. Teaming up with singer and actor Geoff Noble, she directed ‘Sotoba Komachi,’ a modernized Noh Play by Yukio Mishima, performed with two adapted kyogen plays.  The shows were mounted for the Halifax Fringe Festival with a small company of Halifax actors.

From 1998-2003, Susan co-created the Vision TV musical travelogue, ‘SteepleChasing’ which aired nationally for five years and was voted most popular made-in-Canada TV series. Fifty-eight shows featured Geoff as host, performing with over 200 invited singers and musicians from the four Atlantic provinces.

Living in Mahone Bay in 1998, and sharing an interest in FP Day’s work, she and Geoff began work on ‘Rockbound’ the Musical’. She directed a script development workshop in Halifax, followed by a public reading held at Dalhousie University. In 2001, (stage copyright secured), Susan directed the show’s premiere with performers drawn from the local community of Nelson, BC. The musical played to full houses at the historic Capitol Theatre in town. After adding new songs and script changes, in 2003, they put up a second production, with Susan as director and Geoff playing Angus Black, at the Charlie White Theatre (Sidney, BC), and featuring actors and singers from Victoria, BC.

Other productions created and staged by Susan and Geoff, include ‘Gold the Musical;’ the 2005 Tall Ships Gala Concert, ‘Songs and Tales of the Sea,” (Christ Church Cathedral, Victoria, BC) and ‘The Remarkable Emily Carr’, (Intrepid Theatre, Victoria, BC) The show was.also produced by Chemainus Theatre Festival  in 2010. Susan then created the three-hander play, ‘Claret and Amber’ which played at the Vancouver Fringe Festival; Artspring Theatre, Salt Spring Island, and Charlie White Theatre, Sidney. BC. In celebration of Canada’s 150^th birthday, Susan co-created and performed in the stage show, ‘A Northern Tapestry’ ( toured Canada,2017) which featured Geoff’s songs and music, accompanied by narrative and projected images of iconic Canadian landscape paintings.

 In 2024, with new changes to ‘Rockbound, the Musical’, the scoring of the songs and music was completed by Nanaimo composer and violinist; James Mark. The show, now titled: ‘Island Lad’ the Musical, was now ready for its world premiere.

1983 – A Visit to East Ironbound Island

Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia

“A fresh breeze blew us across the bay, and there,before me, lay…East Ironbound Island”

GEOFF NOBLE

(SONGS & MUSIC)

Geoff was born in West Yorkshire, England, where he trained at Bretton Hall, Leeds University, as an actor, singer, and teacher, before emigrating to BC in 1978.  He has recorded a total of six albums of his original music, best known in BC for his popular song about the BC coast; ‘One More Pull.’  Past projects have included writing and performing promotional songs and music for Parks Canada and both the BC and N.S. governments.  He wrote the ‘Heroes and Monuments of BC’ songbook with a teacher’s guide which were placed in every BC elementary school library.  He then created ‘A Canadian Story,’ a double album with book, recorded with Pierre Berton for schools across Canada. In 1995, he joined the popular Celtic Rock band, ‘Celtica’ in Nova Scotia, of which he became the lead singer.

As a performer, Geoff is best known in Canada as the singing and cycling host of his popular TV series, ‘SteepleChasing’ which aired nationally from 1998-2003. He climbed many steeples, interviewed community members from lighthouse keepers to wool mill owners, and performed his original songs for 58 shows. Over 200 musical guests from the eastern provinces were featured.  Vision TV described him as ‘Canada’s Sir Harry Secombe.’

He has written the music and songs for ‘Island Lad’ the Musical. These songs and music were first composed for the two productions of ‘Rockbound the Musical’, the show’s predecessor.  He co-produced and performed in both shows, taking on the role of Angus Black at the Capitol Theatre, Nelson, BC in 2001 and at The Charlie White Theatre in Sidney, BC in 2003.  He also co-produced and performed in ‘Claret and Amber,’ (2013 Vancouver Fringe Festival) and a Tall Ships Gala Concert: ‘Songs and Tales of the Sea’ (Christ Church Cathedral, Victoria, BC).  In 2017, ‘A Northern Tapestry,’ which toured from coast to coast in celebration of Canada’s 150^th birthday, featured songs and music from his lengthy career as performer and composer, accompanied by narrative and projected images of iconic Canadian landscape paintings.

In 2024, he collaborated again with Susan on refining both songs and script of ‘Rockbound’ the Musical, which they renamed – ‘Island Lad’ the Musical before teaming up with James Mark, Nanaimo musician and composer, to score the songs and music for voice and piano.

In 1995, Geoff visited East Ironbound Island in Mahone Bay, NS which inspired his song ‘Bijou’, written in celebration of the island’s beauty and isolation. Recorded in Halifax, NS. he performed with noted N.S. musicians; Skip Beckwith, Jaimie Robinson, and Tom Roach.

(To view this video, please first turn off ‘Overture’ track currently playing below).