Revolt/Compassion
Six Scripts for Contemporary Performance
Revolt/Compassion gathers together six important works by Michael Springate: Historical Bliss, Dog and Crow, The Consolation of Philosophy, Freeport Texas, Kareena, and Kut: Shock and Awe. Written and produced over a twenty-five year period, they capture an expansive range of interests and influences, and reflect the artistic interdisciplinarity which has been a defining feature of his career.
Michael Springate is the author of the novel The Beautiful West & The Beloved of God (Guernica Editions, 2014), translated and published in French as L’engrenage des apparences (Les éditions Sémaphore 2017). His collection, Revolt/Compassion: Six Scripts for Contemporary Performance (Guernica Editions) was published in 2019 with a forward by Erin Hurley. He wrote the screenplay for Carolyn Combs’ debut feature, Acts of Imagination (2006), as well as for her most recent feature, Bella Ciao! (2018). Michael is a past Artistic Director of Playwrights Workshop Montreal, Prairie Theatre Exchange in Winnipeg, Factory Theatre in Toronto, and Dramaturg and Artistic Associate with Full Circle: First Nations Performance in Vancouver. He has taught acting, directing, and play development at both Simon Fraser and Concordia Universities, and was invited as Researcher/Lecturer to Gwangju National University in South Korea. He is a founding member of the Vancouver Latin American Cultural Centre, as well as of the film group Commercial Drive Productions, and is active in issues related to cooperative housing. He considers writing a life-long discipline rooted in independent research and reflection.