Toronto the Good A summer musical about Toronto in the 1890’s
	Artword Theatre 75 Portland Street, Toronto ON M5V 2M9		Tel: (416) 408-1146 Fax: (416) 408-0532 website: www.artword.net email: artword@artword.net

Creative Team

Ronald Weihs, director and playwright, founded Artword Theatre in 1993 along with Judith Sandiford. Artword Theatre productions directed by Ronald Weihs include Charly Chiarelli’s Mangiacake!, (2001, 2002), and Cu’Fu?: Stories of a Sicilian Family (1999 and 1996). Both have been toured throughout the country, and produced for Bravo! Television. He also directed Allan Merovitz’s If Cows Could Fly: Growing Up Jewish in Smiths Falls, (2000, 2001). Productions written and directed for Artword include Whoever You Are (1997), Echo and Narcissus (1996), Chaucer’s Troilus and Criseyde (1995), me2 (1994), and Mama Says You Are What You Do (1994). He collaborated with director George Luscombe of Toronto Workshop Productions on the script for The Wobbly (1982, 1983) and wrote The Beavers for Native Earth and Theatre Resource Centre (1985). In British Columbia, he wrote Hands Up! (The Bill Miner Story) for Caravan Stage Company (1977, 1983) and wrote and directed the musical Highball!, that played in Vancouver in 1980 and toured logging communities throughout BC in 1981.

Thomas Baker, music director, studied music education at University of Toronto (1964-68), majoring in organ and trombone and beginning his study of composition and improvisation. He played organ and directed church choirs at several churches in the Toronto area. He was composer-in-residence with the Festival Singers in 1972, and his works have been performed and recorded by many of the country’s leading vocal groups. His compositions "St. Matthew Passion" and "Chinese Love Lyrics" have been performed by choirs around the country and played regularly on CBC radio. As a professional singer, Baker performed with the Festival Singers of Canada, Toronto Mendelssohn Choir, and the Vancouver Chamber Choir. He founded the Uxbridge Chamber Choir in 1983 and has been director since that time. He has been conductor of the Uxbridge Messiah Singers since 1984, and for 10 years was the Director of The Pro Arte Singers of Kingston. From 1977 to 1983, Baker was music director at Second City in Toronto. He was a founding member of Co-Opera Theatre, played jazz piano in New York, Toronto, Kingston, and Uxbridge, and performed live improvisational piano to silent films for large audiences. Baker has received a Canada Council grant and several Ontario Arts council grant commissions for composing. He has facilitated experimental multi-media programmes in schools for which he received Ontario Arts Council Grants. He was artist-in-residence at York University in 1975. In 1997, Baker was nominated for a Charmer's Award for composing. He produced a CD of solo improvisational piano ("Conception Act"). In 1997, he joined Kye Marshall to form the Baker/Marshall duo performing piano and cello improvisational works. Baker is currently working on a new CD with Marshall, numerous compositions, and preparing for concerts.

Judith Sandiford, designer, is managing director of Artword Theatre and the curator of Artword Gallery. She has worked on all productions, concerts and events produced by Artword Theatre from 1993 to the present. Most recently, she did visual design for the dance work, "and in this room", choreographed by Michael DuMaresq, and for Onibaba, choreographed and danced by Meiko Ando. She has variously functioned as producer, publicist, graphic artist, lighting technician and stage manager. As designer, she has done set and lighting design for Artword’s productions of Cu’Fu?, Mangiacake!, Whoever You Are, Echo and Narcissus, Chaucer’s Troilus and Criseyde and me². Judith Sandiford was founding editor of Artword, a magazine for and by artists, and edited and wrote for the magazine since its 23 issues from 1989 to 1996. As a visual artist, she was actively involved in running Workscene Gallery from 1988 to 1995, and had a number of solo shows there, at Open Studio and at Blackwood Gallery. She wrote the libretto for the opera Heloise (based on the 12th C. text The Letters of Abelard and Heloise), with music composed by William Beauvais.