Joshua Quinlan

Protégé, 2021

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Selected by Gillian Gallow

Joshua Quinlan is a set and costume designer whose work was most recently a part of the Langham Directors’ Workshop at the Stratford Festival. Since 2016, Joshua has assisted many of Canada’s leading designers for theatres coast to coast, including Terra Bruce, Mirvish, The National Ballet of Canada, Arts Club, Blyth Festival, Globe Theatre, Edmonton Opera, Manitoba Opera, and he has assisted on twenty productions over five seasons at the Stratford Festival. Joshua is a recipient of the 2019 Tom Patterson Award and the 2017 Ian and Molly Lindsay Fellowship, and in 2020, he was a Pauline McGibbon Award nominee. Joshua is a graduate of The University of Windsor, and he completed his M.F.A. in Theatre – Design at The Ohio State University.

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Acceptance Speech

I cannot begin to express my gratitude without acknowledging how difficult and dark the past 20 months have been. I have come to appreciate the pause, for it has been a time to question, to reflect, and to breathe.

At this very moment — the time of this filming — it is opening night of my first full-capacity, indoor show in two years. I feel our world coming back to life and I feel very alive in it.

I would like to begin by thanking the Siminovitch Prize Foundation, as well as the RBC Foundation and their Emerging Artists Program. It means the world to me that there are people so dedicated to supporting artists and creators; giving us a platform to be seen, and a chance to learn. Your commitment to the arts makes our dreams possible.

Thank you to my many mentors for sharing your brilliant minds with me. I wouldn’t be here today without your guidance.

My family. Thank you for your unwavering love and support. Myles. Ross. Grandma. Alyssa. And my Mom, who has been with me through it all. I love you.

Gillian. Thank you so much for this opportunity and my sincerest congratulations on your incredible achievement. I still remember my first encounter with your work — a set of costume renderings for The Physicists. Your characters jumped off the page and have been with me ever since. I am in awe of your precision and creativity, from the page to the stage, the micro to the macro, the worlds you create are absolutely breathtaking. Thank you for your trust and for believing in me — it means more to me than my words will ever be able to express.

Joyce. I am so grateful and humbled to be in this moment with you looking forward.

Here’s to the future.

Thank you.