David Ferry - Director

www.davidferryactor.com

Canadian Actors' Equity Association (CAEA) Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) Actors' Equity Association  (AEA) [U.S.] ; Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers (SSDC) [U.S.]

David is from St. John's originally and was the first Newfoundland graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada (1973.) He also has his MFA in Theatre Directing from the University of Victoria (2003), where he focused on the work of poet/playwright James Reaney (he received a Canada Council grant to research a book on Reaney's theatre theories.) He has presented various academic papers and has been published. He compiled and edited a collection of monologues for men by Canadian playwrights titled "He Speaks" which is published by Playwrights Canada Press (a companion piece to the Judith Thompson edited "She Speaks"). He has also recently completed selecting and editing a collection of plays by James Reaney also for Playwrights Canada Press ("Reaney Days in the West Room".) David has collated and published an internationally recognized CD collection of Canadian dialects for the actor ("Canadian, Eh?".)

He served as Artistic Director of Resurgence Theatre Company and the York Shakespeare Festival from 2003 through 2007. He was also Artistic Director of Bluewater Summer Playhouse in Kincardine, Ontario from 1998-2002. He is the ongoing Artistic Director of his own project centric development and dramaturgical company, Appledore Productions, where he has served as dramaturge on over a dozen plays.

Acting Credits: David is the 2011 recipient of the Barabara Hamilton Award for excellence in the performimg arts, and is the Honourary Performer member at the Arts and Letters Club. He is currently performing in Richard 3 and Titus Andronicus  at the Stratford Festival. This past season he gave memorable performances in Blasted  (2011 Toronto Critics Award-Best Actor; DORA Best Actor nomination) at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre and revisited his performance as Gordius Carbuncle in Eternal Hydra (2009 DORA Best Actor nomination) for Crows Theatre at Factory. He also recently played Stratford as Captain Ahab in the 2008 production of Morris Panych’s movement based Moby Dick. He has also acted in most theatres across the country as well as on/off Broadway in New York. He won the 2009 DORA Best Actor award for his work in Someone to Watch Over Me. He also won the 2009 Victoria Critics Choice award for best performance for his Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman. In 2006 he performed in Escape from Happiness at Factory Theatre and in The Gambler at ARTWORD Theatre; in 2005 he received rave reviews for his work in two George F. Walker plays (Adult Entertainment and End of Civilization). He was nominated for a 2004 DORA best acting award for his performance as Teddy in Hockey Mom, Hockey Dad at Toronto's Factory Theatre (and the resulting tour).  He works as frequently in film, television, and radio as he does on stage. He appears as a regular on the  CTV series Dan For Mayor (2 time best comedy ensemble nomination, Canadian Comedy Awards), now playing in its second season; and recently acted in episodes of The Republic of Doyle; Living in my Car; Sophie and in the recently released feature film Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day.

The summer of 2003 he scored a huge success for his Prospero in The Tempest at the Festival of Classics in Oakville. He played Dogberry and The Actor in The Resistable Rise of Arturo Ui in Victoria, 2003. He played in the North American premiere of Tilsonburg for Canadian Stage in for which he was nominated for a DORA award. He also performed as Stanek in Havel's Protest, Audience, Unveiling with The Co. at the Toronto fringe; The Man in For the Pleasure of Seeing Her Again for Bluewater Summer Playhouse. He played Peter in SchumannBrahmShumann for Jillian Keiley at RCA in St. John's; and Reuban in Dogpatch at Factory Theatre, for which he also received a DORA Award Nomination for Outstanding Performance by an Actor.He played Sledge in Seaside Dive in Toronto, and in the New York showcase of that play. He played Martin Claymore in the hit Norm Foster play Ethan Claymore at London's Grand Theatre and Iago in Othello for Toronto's Lovers and Madmen Company. He played Leontes to critical acclaim in Shakespeare's (Masque award) Winter's Tale at the Centaur Theatre.

He played John in the [Masque Award] Canadian premiere of Oleanna. Other stage roles include Leontes for Toronto's Oracle Theatre; The Old Man's Band at Harbourfront's Dumaurier Theatre; Ubu in Paul Ledoux's musical adaptation of Jarry's Ubu plays; and Fair Liberty's Call at the Stratford Festival; Max in Eclectic Theatre's Bent; Our Country's Good in Montreal and Halifax; Pale in the Canadian premiere of Burn This at Edmonton's Citadel Theatre. He was a proud founding member of the NDWT Co. and acted in James Reaney’s Donnelly Trilogy both with that company and in the original Tarragon Theatre premieres.

Directing credits include: (upcoming)A fall 2011 Masque Theatre production of the opera "Crazy to Kill" at the Enwave Theatre and "Gentleman Caller" at Hart House. He directed a site specific "Howie the Rookie Lee" by Mark O'Rowe in Stratford in September. He directed  the 2011 world premiere of Daniel MacIvor's "Inside" at Phoenix Theatre in Victoria; the Art of Time "if Music Be..." at The Enwave. John Patrick Shanley’s "Where’s My Money?" in Toronto, May 2010; "The Rookie Howie Lee" in a 2010 site specific production in Little Italy for Redone Theatre; Florence Gibson's "Missing" for Factory Theatre; "The Pillowman" for Canadian Stage Company and Birdland Productions; 2 productions of "Alias Godot" by Brendan Gall (world premiere in Italian for Festival Intercity in Florence); 2 productions of "The Last Days of Judas Iscariot" for Toronto’s Birdland Productions in the Gooderham Worts Distillery district (five 2006 DORA awards including Best Production, Best Director for Ferry, and best lighting for Ferry and Glenn Davidson); "36 Views" for Actors Repertory Theatre (2007 Best Production DORA nomination); "Fully Committed" starring Peter Kelleghan for Mayfair Productions; "Hank Williams..the Show he Never Gave" (two 2006 DORA nominations including best production) for Lonesome Dove Productions;  "The Taming of the Shrew" for ShakespeareWorks in Toronto; "Rodeo Star" at the Phoenix Theatre in Victoria; "Lobby Hero" (Canadian Premiere) at Berkeley Street Theatre; "Listen to the Wind" by James Reaney for Phoenix Theatre in Victoria; James Reaney/John Beckwith piece "12 Letters" for the Guelph Spring Festival; "Power of the Unemployed" [Premiere] for the Resource Centre for the Arts, St. John's; "Hold Fast" for Rising Tide Theatre (Nfld.); "Dusa, Fish, Stas And Vi" (Arts Club - Van.); "27 Wagons Full Of Cotton" (Shaw Directors Fortnight); "Talley And Son" (Theatre Plus); "Blood" At Factory Main Stage, "Mini Bugs And Micro Chips" (Chalmers Award winner) for YPT. "Much Ado About Nothing", "Midsummer Night’s Dream", "Tallys’s Folly" for  Resurgence Theatre Company; "Billy Bishop"; "Cheatin Hearts"; "Melville Boys;" "Hot Flashes" [co-produced with Blyth and Lighthouse Festival]; "alterNATIVES"; "The Drawer Boy"; "Perfect Pie"; and "FIRE" - all for Bluewater Summer Playhouse.

He participated in the prestigious 1998 Master Class for Directors at World Stage at Harbourfront with international Master Directors Max Stafford-Clark, Deborah Warner, Joseph Chaikin, Declan Donlan, Simon McBurney, Bea Lessa, and Katie Mitchell.

As a dramaturge David has worked with a number of writers. Most notably Florence Gibson on her new play Missing (2005 Herman Voaden playwriting award winner) ; Paul Ledoux and David Smyth on Walk like a Man; and Ledoux and John Roby on the musical Hot Flashes; Fides Krucker on Yours to Break (Theatre Passe Muraille 2006 season); Kelly McIntosh on Auction (current); Preface Theatre on its adaptation of James Reaney's famous short story The Box Social; with James Reaney on Zamorna; Robert Priest on the play for young people Minibugs and Microchips (1998 Chalmers $25,000 Play writing award); Drew Hayden Taylor on alterNATIVES  (University of Alaska New Play Award), as well as Drew's Baby Blues; and Tom Walmsley's BLOOD (Chalmers nomination); Chris Brookes on Power of the Unemployed for the Resource Center for the Arts in St. John’s.David has taught extensively over the years at theatre schools such as Canadore, George Brown College, and Humber College. He has taught at the National Theatre School and Equity Showcase and various university and college acting/theatre programs.

David has served as Vice-President External of Canadian Actors' Equity Association. He also served as National Chair of ACTRA Performers' Guild. He currently is serving as Vice Chairman on the Board of Directors of ACTRA Fraternal Benefit Society; is on the professional advisory committee for the Humber College Film Studies Program and on the board of the English Alumni Association of The National Theatre School of Canada. He is the current honorary John Coulter theatre professional at The Arts and Letters Club.

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