Good Company

Name: Antoni Cimolino

• Born May 11, 1961; raised in Sudbury, Ont.
• Attended St. Albert School, Corpus Christi School, St. Francis Junior High School and St. Charles College
• Has a BFA from the University of Windsor
• Joined the Stratford Festival company in 1988; starred as Romeo opposite Megan Follows in the 1992 production of Romeo and Juliet; made his solo directorial debut in 1997 with Filumena, starring his mentor and then artistic-director Richard Monette
• Named artistic director of the Festival in 2012, having previously been general director and executive director; he is now in his 26thseason at the Festival
• Partnered the Festival with CUSO International to establish a theatre school in El Salvador that he has visited several times; holds an annual fundraising event and sends volunteers to the school
• Directed Mary Stuart and The Merchant of Venice this season
• Married to the actress Brigit Wilson; they have two children
• Follow him on Twitter @acimolino_sf

Describe your school-aged self.

Annoyingly energized. Engaged.

What was your favourite subject?

English. I loved the different worlds you could enter into.

The most challenging subject?

Math. It wasn’t until late in high school that I realized that my marks would improve if I actually did my homework.

Memorable literary pieces studied?

My Last Duchess, by Robert Browning, King Lear, by William Shakespeare, and The Deptford Trilogy, by Robertson Davies.

The last book you read?

Shylock, by John Gross.

Book you’re currently reading?

Shakespeare and the Jews, by James Shapiro.

Lesson learned in kindergarten?

I had a rough start. I didn’t speak English and couldn’t sit still but by the end of it, I won the most improved award — so it taught me not to give up.

Your favourite school lunch?

The chocolate-covered biscuit my mother would always slip into my lunch bag.

Favourite extracurricular activity?

I was involved in theatre, debating and public speaking. Theatre was my favourite.

If you were a teacher, what subject would you teach?

English.

Strongest Stratford Festival memory as a student?

I saw Love’s Labour’s Lost in Grade 12 or 13. I had been before but this is the play that really got me hooked. I was amazed that a 400-year-old play could speak so strongly to me at that age and had characters who could’ve been my friends at school. That happy memory has stayed with me to this day.

How do teachers inform your decisions at the Festival?

The Stratford Festival and educational institutions share a mission to create a more civil society, so I look for scripts that have something important to say in the world we live in today. Inevitably those are often the plays teachers use in their classrooms.

Suggestions for teachers visiting the Festival or teaching Shakespeare?

Each year more than 600 teachers make use of the AQs, programs and study guides we have for teaching Shakespeare but it’s my dream to see even more take part in our Teachers’ Conference, Teaching Shakespeare Program, private workshops, residency programs, ticket discounts and the pre-show activities. It makes a difference when a teacher is truly excited about studying Shakespeare, it can change a student’s life. [To learn more, visit bit.ly/H2U5Vk.]

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