+++
author = ["authors/jenna.md"]
categories = "Interview"
date = "2015-04-23T15:10:00-04:00"
lastmod = "2015-04-23T19:58:00-04:00"
primary_image = "https://res.cloudinary.com/schmopera/image/upload/v1545409169/media/webhook-uploads/1429816202526/image-682x1024.jpeg"
primary_image_credit = "Photo credit: Nikola Novak."
publishDate = "2014-07-06T15:10:00-04:00"
related_companies = ["scene/companies/against-the-grain-theatre.md","scene/companies/the-banff-centre.md"]
related_people = ["scene/people/joel-ivany.md"]
short_description = "Joel Ivany, artistic director of Against the Grain Theatre, has had a pretty wild year. Just this week, he won a Dora Award with Figaro&#039;s Wedding for Outstanding New Musical/Opera, and closed a sold-out run of Pelléas et Mélisande."
slug = "joel-ivany-on-unclejohn"
title = "Joel Ivany on #UncleJohn"

youtube_url ="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNJQukcmhGE"
+++

Joel Ivany, artistic director of [Against the Grain Theatre](http://againstthegraintheatre.com/), has had a pretty wild year. Just this week, he won a Dora Award with _Figaro's Wedding_  for Outstanding New Musical/Opera, and closed a sold-out run of _[Pelléas et Mélisande](/in-review-pelleas-et-melisande/)._ Next, he'll be heading out to the extraordinarily beautiful Banff Centre to work on his latest piece, _#UncleJohn_, at the Open Space Program. I caught up with Joel to ask him about the program, about adapting a serious classic like Mozart's _Don Giovanni_, and why _#UncleJohn_ is a piece that sends opera forward.

Stay tuned to meet the rest of the _#UncleJohn_ creative team, and to catch what's happening during our time in Banff. Click [here for details about the shows](https://www.facebook.com/events/1494928980723400/?ref=br_tf), running August 1-3, 2014 at the Cave and Basin National Historic Site.
