News Releases - 2004
Veronica Tennant wins Walter Carsen Prize for Excellence in the Performing Arts
Ottawa, July 21, 2004 – Principal dancer, author and producer-director Veronica Tennant is the winner of the 2004 Walter Carsen Prize for Excellence in the Performing Arts. The $30,000 prize, administered and presented by the Canada Council for the Arts, recognizes the highest level of artistic excellence and distinguished career achievement by Canadian artists who have spent the major part of their career in Canada in dance, theatre or music.
Presented for the first time in 2001, the Walter Carsen Prize for Excellence in the Performing Arts was created as a result of a generous donation of $1.1 million to the Canada Council by Toronto businessman and philanthropist Walter Carsen. The prize is normally awarded annually on a four-year cycle: dance, theatre, dance, music. Former winners of the Walter Carsen Prize for Excellence in the Performing Arts are playwright and Artistic Director/Executive Producer of Theatre Arts at The Banff Centre, John Murrell; and choreographer, director and dancer Brian Macdonald.
Veronica Tennant was selected by a peer assessment committee consisting of Jean Grand-Maître, Artistic Director of Alberta Ballet; Cathy Levy, Producer of Dance Programming at the National Arts Centre; and Menaka Thakkar, Artistic Director of Menaka Thakkar Dance Company. In awarding the prize to Ms. Veronica Tennant, the committee said:
“Awarding the 2004 Walter Carsen Prize to Veronica Tennant is a fitting tribute to one who, over a 40-year span, has provided joy and intelligence through her performances, and new horizons to the world of dance. Her career is one of deep commitment to an all-encompassing vision of Canadian culture as seen through the eyes of a dancer.
As a ballerina she embodied exceptional artistry, dedication and accomplishment. Her dramatic interpretations of Juliet and Princess Aurora, among others, continue to be celebrated by her peers in the international ballet community. Now, as a gifted producer/director for film and television, teacher, speaker and writer, she continues to share her passion for dancers, choreographers and the art of dance. Tennant’s integrity, bold creative vision and tireless advocacy are focused on ensuring that dance will enjoy a future that is highly visible, supported and celebrated both in Canada and internationally.”
“The name Walter Carsen is synonymous with the qualities of passion and generosity,” said Veronica Tennant. “And so it means everything to me, to be chosen for his award. I accept it with humility and reinforced determination to give back—to the exceptional community of Canadian dancers and dance—in which I am so proud to be counted.”
The prize will be presented to Veronica Tennant in Toronto, in early September at a date and a place to be determined. Downloadable images of Veronica Tennant are available on the Canada Council web site: www.canadacouncil.ca/news/imagegallery/.
Veronica Tennant, C.C.
During her illustrious 25 year career as Prima Ballerina with the National Ballet of Canada, Veronica Tennant won a devoted following on the national and international stage as a dancer of extraordinary versatility and dramatic power. At 18, the youngest Principal Dancer in the company, she was chosen by Celia Franca for her debut as Juliet. She went on to earn accolades in every major classical role as well as having several ballets choreographed for her. Over the years, working with such legends of the dance as Sir Frederick Ashton, Erik Bruhn, Roland Petit and John Neumeier, she in turn encouraged a younger generation of Canadian choreographers, including James Kudelka. She danced with some of the greatest male dancers of our time, including Rudolf Nureyev, Anthony Dowell and Mikhail Baryshnikov, and gave her memorable farewell performances in 1989, dancing Romeo and Juliet and the gala A Passion for Dance – Celebrating the Tennant Magic.
Moving immediately into television, Veronica Tennant was the original host, creative consultant/writer of Sunday Arts Entertainment on CBC. Now an established filmmaker and award-winning producer, director and writer, she is passionately committed to opening up dance to a wider audience, with her significant body of work celebrated for its creativity. Starting under the auspices of CBC Television, she produced Salute to Dancers for Life/Danser Pour La Vie (1994), Margie Gillis: Wild Hearts in Strange Times (1996) and Karen Kain: Dancing In the Moment (1998), for which Ms. Tennant won the prestigious International EMMY Award 10 years to the night after her National Ballet farewell performance. She formed Veronica Tennant Productions in 1998 and, as independent producer/director, has created performing arts programming innovative in artistic concept, acting as a catalyst for exceptional combinations of Canadian artists, such as dancers, musicians, actors, writers, designers and choreographers. Veronica Tennant produced the Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards Gala 2000, commissioning a duet by James Kudelka and composer Rodney Sharman, to honour Walter Carsen, and featured an excerpt from Les Grands Ballets Canadiens’ Carmina Burana in tribute to Fernand Nault.
The Life and Times of Veronica Tennant: Renaissance Woman which aired on January 30th, 2001, capped a landmark week on television. Telecast that same week were her productions Words Fail with Peggy Baker and Shauna Rolston, and The Four Seasons, as well as Ms. Tennant’s on-camera reminiscences in documentaries on Mikhail Barynshnikov, and National Ballet School co-founder, Betty Oliphant. Determined to bring James Kudelka’s The Four Seasons to the screen, Ms. Tennant co-produced the television adaptation starring Rex Harrington. Her 2002 shows for television were: The Dancers’ Story: The National Ballet of Canada and TRIO, a dance-drama, which she also choreographed. Onstage, she conceived and directed Dreams Come True, a stellar benefit for the Dancer Transition Resource Centre and the launching of the Artists’ Health Centre.
Veronica Tennant’s most recent productions are A Pairing of Swans, in homage to Evelyn Hart and Rex Harrington, and Shadow Pleasures. Inspired by the works of Michael Ondaatje and his narration, this quintet of dance-dramas offers riveting performances from choreographers Margie Gillis, Andrea Nann, Roberto Campanella and Robert Glumbek. Ms. Tennant choreographed the final section, The Cinnamon Peeler, for Gail Skrela and Sean Ling. It was shown in cinemas across Canada before Robert Altman’s feature, The Company. Airing on CBC’s “Opening Night” with four highlight shorts on Bravo!, Shadow Pleasures was nominated for the prestigious Banff Rockie Award.
The author of two books on dance for young people, Veronica Tennant is Canada’s National Ambassador for UNICEF. She was the first dancer to be appointed to the Order of Canada as Officer, in 1975, and in 2004 was elevated to Companion, the country’s highest honour.
Walter Carsen
Walter Carsen is completely self-made. He started his business in the importation of photographic and optical goods from the basement of his home, gradually growing and eventually becoming the largest Canadian independent distributor of these items. A respected philanthropist with a well-known love of the arts, he has provided major support to the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Shaw Festival and the National Ballet of Canada, as its most important and faithful benefactor. Because of his passion for dance and the National Ballet, he provided financial backing for four productions, including The Firebird (2000) by choreographer James Kudelka. A man of culture and compassion, he also established the Walter Carsen Fund for the Homeless. At the 2000 Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards, Mr. Carsen received the Ramon John Hnatyshyn Award for Voluntarism in the Performing Arts. Most recently, he was honoured to receive the 2002 Angel Award from the International Society for the Performing Arts Foundation; he is the second Canadian to win this prize. Mr. Carsen is an Officer of the Order of Canada.
General information
The Canada Council for the Arts, in addition to its principal role of promoting and fostering the arts in Canada, administers and awards prizes and fellowships to over 100 artists and scholars annually in the arts, humanities, social sciences, natural and health sciences, and engineering. Among these are the Killam Prizes, the Killam Research Fellowships, the Canada Council for the Arts Molson Prizes, the Governor General’s Literary Awards and the Governor General’s Awards in Visual and Media Arts.
For more information about these awards, including nomination procedures, contact Janet Riedel Pigott, Acting Director of Endowments and Prizes, at (613) 566-4414, or 1-800-263-5588, ext. 5041, or by e-mail at janet.riedel@canadacouncil.ca. You can also contact Danielle Sarault, Acting Endowments and Prizes Officer, at (613) 566-4414, or 1 800 263-5588, ext. 4116, or by e-mail at danielle.sarault@canadacouncil.ca.
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