Ep. 28: MERENDIANDO with Yolanda Bonnell
April 29, 2020
Meet Toronto-based theatre artist and writer, Yolanda Bonnell!
Yolanda is a Queer, 2 Spirit, Ojibwe/South Asian performer, playwright and poet from Fort William First Nation in Thunder Bay, ON. Yolanda has performed at Stratford, the National Arts Centre, and theaters across the country. Her solo show bug premiered at the Luminato Festival in 2018 and has toured across the country, and she’s currently developing White Girls in Moccasins, in residency at Buddies in Bad Times Theatre.
We talked about what it’s like to create during these pandemic times, Yolanda’s relationship to decolonizing theatre, and her upcoming projects.
This week’s Meriendas de Pandemia or Pandemic Snacks are two Mexican delights: pastel de tres leches for Monica and tepache for Camila! Try them yourselves if you’re feeling adventurous.
Show notes:
- Yolanda participated in the 2019 Gros Morne Playwright’s Residency
- Cole Alvis, part of the manidoons collective and director of bug, a play that Yolanda wrote which ran at Theatre Passe Murailles this February
- Monique Mojica, Muriel Miguel, Dr. Lindsay Lachance, Kim Senklip Harvey are indigenous women and theatre artists who are engaged in decolonizing theatre practice
- Yolanda played Theresa in Factory’s 2016 production of Crackwalker by Judith Thompson
- Monthly Amateur Strip night at the Round
- The Last Vampire book series by Christopher Pike
All Merendiando episodes are in Spanglish. New episodes of Radio Aluna Theatre are released every Wednesday. Subscribe to this show wherever you get your podcasts.
Radio Aluna Teatro is produced by Aluna Theatre with support from the Metcalf Foundation, The Laidlaw Foundation, The Canada Council for the Arts, and The Ontario Arts Council.
Aluna Theatre is Beatriz Pizano & Trevor Schwellnus, with Sue Balint & Gia Nahmens; Radio Aluna Theatre is produced by Camila Diaz-Varela and Monica Garrido.
For more about Aluna Theatre, visit us at alunatheatre.ca, follow @alunatheatre on twitter or instagram, or ‘like’ us on facebook.
Follow and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Google Play, and wherever else you get your podcasts.