Cantata & The Extinction Therapist: Two Plays by Clem Martini

Professor Clem Martini is a celebrated playwright, novelist, and screenwriter with over thirty plays and thirteen books of fiction and non-fiction to his credit. His text on playwriting, The Blunt Playwright is employed by colleges and universities across the country. His books include Upside Down: A Family’s Journey Through Mental Illness, the W.O. Mitchell Award-winning Bitter Medicine: A Graphic Memoir of Mental Illness and the Alberta Trade Non-Fiction Book of the Year Award-winning, The Unravelling. A passionate advocate on behalf of issues associated with suicide, mental-illness-related-stigma, and family care giving, Clem was a member of the Canadian Mental Health Commission, and has been an invited speaker at a number of conferences, symposia and health related gatherings. He is a Fellow of The Royal Society of Canada, a recipient of the ATB Financial Healing through the Arts Award, and a Professor of Drama in the School of Creative and Performing Arts at the University of Calgary.

Naheed K. Nenshi is a Canadian politician who was the 36th mayor of Calgary, Alberta, the first Muslim mayor of a large North American city. He is also celebrated as a passionate supporter of the arts.

Christine Brubaker is a Canadian actor and director. As a director, she has directed dozens of world premieres including Wilde Tales and a new adaptation of The Horse and His Boy for the Shaw Festival. She is the co-creator of 7th Cousins: An Automythography, and the writer-director of the large scale outdoor performance Henry G20. She teaches directing in the graduate program at the University of Calgary's School of Creative and Performing Arts in Calgary, Alberta, and splits her time between Calgary and Toronto, Ontario.