Blind actor graces Blyth, Ont. outdoor stage with 'Assassinating Thomson'
Bruce Horak has been legally blind since birth, but that hasn’t stopped him from carving out a career in the visual arts.
“I’m legally blind. I have about nine per cent vision. It’s been my normal my whole life. And I have been very fortunate to have a number of mentors and teachers who have just kept encouraging me to keep writing and painting. If I can, through this show, and getting out here on stage, inspire people to nurture their budding artist, then I feel as though this show has done its job,” he says.
That show is 'Assassinating Thomson,' a one-man play, written and performed by Horak, about the mysterious death of one of Canada’s most beloved artists.
“In 'Assassinating Thomson,' I paint a portrait of the audience, while I tell the story of how I became a visually impaired, visual artist, and I solve the mystery of who killed Tom Thomson,” says Horak.
Thomson, one of Canada’s most successful artists, died in a mysterious “accidental drowning” in July of 1917.
'Assassinating Thomson' opens on the Blyth Festival’s new outdoor Harvest Stage on Wednesday, and runs until October 2. After that, you can see Horak in Star Trek-Strange New Worlds, as a new Star Trek character, Hemmer.
“I grew up watching and loving Star Trek. It’s in my blood, so to get to be a part of that is really special,” he says.
But until then, Horak is excited to grace Blyth’s new outdoor stage.
“As a performer, to be back in front of people again, and to be outdoors, well it’s beautiful,” he says.
You can learn more about Horak at www.brucehorak.com and more about his play at www.blythfestival.com.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.