Over the two days, students from elementary grades right up to high school performed a variety of solo, duet, speech choir and theatre pieces before Adjudicator Naomi Forman of Brandon.
Forman is a proud member of the Canadian Actors’ Equity Association and her favourite stage roles include Alice Beineke (The Addams Family Musical), Franca (The Light in the Piazza) and Mad Margaret (Ruddigore).
She’s eminently qualified, having adjudicated music and speech arts festivals across Canada including the Ottawa, Barrie and Stratford Kiwanis Festivals, The Regina Music Festival and the Calgary Performing Arts Festival, as well as the British Columbia, Manitoba and Ontario Provincial Finals.
Best described as versatile singing actor who has embraced everything from Mozart to Musical Theatre and New Music, Forman is noted for her “mesmerizing” stage presence. “You couldn’t take your eyes off her - she has that kind of star power.” (Winnipeg Free Press)
After fifteen fulfilling years teaching voice at Brandon University, Forman recently left to pursue other passions, including performing, producing and volunteering for arts organizations including the Manitoba Arts Council and the Brandon Festival of the Arts.
The Virden festival of the arts is a wonderful opportunity for youth to push past their fears, to perfect and memorize poetry and to experience the stage.
