YPT RECEIVES A $1.5 MILLION GIFT
On Monday, April 30, 2001, former Artistic Director Pierre Tetrault, former Managing Director Nancy Coy, and the Board of Directors announced that Young Peoples Theatre (YPT) was the recipient of a generous gift of 1.5 million dollars. Mr. Kevin Kimsa made this donation to the organization in honour of his mother, Mrs. Lorraine Kimsa. In acknowledgement of this gift, YPT, Toronto's oldest professional not-for-profit theatre, was renamed Lorraine Kimsa Theatre for Young People.
Lorraine Kimsa is the former president of the Canadian Dance Teachers Association and the co-founder of Broadway North, a well-known community theatre group in the 1980s. She has been involved with theatre and television from the age of 7 and continues to direct and choreograph across Ontario. "I am very excited to be involved with YPT. Their contribution to the city of Toronto over the past 35 years has opened many doors for young people through their diverse artistic and educational programming," said Kimsa.
Kevin presented his mother with this incredible gift on Mother's Day. "When my son took me out for dinner, he presented me with a rendering of Young Peoples Theatre and I thought, 'that's a nice picture'. Then he told me to look a little closer and that's when I started to cry," explained Kimsa, as the sketch was adorned with new signage on the building reflecting the renaming of the theatre company. "My initial reaction was one of disbelief. I was in total shock, but I couldn't have been more pleased."
This announcement marked a rebirth for the renowned company, founded in 1966 by Canadian actor and producer Susan Douglas Rubes. Since its inception, YPT has won critical acclaim, including 25 Dora Mavor Moore Awards and 13 Chalmers Children's Awards for directing, acting, playwriting, and outstanding productions. The impressive list of famous Canadian actors who have performed for YPT audiences includes Brent Carver, William Hutt, Cynthia Dale, Sheila McCarthy, Kate Reid, Megan Follows, and Toronto singer Salome Bey. "We intend to build on what we have accomplished in the past with the huge efforts of artists and administrators such as Peter Moss, Maja Ardal, June Faulkner, Cathy Smalley, and Dean Ott who have brought us this far under the banner of YPT," said Tetrault. "It is an amazing time right now for this theatre. Mr. Kimsa's generous contribution has provided the company with a positive and bright direction for the future - a future filled with exciting, new Canadian plays."
Over the years YPT has been the venue of choice for families, offering high quality, educationally oriented entertainment. "Theatre should be a part of every child's life," says Dan Coholan, past Chairman of the Board of Directors. "This gift ensures the company's long-term viability. It is particularly appropriate and quite moving that a son has chosen to give this extraordinary gift to his mother." Senior staff members and the Board of Directors are currently working together to structure the governance and management of the gift in order to best serve the organization's future growth and success.
The inauguration took place on the opening night of The Secret Garden on October 13, 2001. The event honoured and acknowledged Mr. Kimsa's gift, reaffirmed the company's mandate, celebrated its distinguished past, and welcomed a future of endless possibilities.
