…and Mother
(not necessarily in that order)
I bring all my life’s experience to everything I do; whether that is advocating for reproductive justice, playing a bisexual author (or a stripper or a nun) on stage, or directing a polyamory jukebox opera, my work always reflects something of myself.
With each project, I strive for fearless fortitude combined with a playful and collaborative spirit – that’s the work ethic I bring, and look for in others.
My life’s journey has led me down many paths – some paved, others less travelled by, and it has taken some time to embrace that long list of titles you see under my name. Old cliches of jack of all trades have rung in my ears while I searched for the ONE path that was truly my own. And now I have reached a point at which I can say that I don’t need to be a master, in order to be good.
“Perfect is the enemy of good.”
Voltaire
My work demands honesty and authentic connection – with collaborators and with audiences. My goal is not necessarily to portray truth – that is a fool’s errand – but to tell stories with authenticity and courage that reaches for truth, that strives to portray reality as I see it. Or as I wish for it to be. Honesty and fantasy are not mutually exclusive, nor are entertainment and enlightenment. They can exist together, and that is my mission: to tell stories that illuminate humanity for all to see, not just a chosen few…
Background
Amy studied Mass Communications and English at York University in Toronto, theatre and film at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in Manhattan, with further studies in acting and screenwriting at Rogues West studios in Vancouver. She has performed in and directed theatre and film in all three cities, including a self-produced short film: In Her View, productions of Macbeth, The Vagina Monologues, The Attic, The Pearls & Three Fine Girls, Dracula, A Particular Class of Women, Blood Relations, as well as Undecided, a devised work that explored bisexuality, and her original play Love, Iris. She currently has several projects in development for both stage and screen.
Amy lives with her daughter in North Vancouver and most recently directed Opera Unbound’s Rewrites: Forever Hold Your Peace and performed in Pivot Theatre’s A Late Snow.
For further information please contact amystarkey05@gmail.com
Amy Starkey 