Douglas Gibson dazzles Haar Theatre with tales of Canadian storytellers

By Craig Fraser

EDMONTON — Grant MacEwan University’s Centre for the Arts and Communications was treated to a spectacle Friday night from top Canadian publisher and now author Douglas Gibson.

Gibson spoke to patrons of all ages at the John L. Haar Theatre at MacEwan’s west-end campus on March 2 as the 2012 Corus Lecturer, about his new book, Stories About Storytellers. He enthralled the audience with his rendition of tales from some of Canada’s most celebrated writers, personalities and literary icons.

Gibson started his speech by welcoming the audience warmly and sharing stories of his personal life. But quickly the focus shifted to his tales of Canadian figures in literature and media, and the audience was brought under a trance of intrigue.

As each slide passed, each showing a famous Canadian artist, writer or personality, murmurs of recollection and recognition swept through the audience as Gibson would stop and smile for each one before describing a personal story about some of Canada’s best storytellers ever.

From past prime ministers like Pierre Trudeau, Brian Mulroney and Paul Martin to famous Canadian authors like Alice Munro, Morley Callaghan and W.O. Mitchell, Gibson spoke of his adventures fluently with a captivated audience at his fingertips.

Throughout the evening, Gibson was vivid in his recollection of events, and his ability as a storyteller was masterful as he recollected profound and heart-wrenching stories. Gibson brought about a myriad of emotions as he discussed being a guest speaker at famous Canadian author Hugh MacLennan’s funeral.

“They had his service at McGill University,” Gibson said as he paced the stage. “I had the honour of being one of the four speakers… I tried to do Hugh justice… I did my best.”

Some of the people involved in organizing Gibson’s visit to the school and those able to get a sneak peek from the book itself were just as excited to see the presentation as those who were just curious.

“This isn’t exactly a cold start… I got to meet and have dinner with him yesterday,” said Richard Brommeland before the show. “I got a chance to get an idea about the show already and what it’s about.”

The vast cultural experiences explored by Gibson brought a warm rush of Canadian pride over the room, as he shared stories from the far north, to inspirations from the Maritimes and even Canadian writing coming out of places like Paris, France, from renowned author Mavis Gallant.

“I thought he was prolific,” said Edmonton resident Randy Bloom. “I try my best to support Canadian literature and the authors. Gibson is a natural storyteller on his own and I was interested when I heard he was speaking.”

Ultimately, Gibson’s impressions, memories and even humourous recollections came full circle as he explored emotional reaches of himself and the audience with grace and humility.

Currently, Gibson is touring his show across Canada with his next one in the Aurora Public Library in Aurora, Ont., on March 5.