Call for collaborator

Call for Musician – Story & Music Collaboration (Guelph)

Guelph-based storyteller seeking an accomplished acoustic musician (fiddle, guitar, and/or tin whistle) to explore a collaborative performance blending live storytelling and music.

This is not a traditional “accompaniment” role. The music would work in and around the stories—supporting mood, transitions, and character—within an intimate, theatre-style setting.

The work draws on Irish and narrative traditions, with an emphasis on sensitivity, restraint, and responsiveness rather than showmanship.

Initial goal is to develop a short set for occasional paid performances, with potential to grow from there.

Looking for someone who:

    • is a strong, confident player 

    • listens well and plays with subtlety 

    • is interested in collaborative, text-driven work 

    • is based in or near Guelph 

Practical details:

    • flexible availability (some evenings/weekends) 

    • occasional day trips; no overnights 

    • light rehearsal process to explore and shape the work 

    • performances are paid (modest scale) 

To learn more about the storytelling work:

https://www.jaywalkingguelph.ca/ Look at Heads & Tales, and Lilt of Laughter, Trace of Tears

If this resonates, please get in touch with a brief note about yourself and your musical background.

— Jay Wilson wilsonjay7@gmail.com 

Getting ready for Guelph 200

The best way to experience Guelph is a storytelling walking tour with friends.

Your host is standing by right HERE

Perfect as we get ready for 2027, Guelph's Bicentennial.

Yes, you have to actually reach out to me in person at jaywalkingguelph@gmail.com or call 

519 820-3269.

Your tour begins from the moment you connect with me in person. No hiding behind an online booking system. No extra fees, no tickets. The good old fashioned honour system. Human to human.

A way of introducing JayWalking Theatre

 

One Hat. One Stage. Endless Possibilities.

As a student of theatre, Jay was captivated by legendary performers who could recite poetry, speeches, or any text at the drop of a hat. In Heads & Tales, he does just that: drop the hat and entertain.

Over the years, monologues, poems, and unforgettable passages have gathered in the recesses of his mind. To keep them alive, the titles go into a hat. You draw one. Jay performs it. Neither of you knows what’s coming next.

Every performance is different. Every draw is a surprise.
An evening of stories, wit, and words brought vividly to life.

Come curious. Leave surprised.

This show is designed to introduce audiences to JayWalking Theatre. It can be a performance as short as 5 minutes or as long as an hour. Perfect for open mics, event launches, gallery openings, storytelling happenings, neighbourhood gatherings, cafes, book clubs, folk societies, music evenings or anywhere audiences gather. Everyone loves a story. Everyone loves a surprise.

Tour time already?

I think April 13 is the earliest I have ever hosted a walking tour.

Groups of four or more. Any day, any time.

Call 519 820-3269 or jaywalkingguelph@gmail.com to book yours.

Great Stories. Well Told.

 Great Stories. Well Told.

Live Theatre in Guelph Ontario

 

Lilt of Laughter, Trace of Tears

One Man. Many Voices. An Irish tapestry of humour and heart.

In Lilt of Laughter, Trace of Tears, veteran Ontario actor and storyteller Jay Wilson offers an evening of richly theatrical storytelling drawn from the spirit of rural Ireland. Wilson inhabits a gallery of unforgettable characters — revealing lives shaped by resilience, mischief, longing, and love.

With more than five decades of experience on stage, Wilson moves fluidly from one voice to another, embodying figures such as Fiddler O’Flaherty, the formidable Widow O’Donnell, Devlin Haggerty — and even Frances O’Feline, a cat of uncommon presence. Each portrait is rendered with emotional nuance and a deep respect for the rhythms of oral tradition, where laughter and loss are never far apart.

The production is adapted from a collection of stories by the late Charlene Herrold, a long-time family friend whose writing captured the cadence and character of Irish village life. When Wilson first encountered her work, he recognized in it the bones of theatre — intimate monologues alive with possibility. What began as a creative exploration gradually grew into a fully realized one-person show and a tribute to both the author and the storytelling tradition she cherished.

Early presentations with the Guelph Guild of Storytellers gradually evolved into a full one-person production. Following sold-out performances at Theatre Collingwood’s 2023 Porchside Festival, Lilt of Laughter, Trace of Tears has continued to resonate with audiences across Ontario. The production blends theatrical craft with heartfelt storytelling, inviting audiences into a world where wit softens sorrow and every life, no matter how ordinary, carries quiet significance.

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The Myth of the One-Man Show

 A one-man show is never really a one-man show.

When the lights come up and a performer steps onto the stage alone, the audience sees a single storyteller. What they don’t see are the many creative hands that helped build the world around him.

That’s certainly the case with Lilt of Laughter, Trace of Tears

The show begins with the writing of Cambridge author Charlene Herrold (1920–2009). Her collection of stories imagined the spirited Irish village of Ballycarlene — a place where neighbours gossip across fences, fiddlers play late into the night, and the everyday dramas of village life unfold with equal measures of humour and heartbreak.

Those stories have now been adapted for the stage by Guelph actor and storyteller Jay Wilson, who performs the one-man production, bringing to life a lively cast of characters including Terrible Tom O’Malley, the Widow O’Donnell, Fiddler O’Flaherty, and even the cat, Frances O’Feline. Following enthusiastic audience response at Theatre Collingwood’s Porchside Festival, and Guelph's River Run Centre, the show has since travelled to stages across Ontario.

But while only one performer appears on stage, the production itself reflects a number of local creative collaborators.

Simple set pieces were built by Fergus craftsman Jim Hoare, a long-time supporter of community theatre, while the visual world of the show is shaped by scenic artwork from Guelph illustrator and painter Robin Baird Lewis, whose artistic career spans more than five decades and more than thirty children’s books.

Together, these artists — writer, performer, builder, and painter — reflect something easy to overlook: the depth of creative talent that exists throughout our region.

That local creative ecosystem depends on spaces where artists can share their work. For Wilson it is encouraging to see the River Run Centre providing opportunities for professional artists from our community to perform alongside national and international programming.

Across the city there are signs that this cultural community is gaining new recognition. The Guelph Arts Council will soon launch the GRETAs (Guelph Recognition of Excellence in the Arts), celebrating artists and innovators whose work enriches the life of the community. At the same time, the City of Guelph has recently adopted a cultural plan that recognizes the importance of supporting and nurturing the arts locally.

Perhaps one day this momentum will lead to the development of a resident professional theatre company devoted to telling stories rooted here — stories that reflect not only Guelph’s past, but the many cultures and lived experiences that shape the city today.

In the meantime, productions like Lilt of Laughter, Trace of Tears remind us that storytelling is alive and well.  All it takes is a good story, a few dedicated artists, and an audience willing to come along for the ride.