Punk rocker. Playwrite. Sci-Fi novelist. Comic artist. Political and environmental activist. This isn’t the line-up for an artist speaker series, it’s the biography of one of Canada’s most celebrated storytellers: Maggie MacDonald. Growing up in Cornwall, Ontario, Maggie has always sought to tell her stories through as many different mediums as possible. After successfully becoming a school trustee at the age of 17, she ran for provincial office at 20, using guerrilla theatre to get her message out in the form of her first play, Revolution Mall Style. She’s tackled consumerism through her first novel, the sci-fi Kill the Robot. She’s championed social justice through music, most famously as a member of the highly successful indie band The Hidden Cameras, as well as with Kids on TV, The Dating Service and the Republic of Safety. And she’s looked at the state of environmentalism through her apocalyptic sci-fi comedy podcast series, No One Receiving. Her plays have been performed at the New York Fringe Festival, her comic writing and illustrations have been published in the Globe and Mail, and her entire artistic work has led to numerous awards and critical acclaim.
Maggie joined us by Skype from her home in Toronto to discuss art, storytelling, success and the future of both nature and the creative industry.
What do you think?
- What lessons did you take away from Maggie’s story?
- Has Maggie changed your view on what storytelling looks like in today’s society?
- Is her hybrid approach to art and career a blueprint for how we can all follow our passions? Or is it an approach that will only work for some and not others?
- Do you agree with Maggie and believe in the importance of constructive criticism?
- Activism and art has often overlapped, but do we need to use innovative artistic approaches more often to help debate complex issues?
More on Maggie
Listen to her podcast series: No One Receiving