Leslie D. Bland

Leslie has produced, written, directed, and performed in over 150 professional projects in film, television, radio, and live theatre. He produced and directed an all female comedy show She Kills Me for APTN, and is directing and producing the documentary Gone South: How Canada Invented Hollywood for Super Channel. From 2001 - 2010, Leslie was the Artistic Director of Kaleidoscope Theatre in Victoria, BC, Canada. During his time as AD, he led a renaissance of Kaleidoscope's programming and profile in the community, setting attendance records for local in-house productions, winning and being nominated for awards: Outstanding Adaptation (Macbeth), Outstanding Direction (Twelfth Night), Outstanding Production (Disney's Aladdin), Favorite Play (The Hobbit), Outstanding Musical (Anne of Green Gables), Outstanding Production for Young Audiences (Gold Mountain Guest, The Hobbit), Favorite Production Concept (Peter Pan), Favorite Director (2003/ 04/ 05/ 07/ 09), and touring its productions nationally and internationally. Leslie was the co-founder and for 12 years was the Executive Producer of Edmonton's Stage Polaris. During his time at Polaris, Leslie directed, performed, and produced over 100 professional productions and oversaw Polaris' growth from an idea to becoming the second largest theatre company in Edmonton, with a budget of over 1 million dollars and an annual attendance in excess of 100,000. Past productions he has directed have won numerous Edmonton Sterling Awards including Outstanding Musical for the Canadian Premiere of the Tony Award Winning Broadway Adaptation of The Secret Garden (1996) and Outstanding Production for Young Audiences Anne of Green Gables (1995). During Leslie's last year with Stage Polaris, it won more Sterling Awards than any other Edmonton Theatre. In addition to a number of film/ TV credits, including the mini-series Impact, Leslie has also performed and directed for a number of other professional theatres across Canada including the National Arts Centre, the Citadel Theatre, Theatre Calgary, the Gateway Theatre, Theatre Network, Chemainus Theatre Festival, Playwrights Theatre Centre, the Ottawa Children's Festival, and the Saskatchewan International Children's Festival among others. He has also directed productions at Concordia University (Montreal) and the University of Victoria. He is a graduate of the University of Alberta B.F.A. Conservatory Acting program, holds both his Instructor's and Performer's certification (A.R.C.T.) in Speech Arts and Drama with the Royal Conservatory of Music (University of Toronto), and received his M.F.A. in Directing from the University of Victoria. Leslie has lectured on his activities in both New York and Washington D.C. He has taught at Concordia University in Montreal, the University of Miami, and the Canadian College for Film and Acting. Leslie is a Continuing Sessional Instructor with the University of Victoria Theatre Department. Submitted 03/01/ 2014