BF26: Emma Marcy is back in Blyth, working behind the scenes this time
BY SCOTT STEPHENSON
Young Company legend Emma Marcy is returning to the Blyth Festival for its 2026 season as a key member of its backstage crew: assistant stage manager. For the Seaforth native, it’s another step in a journey that could take her anywhere.
To say that Marcy’s introduction to the world of professional theatre was uncommon is something of an understatement. “I was part of the Young Company back in 2017 - that first year, I was the only member,” she recollected. “So I did a one-woman show - with the help of directors and stuff, obviously - it was really cool because I was 14 and I was doing a show by myself!”
It was an experience that set the tone for what would become several summers worth of theatrical education. “I ended up doing it for three years - as the years went on, more kids joined,” she told The Citizen. “I liked meeting people that way. And meeting all of the company, getting to engage with the professionals here.”
That first solo project, created at the Festival, carried depth. Working from a prompt centred on Goderich-based photographer Reuben R. Sallows, Marcy found herself exploring the evolution of how people document their lives. “It ended up kind of turning into how documentation has changed,” she recounted. “We talked a lot about photography, and then moved into social media… and, as a 14-year-old, social media impacts you.”
From that auspicious beginning, Marcy began to build a career behind the scenes. Her professional path into the theatrical realm began in the Blyth Festival box office. “It was the first year of the Harvest Stage,” she recalled. “Right after COVID. Then, I was an assistant stage manager (ASM) on Liars at a Funeral. Then I was back last summer as a production assistant… and then this year I’m the ASM for Curveball and Sisters of ’78.”
After studying theatre at Brock University, she found herself drawn to multiple aspects of the craft. “What I loved about Brock is that it’s really unique. You get to put your hand in everything - lighting, sound, mask making, puppet building. There’s just a little bit of everything,” she pointed out.
The breadth of her education has broadened her professional ambitions. “I just kind of do anything and everything,” Marcy offered. “I’m interested in every aspect of theatre, so just trying to dip my hands in as much as I possibly can.”
It’s an approach that feels particularly at home in a rural setting like Blyth, where storytelling is closely tied to community. “I really like how it draws everybody together - Blyth brings the local stories to the stage,” she noted. “Stories of rural Canada can be kind of swept under the rug. When I say I’m from Seaforth, people are like ‘where’s that?’”
At Blyth, those perspectives are front and centre. “It shows that this may be a small area, but there are still really big things that have come out of here. Our stories are just as important,” she said. “Both of the shows that I’m working on this year are about women’s empowerment and the power of this community’s voices.”
At this stage of the production process, her days are defined by preparation and precision. Striking that balance between planning and anticipation, challenge and satisfaction - that’s what draws Marcy towards the role of the stage manager. “We just finished our prep week - getting my book ready, paperwork with costume changes, tracking props - everything like that,” she explained to The Citizen. Once rehearsals are underway, the role of ASM becomes one of constant anticipation. “It’s coming into rehearsal, setting up the space, making sure everyone has what they need… it’ll turn into just me kind of having to be a step ahead of everyone. My favourite thing is having to think a step ahead,” she confessed. “It’s like a big puzzle!”
This season also offers the chance to learn from artists Marcy has long admired, including directors Mary Francis Moore and Severn Thompson, and veteran stage manager Sandy Plunkett. “He’s an amazing stage manager,” she opined. “I think I’ll get to learn a lot from him.”
As somebody who has benefitted from a unique arts education, Marcy is passionate about preserving arts education for the youth of the future. “Art is everywhere,” she announced. “Arts funding is being cut, but arts education is so important - I think it teaches us so much about humanity, and what it means to be human. You can’t go anywhere without listening to a song or watching a show or seeing a piece of visual art. It’s just so integral to learning about our psychology and what makes us, us.”
For someone who first arrived as a 14-year-old performing a one-woman show and is now making her bones backstage, coming back to Blyth this time feels both natural and meaningful; another step in a career built on curiosity, collaboration and a willingness to take on whatever comes next.