Lynda Hill is a director, dramaturg, arts educator, curator, and creative producer with a passionate belief in the transformative power of arts in the lives of young people and the right of every child to experience and participate in, arts and culture.
Lynda founded the WeeFestival as a project of Theatre Direct Canada, a leading company serving young audiences which she led from 2001 to 2019. With the growth of the festival, Lynda stepped down from Theatre Direct in order to oversee the incorporation and development of the WeeFestival as a separate non-profit charitable organization. Since 2014 the festival has presented over 40 productions from around the world and across Canada and seeded the development and presentation of 5 new productions.
While at Theatre Direct, Lynda oversaw the creation and production of dozens of award-winning productions that engaged audiences in Toronto and toured provincially, nationally, and internationally. She initiated a range of large-scale residencies and education projects with schools and founded the company’s drama school in 2009 designing the programs and curriculum. Highlight productions include Beneath the Banyan Tree, Sanctuary Song, Binti’s Journey, Old Man and the River, and Flying Hearts.
As an arts educator, Lynda has taught children and young people through a range of community-based programs for over 30 years and mentored dozens of teaching artists along the way. While at Theatre Direct, Lynda designed and developed the company’s drama school and a unique early childhood curriculum for children under 6 years. The company’s drama and storytelling outreach initiatives engaged over 5,000 kindergarten students in schools across Toronto. Lynda has shared her approach with educators through professional development workshops for various school boards and organizations.
As a director Lynda also worked with a range of companies in Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver. Highlight productions include The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (Theatre New Brunswick), Dark Forest (Music Gallery), Urban Tattoo (Urban Ink), M/Otherland (The Julliard School), The Baby Blues (Native Earth), Canadian Monsoon (Cahoots Theatre), Four Ives (Toronto Fringe), Blood Relations (Alumnae Theatre), and Summerfolk (Equity Showcase). She has directed a number of radio dramas for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation including the first 5-channel surround broadcast of Strindberg’s A Dream Play.
Lynda has also served as a Theatre Officer for the Ontario Arts Council, the Co-Artistic Director of Cahoots Theatre, and Associate Artistic Director of Nightwood Theatre. In 1995 Lynda was awarded a fellowship at Akademie Schloss Solitude in Stuttgart, Germany where she created the site-specific project Autumn Melancholia and performance-based installation work No Place Like Home with designer Cary Gayler.
She has volunteered as a member of the International Inclusive Arts Network and the Small Size Network of ASSITEJ-an international network of theatres for young people, and ASSITEJ Canada.
Lynda and her partner James are proud parents of two young adults-Tessa and Quinn!