The Downstage Creation Ensemble is dedicated to the creation of original performance that explores socially and politically-charged themes. The goal is to provide an experience that is both intellectually and emotionally engaging for the audience, creating work that challenges pre-conceived notions of what constitutes a theatrical event while creating a strong narrative arc. Creation work has been a key part of Downstage's activities since the company's inception in 2004, when teams of artists created four, half-hour long performances, and since 2006 Downstage has created a performance each year as part of the 10-Minute Play Festival at the High Performance Rodeo. In May 2006, a 15-minute long performance, Cardboard Sign Brigade, was created as part of Theatre Junction's Random Acts festival, receiving the Enbridge Emerging Artist Award. 2007 saw Downstage's creation work included as part of its season for the first time with Arm's-Length Embrace, in which nine simultaneous narratives intertwound throughout various performance locations. The success of this show led to the commitment to producing an original creation as part of each future season, as well as to the formation of an ensemble to continue this work on a year-long basis. After presenting their work as part of the Creation Cabaret during Alberta Theatre Projects' playRites Festival in March 2008, the Downstage Creation Ensemble turned their attention to creating Bus(t) for the 2008-09 season, a site-specific mask performance that took place on a custom-converted bus and explored the role of debt in the economic collapse. The ensemble's creation for Downstage's 2009-10 season, In the Wake, explores questions of geo-engineering and eco-terrorism and takes place atop a 6 foot by 3 foot illuminated platform. The show premiered in Calgary in April 2010 and is currently undergoing further development. The show will be remounted at the High Performance Rodeo in January 2011, with plans for a national tour in the 2011-12 theatre season. For more information on past creations, please visit the archives, and for information on the artists who make up the ensemble, please check out the company bios.