Za Hughes is a queer playwright, lighting designer, and director from the Greater Toronto Area. Za received their BFA in Theatre and Creative Writing from the University of Victoria. Since graduating, they have worked in Vancouver and Montreal, most notably with Repercussions Theatre’s Shakespeare in the Park tour.

 

           Za has lit shows for tours, Fringe festivals, movement, and dance performances, as well as traditional theatre. Her passion is lighting new works, especially those that deal with magical realism or the abstract.

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As a director and dramaturge, Za enjoys working with playwrights and scripts that are new and growing a new stream of Canadian theatre. Works that combine movement, scene, and poetic theatre are often where she feels most creatively excited.

 

Za writes post-dramatic theatre that tackles issues of feminism, loss, and healing. During the final year of her degree, Za received a Jamie Cassel’s Undergraduate Research Award for her project writing, directing, and lighting designing Tell the Hunter a piece about the reconciliation and the path to healing as a survivor of sexual assault. The piece was inspired by found poetry and docu-theatre. It was comprised of already established works presented in a new context to create a story of anger, horror, and hope.

 

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