Bloomsbury Collective premieres A Room of One’s Own tomorrow night, Wednesday, November 13th in Toronto’s historic Campbell House Museum. This immersive production (lead by an all female cast and crew) allows participants to step into Cambridge, 1928, to see Virginia Woolf (Naomi Wright) deliver her iconic text for the very first time.

To start the night, as guests, we enjoy a reception of live music, cash bar and light refreshments. For the first hour, we are invited to explore Girton College where Virginia Woolf made one of her two addresses. This interactive production allows us to explore the library, read newspapers from 1928 and gain insight into the political climate of the time. In addition, we will get a glimpse into Woolf’s complicated personal life by perusing her quarters and reading her letters and diary.

I was curious both about the choice of presenting Virginia Woolf’s work, the format, and the collective. Producer and actor, Naomi Wright, was kind enough to take some time from her busy schedule to answer some of my questions. Here is what she had to share with me.

HM: I understand you’ve presented Woolf’s A Room Of One’s Own as a work in progress back in 2003, how has it evolved into this production since then?

Naomi Wright (NW): I first read this script when my director Sarah Rodgers asked me to work on it with her as part of her Master degree at UBC [University of British Columbia] 10 years ago. I had just graduated from the BFA Acting Program. Someone saw the piece and suggested we submit it for the Uno Festival in Victoria. We did our little pared down version of the show and we couldn’t believe the response. We sold out our three shows and the audiences were very kind. Since then, about once a year, Sarah and I talk about mounting a full production of the show. It is finally happening!

Naomi Wright as Virginia Wool Photo: Emily Cooper

HM: How did the concept of turning A Room Of One’s Own into a ‘immersive theatre experience’ come about?

NW: The play itself is perfectly suited for a site specific and immersive production. The play is an amalgamation of the words that Woolf spoke at Girton in 1928, and Newnham College in 1929. The Campbell House Museum is the ideal venue for this show in Toronto. It could sit on the grounds of Girton and fit right in!

We wanted to heighten the feeling and understanding that Woolf’s words were extremely personal. She was a genius of her day, and yet could not go to University because she was a woman. We hope that the newspapers will add a political and social context for how revolutionary Woolf’s words were. And it will be interesting to hear how much people think the vernacular about men and women has, or hasn’t, changed. We hope that our audiences will be transported, amused, entertained, and challenged. We hope they go away feeling that they’ve had a unique experience.

HM: For those of us who have yet to get to know the Bloomsbury Collective, could you share more about it and its current members?

NW: We have an incredible group working on our show. Sarah Rodgers is a multi-award winning director from Vancouver – and is always double booked, so we are very lucky this that timing worked out! I am thrilled that Kayla Lorette didn’t book some major movie right over this time because I truly feared that would happen. She is an unbelievable talent and is playing our Head Girl of Girton. Cheryl O is our cellist and has the ability to play all the classics but also to improvise which is so exciting.

CJ Astronomo is our lighting designer and I met her when we were at Stratford together. She is making miracles happen and really bring the ambiance of Girton to life, as well as adding some theatricality. Ellen Roach is painstakingly pulling all sorts if things to make Campbell House into Girton as our set and props designer as well as pulling double duty as our stage manager. Flo Barrett and Polina Boltova are our uber talented costume design duo… They basically spin wool into gold. Meghan Hubley… is a whip smart writer and compiled all our newspaper articles for us as well as slipping in one of her own. And finally Deanna Palazzo is saving my bacon as associate producer. She is a very talented performer as well, but for this show she is making things flow smoothly.

With such a strong production, cast, and musical team, Wright will feel very much at home as Virginia Woolf. I, for one, am very much looking forward to seeing her work being interpreted in this manner. Being able to put oneself in someone else’s frame of mind, often makes the experience more personal and poignant. I’m definitely curious to explore Woolf’s world and mind in such a forum.