Carol Bolt
Carol Bolt was a Canadian playwright and advocate for drama, born in 1941 in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Throughout her life, she lived in various provinces, which fostered her deep sense of Canadian identity. Bolt earned a BA in literature from the University of British Columbia and began her writing journey while involved in amateur and youth theatre in Montreal. She moved to Toronto, where she gained prominence as a playwright, with notable works including her acclaimed play "One Night Stand," which premiered in 1977 and was later adapted into an award-winning film.
In addition to her contributions to theatre, Bolt was a strong proponent of integrating drama into education, authoring a textbook on the subject. Her works often explored historical themes and reflected her understanding of Canadian social history, while also championing women's rights and Canadian nationalism. Bolt's legacy continues through the Carol Bolt Drama Award, established in her honor to recognize emerging Canadian playwrights. She passed away from liver cancer in 2000, leaving behind a significant impact on Canadian theatre and education.
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Carol Bolt
Canadian adult and youth theater playwright and author.
- Born: August 25, 1941
- Birthplace: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
- Died: November 28, 2000
- Place of death:Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Biography
Carol Bolt was born in 1941 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. At various times her family resided in three different Canadian provinces, giving Bolt an appreciation for her national identity and the desire to defend that identity against American and British influences. Her father found work in logging and mining, while her mother was a teacher. Bolt received a BA in literature from the University of British Columbia, where she began writing plays.
After traveling in Europe and the Middle East and beginning a career in market research, Bolt expressed her passion for drama through amateur and youth theatre in Montreal. She later engaged in stage production in Toronto, where she met and eventually married actor David Bolt, with whom she moved to Stratford, Ontario. There she wrote for the Stratford Beacon- Herald. In 1970, Toronto Workshop Productions presented Bolt’s Daganawida. The next year Bolt quit library work and devoted full time to writing. What followed were highly productive years in Toronto, with a succession of plays for youth theater as well as her first major works for general audiences.
A high point in her playwriting came in 1977, when One Night Stand premiered. An award-winning film was made of her play the following year, and the play continued to be popular into the twenty-first century. In the 1980s and 1990s, Bolt turned increasingly to radio and television. She also became a high-profile advocate for drama in the classroom, thanks in part to a textbook she authored.
Many of her plays reflected her early training in market research. Bolt took historic themes and displayed a detailed understanding of key moments in Canadian social history. Be it on the stage, in the classroom, or in other public arenas, Bolt championed women’s and Canadian nationalist causes. She participated in cooperatives for the arts from the early days of her career and encouraged serious dramatic work for youth. Her only child, Alexander, was born in 1974. Her son and her husband David survived Bolt's losing battle with liver cancer, which took her life on November, 28, 2000, when she was fifty-nine years old. The Carol Bolt Drama Award was established in her memory to recognize Canadian playwrights.
Author Works
Drama:
Daganawida, 1970
Cyclone Jack, 1972
My Best Friend Is Twelve Feet High, 1972
Buffalo Jump, 1972
Gabe, 1973
Tangleflags, 1973
Pauline, 1973
Red Emma, 1974
Maurice, 1974
Shelter, 1975
Finding Bumble, 1975
One Night Stand, 1977
Love or Money, 1981
Escape Entertainment, 1981
Icetime, 1989
Rose Learns French, 1993
Famous, 1997
Nonfiction:
Drama in the Classroom, 1986
Bibliography
Carol, Bolt. "One Word at a Time: Playwright Carol Bolt Reflects on the Art of Becoming an Opera Librettist." Opera Canada, no. 1, 1996, p. 12. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edsggo&AN=edsgcl.30236740&site=eds-live. In this piece, Bolt discusses developing her play Red Emma into an opera for the Canadian Opera Company.
Charlebois, Gaetan, and Anne Nothof. "Bolt, Carol." Canadian Theatre Encyclopedia, Athabasca University, 27 Aug. 2013, www.canadiantheatre.com/dict.pl?term=Bolt%2C%20Carol. Accessed 20 Jun. 2017. Presents a biographic overview of Bolt and commentary on some of her better-known plays.
"The Estate of Carol Bolt." Playwright's Guild of Canada, 2013, www.playwrightsguild.ca/playwright/estate-carol-bolt. Accessed 20 Jun. 2017. Links to information on Bolt's most widely produced plays and best-known other works are provided, along with a biographical sketch.
Hopkins, Elizabeth. "Bolt, Carol (1941–2000)." The Oxford Companion to Canadian Literature, 2nd ed. Oxford UP, 2006. Provides a general overview of Bolt's life and career.
Zimmerman, Cynthia, ed. Reading Carol Bolt. Playwright's Canada Press, 2010. A collection of Bolt's work.