Drafting with Aaron Jan

Aaron Jan, a committed and determined young man, has been making theatre on the semi-professional circuit in Hamilton and Toronto for some time now. He’s also a third-year devised theatre and playwriting student. His play titled Drafts won Best of Fringe at the Hamilton Fringe Festival in 2012.Showing entrepreneurship that has led to huge amount of success makes him someone worth listening to, especially considering his theatre company, Fulcrum Theatre, has developed across Southern Ontario.
Jan threw me off with his wit and solid wisdom. It’s often hard to get a straight answer out of a theatre student when it comes to work, considering the competitive environment, but he was very quick and to-the-point.
Excalibur: What did you expect from the devised theatre and playwriting programs?
Aaron Jan: The workload. I went to a university before going to York, and the one thing similar was the workload. My scary Asian father has a quote that always comes to mind: “Garbage in, Garbage out” in relation to the quality of work one puts in. If you want something, work for it.
E: What was unexpected regarding your studies?
AJ: How open the faculty was. These people have an active interest in teaching and mentoring you. Maybe it’s a York thing, maybe it’s not, either way: mine these people.
E: What would you want to have known in first year (that could still apply)?
AJ: This school is not the be all end all. York is a great school, don’t get me wrong, and I’m learning a lot. That being said, there are also other opportunities for you to learn, especially in downtown Toronto.
Didn’t get into PlayGround? The Paprika Festival downtown is a great, and in my opinion possibly better, place to learn about playmaking and is also a great networking device into the professional world. I took my Paprika play to the Hamilton fringe and we won “Best of Fringe” — a first for a youth company.
Didn’t get into the stream you want? Apply to other schools. There are tons of programs in this city. This is a great place to be, but it’s not the centre of the universe.
See as much theatre as possible. Being a theatre student at York, not only did you pay for tickets in your tuition, but when else are you going to be able to see this much free theatre ever again? Watching theatre is just as important to your education as studying its craft. Try to see one play a week if you can.
Make friends outside of theatre. Not only will it help you keep your sanity, but when you need a score, want to do a multimedia piece, or just want to learn a new and exciting skill, there is almost always someone more talented than you doing just that in another major. Plus, you’re at university. Meet people.
Have fun. It’s easy to forget this. You’re here because you love theatre, so forget the stress. Get the most out of your education and have a blast, because these years are going to be gone before you know it.
Marcus Bernacci
Contributor