Thought Network
A LOOK INSIDE
Researchers & Designers - In Residence
RESEARCHER
Stephen Jackman-Torkoff (they/them)
Research Question
How vivid and enticing can an invitation to an art piece be? and can that prompt a deeper connection to the work itself?
DESIGNER
Sebastian Marziali (any)
RESEARCHER
Shiann Croft (she/her)
Research Question
How do Black and Indigenous knowledge systems, storytelling, and embodied practices shape alternative ways of producing in the performing arts that center care, memory, and collective ways of working?
DESIGNER
Roya DelSol (she/her)
RESEARCHER
Ashleigh Giffen (she/her)
Research Question
What forms, aesthetics, and processes might Indigenous theatre take on in the next decade as storytelling shifts away from educating settlers and toward strengthening Indigenous futurities? How can our spaces support the creation of new stories that reflect current realities—grief, resistance, truth, resurgence—without being constrained by post -TRC-era narratives of trauma and “reconciliation theatre?
DESIGNER
Sara Constant (she/they)
COMING SOON
Explorations Lab
Dash Plett (she/her)
Research Question
What barriers do transfeminine people face as aspiring, current, or former workers in Canada's performing arts sector, and how are we responding to those challenges?
Jenn Boulay (she/they)
Research Question
How do cultural, physical/environmental, and linguistic factors shape artistic practices and accessibility of the D/deaf and disability arts scene in Eastern Canada compared to Western Canada, and what can these differences reveal about regional inequities in the sector?
Kystal Kavita Jagoo (she/her)
Research Question
How to operationalize the Disability Justice framework in the performing arts sector to make it more welcoming to BIPOC LGBTQIA+ disabled folx, whose access needs are rarely taken into consideration?
Mateusz West (they/he)
Research Question
What can queer counterculture artists and arts spaces teach us about solidarity, experimentation and belonging? Can consensual, collaborative analysis of queer subcultures in so-called Vancouver inspire vital innovations in theatre?
Mark Hopkins (he/him)
Research Question
Do arts organisations founded soon after the Massey Report (1951) receive disproportionately more government funding than younger organisations? If so, is this detrimental to EDIA- and justice-oriented organisations?
Michelle Mohammed (she/her)
Research Question
What alternative conflict-resolution and accountability systems, beyond traditional HR, can be developed and implemented in theatre companies to address harm, power imbalances, and misconduct while protecting artists and prioritizing repair, equity, and sustainability?
Thought Network
ABOUT
Generator’s Thought Network is a multistream research residency empowering artist-producers to explore urgent questions in the performing arts sector. It is comprised with three streams Researchers-In-Residence, Designers-In-Residence, and Explorations Lab.
We believe that artist-producers are well positioned to envision and enact progressive change in performing arts practice, the performing arts industry, and beyond. The Thought Network Residency is intended to empower those working in live performance, as creators and/or producers, to invest time and attention in investigating the most urgent questions they have identified while engaged in their practice.
Participants receive support through the residency process, including facilitated coaching sessions, mentorship, peer support sessions, and a research/materials budget.
The residency findings and creations will be shared at the Thought Network Symposium (June 9 2026, Toronto), as well as in a series of public resources created by the Residents in collaboration with Generator’s staff and community.
LINEAGE AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
The Thought Network is a result of years of organizational commitment to a more just and intentional performing arts landscape. It evolved from a confluence of learnings and past activities, including: experimentation into artist-producer-led research via Generator’s Artist Producer Lab (2024 and 2025); the Producing Spectrum research project and symposium, led by Undercurrent Creations in partnership with Generator and the Theatre Centre (2024); Generator’s Artist-Producer Racial Innovation Cohort (2023); the need for iterative artist-producer spaces identified through Bianca Guimarães's conversations with artist-producers (2022); and Nikki Shaffeullah's sector research and leadership in projects like Stages of Transformation at the NAC - English Theatre (2020-2023).
The inaugural Thought Network Residency and Symposium is made possible thanks to funding from the Canada Council for the Arts and the Toronto Arts Council, and partnership from the Theatre Centre.