How do you raise ONE MILLION dollars for your theatre?

Dennis Garnhum is the Artistic Director of the Grand Theatre in London, Ontario. Within a few months of taking on the new job, he and the development team raised one million dollars for the theatre.

Garnhum Grew up in London, and he was thirteen years old when he first appeared on stage at the Grand.

Later he was an usher and stage manager, and eventually, in 2004, he and his husband, Bruce Sellery (also from London), married in the balcony at The Grand.

Before arriving at the Grand, Dennis was the Artistic Director of Theatre Calgary since 2005, where, as well as developing new plays, he built some impressive partnerships with the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, the Shaw Festival and Bard on the Beach.

So our conversation leans towards the business of running a theatre and finding a life balance.