Name: Riskier Than Fiction: Autobiography on the Page and the Stage
Start: 2026-09-15T18:30:00-04:00
End: 2026-09-15T20:00:00-04:00
Location: Upstart & Crow Studio

Description

“Sometimes, memory is more powerful than metaphor.” — Sophy Romvari

Artists have been writing about their lives forever, finding rich and resonant stories in the infinite complexity of their own internal world. And they have always had to navigate the tricky questions of what to share and what to keep private, how to balance personal significance against narrative significance, and when and how much to trust your own memory.

Acclaimed writers Lara Rae (Little Mosque on the Prairie, The Debaters) and Carmen Aguirre (The Refugee Hotel, Fire Never Dies: The Tina Modotti Project) have both ventured into the murky waters of the past to create autobiography; Rae in her award-winning play Dragonfly, Carmen in two bestselling memoirs, including 2012 Canada Reads winner Something Fierce.

Join these two nationally renowned storytellers for a moderated discussion about how they transformed memory into powerful, poetic works of art, and how that process transformed them in turn. The conversation will be moderated by artist Julian Legere. This event is free, but please RSVP here as capacity is limited.

More about Upstart & Crow:

Upstart & Crow is a not-for-profit creative studio and literary incubator that champions writers, readers and stories, and the role they play in shaping our lives. We develop original programs, support artists and revel in creative projects focused on Literature In Translation / Climate Solutions / Poetry / Civic Dialogue / Community & Skills Building … all with the aim of elevating the role of literature and storytelling in our lives. Find us on Granville Island, Gibsons and online at upstartandcrow.com.

Accessibility:

The main studio of our shop is accessible for folks with mobility aids. There is a washroom on the main floor available for attendees. As part of disability justice and community care for the chronically ill, vulnerable and elderly, we ask that you refrain from attending if you feel sick.

Questions: hello[at]upstartandcrow.com.

Lara Rae

Lara Rae was the co-founding AD of the Winnipeg Comedy Festival where she worked for 18 years. She is a Gemini nominee, PRIX Roma (Italy) winner, Perrier Award nominee, and shares three Canadian Comedy Awards for writing. She was one of the developers of international hit series “Little Mosque on the Prairie” and the JFL Homegrown National Champion, an honour which by a matter of six months is one of her few credits from this century. Recently, she founded a food insecurity group called PANTRY. She lives in West Broadway, Winnipeg, with a dog and two rats.

Carmen Aguirre

Carmen Aguirre is a Chilean-Canadian author, actor, and playwright, and a Core Artist at Vancouver’s Electric Company Theatre. She wrote her first play, “In a Land Called I Don’t Remember”, while still a student at Studio 58, where it premiered in 1995 to critical acclaim. Since then, much of her writing has been autobiographical and unabashedly left wing, exploring themes of exile, loss, alienation, and isolation. Most recently, she premiered “Fire Never Dies: The Tina Modotti Project” in October 2025, which was published by Talonbooks earlier this year.

Julian Legere

Born and currently living on occupied Coast Salish territories, Julian Legere is a bisexual/genderqueer artist, community organizer, and cultural worker of European and Acadian settler ancestry. As a creator, writer, and performer he works across disciplines including theatre, poetry, drag, burlesque, kink, dance, and contemporary performance. His work involves using queerness to interrupt colonial artistic hegemony, as well as enacting a bespoke queer spiritual practice through performance. Most recently, he assistant directed “Casey and Diana” at the Arts Club Theatre Company and served as dramaturg and director for “Bitch, Save Yourself” at Or Festival.