We are excited to announce that Skylar Somnus, a fourth-year BFA Acting student, has been awarded a prestigious Developing Artist Grant from the Hnatyshyn Foundation. Founded by the late Right Honourable Ramon John Hnatyshyn, Canada’s twenty-fourth Governor General, the Foundation supports emerging and established artists across disciplines by aiding their education, training, and career development, while also promoting the importance of the arts in Canadian society. Each year, the Foundation selects eight of Canada’s most promising young performing artists from post-secondary institutions to receive this grant, fostering new talent and supporting their studies.
Congratulations, Skylar! Be sure to catch Skylar’s performance in our upcoming production of The Very Book Indeed.
About Skylar
Photo: Piper MacDonald
Skylar Somnus is a non-binary Scottish/Ukrainian settler actor from Amiskwaciwâskahikan (Treaty 6), Edmonton, Alberta. Through the art of storytelling, they hope to leave things better than they found them. They seek to bring visions to reality by actualizing characters and stories into physical space and by receiving direction and directing artists to reach common goals.
The gravity of what it means to be an artist never escapes Skylar’s attention, and indeed the first language they spoke was art. When they were born their parents gave them a gift: a hand painted mural in the basement of the house they grew up in, named “the feelings wall.” It was a place where Skylar was set down during temper tantrums and hissy fits to express emotion and thoughts before knowing how to speak. It’s no wonder Skylar feels most at home around creatives and artists, and they will continue to foster community, family, and a better tomorrow through their work.
You can view Skylar’s work at The Chocolate Milk Art Collective on YouTube and stay up to date and reach out to them on their Instagram @bigsoccc.
“Receiving this award not only strengthened my confidence as an actor but also as a contributing member of my community. Being a university student without much access to capital, this award has alleviated tons of my financial strain. It's also a pure incentive to keep my dream and passion burning! The money from the award will help pay for my education, and in turn will allow me to invest time into the Chocolate Milk Art Collective, my independent film company. I want to thank my mother and both of my fathers, my grandparents passed, teachers and inspirers, the ancestors, spirit, the land, and my partner Shivorn who has provided undying support through the hardest year of my life. Thank you to the team at the Hnatyshyn Foundation for uplifting and spotlighting young artists, and taking not only the money, but the time to facilitate such life-changing awards.”
