Remembering a friend of the arts in Canada

Earlier this month we learned of the passing of a dear friend of the arts and of artists for many years, Walter Carson, who died peacefully in Toronto at the age of 100 back on October 8th.  Walter was a true one-of-a-kind soul, and we all owe him a debt of gratitude for what he gave to the arts over the years.

Walter Carson has been called a visionary philanthropist, with a passionate commitment to the Shaw Festival, National Ballet of Canada and other cultural institutions.  At Shaw he was a close friend of the Shaw Festival's founder Brian Doherty, and his renovation of the Royal George Theatre stands as a tribute to both of these old friends.  In the 1990s, Walter helped the festival build a much-needed training, research and creative development centre and always provided yellow roses to decorate the lobby of the Royal George during performances.

Walter was always there when needed by the arts community as a whole, but no more than with the National Ballet of Canada.  Artistic Director Karen Kain released a statement after Walter's passing saying "The National Ballet of Canada in its entire history, has only ever had one patron like Walter Carson.  He helped us achieve what we wanted to do."  She added "He was unfailingly in the audience at almost every performance and was a warm and encouraging presence for the dancers both backstage and in the rehearsal room.  He will be deeply missed by every member of the National Ballet, dancers and staff alike."

Carson's legacy will never be matched, I would imagine.  At the National Ballet alone, he underwrote no less than 12 new productions for the company:  Musings (1991), The Taming of the Shrew (1992), Romeo and Juliet (1995), the full evening programme Inspired by Gould (1999), The Firebird (2000), The Contract (the Pied Piper)(2002), Stravinsky Violin Concerto (2004), In The Night and West Side Story Suite (2007), In The Upper Room (2008), Watch her (2009) and Romeo and Juliet (2011).  I remember in my days going to the National Ballet performances in Toronto seeing many of those earlier productions he underwrote, with the last one being in 2002 with The Contract, which was an amazing piece of stage work.

In addition, in 1996 Walter gave the lead gift in the company's capital campaign to build its new home named in his honour, The Walter Carson Centre for The National Ballet of Canada.  It is a lovely building right on the Toronto waterfront between the Gardiner Expressway and Queen's Quay, and I remember attending the opening there many years ago.  In 1998 he supported the tour to New York City and in 2000, Mr. Carson launched a successful $1-million fundraising campaign for the National Ballet entitled "Inspired by Walter Carson", matching every dollar raised up to $ 500,000.  He instigated a matching campaign in 2005 of $ 100,000 to help The National Ballet meet its Next Stage Campaign goal.  He did the same in 2006 towards new productions.

Walter Carson's legacy also extends to the Art Galleries of Ontario, Hamilton and Windsor, plus arts projects such as Toronto's The Glory of Mozart Festival.  In 2001, he created the annual Walter Carson Prize for Excellence in the Performing Arts, administered by the Canada Council and worth $ 50,000.  But in addition to his philanthropy towards the arts, he also established the Walter Carson Fund for the Homeless within the United Way's endowment The Tomorrow Fund.

Everything Walter touched quite literally is better now for him having done so.  His own accolades include being appointed a Member of the Order of Canada in 1995, becoming an honourary member of the Canadian Actors' Equity Association in 1997 and receiving an honourary degree from York University in 2005.

Donations in Mr. Carson's memory can be made to The Walter Carson New Creations Fund within The National Ballet of Canada Endowment Foundation.

We likely will never see his type again, and we should all remember him fondly the next time we attend a Shaw Festival performance at the Royal George Theatre or go to a production with The National Ballet of Canada in Toronto.

Thanks, Walter, for being there.

October 26th, 2012.