BIO

Hugh Conacher
Lighting Designer

With twenty five years of experience in lighting design, Hugh Conacher has become an important figure in the Canadian artistic community. He is the resident lighting designer for both Ruth Cansfield Dance (1989-present) and for Winnipeg's Contemporary Dancers (1983-present) as well maintaining a high profile in the national dance scene. His design credits for dance include: TRIP Dance, Julia Sasso, Rachel Browne, Margie Gillis Dance Foundation, Bill Evans Dance, the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Joe Laughlin, Theatre Flamenco, EDAM, Cuppa Jo, Mari Osanai, and Jumpstart Performance.

With an equally impressive contribution to theatre design, Hugh has worked on over one hundred and thirty theatre productions. Recent credits include: Councilor at Law, FIRE and Streetcar Named Desire (for which he was nominated for a Bessie Award) for Theatre Calgary , Dying to be Thin, The Happy Prince and The Power of Harriet T, for Manitoba's Theatre for Young People, Macbeth for Shakespeare in the Ruins (at MTYP), The Chosen for the Winnipeg Jewish Theatre, Macbeth and Hamlet for the English Suitcase Theatre
Company, Cherry Docs (for which he was nominated for a Jessie Award) for Touchstone Theatre, The Bridge musical and the U.S. tour of Lupi, The Great White Wolf for De-Ba-Jeh-Mu-Jig Theatre Group. He has also worked for the Manitoba Opera Association, Theatre New Brunswick, Manitoba Theatre Centre, Prairie Theatre Exchange and Magnus Theatre, amongst others.

Hugh has been the Lighting Designer/Production Manager for the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra's New Music Festival since 1992.  He was Lighting Designer for One Last Dance, a recently released feature film written and directed by Lisa Nieme as well as Patti Caplette's dance film Journey (1997). He has toured with his work nation-wide, as well as to the United States, Mexico, Great Britain, Europe, Asia and India.

Hugh also works as a Production Manager and consultant and as a Technical Director, with experience in management of big-budget productions and large crews.  He is well known for his creative approach to difficult situations and his ability to inspire the best in his co-workers.

Hugh has recently received much recognition for his parallel career as a photographer.  He has had several exhibitions of his work and his imagery can be seen regularly on dance performance posters around Canada.  He has been published in various magazines and newspapers across the country. In 2002 he accepted the position of Curator for the Lobby Gallery at the Gas Station Theatre in Winnipeg.


Born in Toronto, Ontario, Hugh Conacher moved to Winnipeg in 1984 where he lives with Jolene and Genevieve.  He is a member of the Associated Designers of Canada.

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