Tomson Highway

Tomson Highway was born in a snowbank near Maria Lake, Manitoba, close to the border with Nunavut. Tomson was the 11th of 12 children who grew up in a home without TV or radio and instead relied on the great oral traditions of storytelling for entertainment. His father, Joe Highway was a champion dogsled racer and caribou hunter of some note. His mother, Pelagie Highway was a legendary quilt maker. Tomson went to a residential school when he was six and there he learnt how to speak English and French and play the piano. Tomson played the piano so well in fact, that he travelled to London, England to pursue his dream of becoming a concert pianist. When that failed to transpire, Tomson, after earning a BA in music from the University of Western Ontario, worked as a social worker for seven years until he began getting critical acclaim for his writing. His first two plays "The Rez Sisters" and "Dry Lips Oughta Move to Kapuskasing" made Tomson Highway a household name throughout Canada. His novel "Kiss of the Fur Queen" was a national bestseller. Tomson's most recent work "Kisageetin: A Cabaret" was performed in Toronto in June. Ken Rockburn spoke to Tomson Highway on the stage of the Berkeley Theatre in Toronto.