Queen’s University regrets to inform the community of the death of Dan School of Drama and Music Professor Kim Renders.
Kim, a pioneer in the Canadian theatre scene, passed away on July 17, 2018 in Kingston. Craig Walker, Director of the Dan School, says her death is a loss beyond Queen’s University.
“Our hearts go out to Kim’s family in this difficult time,” says Dr. Walker. “Kim was an extraordinary person. One of the many wonderful things about Kim was her extremely high level of generosity in sharing her talents wherever she happened to find herself. She had been doing this for decades, and was awarded the Maggie Bassett Award from Theatre Ontario in 2006 in recognition of those efforts. Kim’s outreach was one of the aspects of her career that made her so attractive to us when we hired her at Queen’s, and from the moment that she arrived here, she began to look for ways to work in the community.”
Kim Loretta Maria Renders was born in Toronto on January 14, 1955, to Yolande and Jo Renders. She was the older sister of Micky and Peter Renders. She married her life partner, Robert Lindsay, at the Tarragon Theatre in Toronto in 1987, and they later had two children, Finn and Jill Lindsay.
Kim was a founding member of Nightwood Theatre, the oldest professional feminist theatre company in Canada. She was also the artistic director of Chipped Off Performance Collective, a company that collaborates with local artists and community groups to create original performances that speak to the needs and concerns of Kingstonians. She also managed the youth acting troupe, Barefoot Players.
She has also directed works at Theatre Direct, Factory Theatre, Tarragon Theatre, and Nightwood Theatre in Toronto.
Some of her acting credits include: Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) at the Belfry Theatre in Victoria and at the Manitoba Theatre Centre in Winnipeg, Divided We Stand at the Canadian Stage Company, Desire for Necessary Angel theatre company, List of Lights at L.S.P.U. Hall in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Flowers at the Grand Theatre, London, and Building Jerusalem with Volcano Theatre in Toronto.
Kim’s one-woman show Motherhood Madness and the Shape of the Universe has been performed across Canada and Britain, and has been adapted for CBC Radio; and her other one-woman show Waiting for Michelangelo opened at the Baby Grand Studio in the Grand Theatre Kingston in April 2009.
For all her work, Kim was made an Honorary Member of the Association of Canadian Theatre Research.
In 2006, she joined the drama department (now the Dan School of Drama and Music) at Queen's University as an assistant professor and received tenure and promotion to the rank of associate professor in 2012. She was cross-appointed to Gender Studies and Cultural Studies.
The family will hold a celebratory party at a later date. Donations in Kim’s name can be made to Nightwood Theatre, or any Canadian group that supports women in the arts.
Flags on campus will be lowered in Kim’s memory on Thursday, July 19.
Anyone in need of support is encouraged to contact: Interfaith Chaplain Kate Johnson: chaplain@queensu.ca, 613-533-2186 or Student Wellness Services: counselling.services@queensu.ca, 613-533-6000 ext. 78264.