Theatre Panache was founded by current artistic director Heather Markgraf-Lowe as a non-profit professional theatre company dedicated to developing new talent and producing and touring new Canadian work. The company is a successor to Hudson Productions which helped found Village Theatre in Hudson, Quebec and produced most of the Village Theatre shows in the tent beside Mon Village Restaurant and "Shirley Valentine" in the renovated old railway station in Hudson.
From 1993 to 1997, Hudson Productions produced an average of three professional productions per year and presented them at Village Theatre in a large, 200-seat tent. Among the plays produced were, “Love Letters” by A. R. Gurney, “I Ought to be in Pictures” by Neil Simon, “Salt Water Moon” by David French, “Thirteen Hands” by Carol Shields and “You're a Good Man Charlie Brown” by Clark Gessner.
As founder and former artistic director of Village Theatre, Heather presented these shows, directed many of them and acted in several. From 1997 to 2003 she presented annual summer seasons at Village Theatre West in the old train station in Hudson and more serious and challenging shows during the fall and winter. She is now using the experience gained during these 15 years in Canadian theatre to build Theatre Panache.
