Manitoba’s theatre community is mourning the sudden death of Ian Ross, a well-known Métis-Ojibway playwright, storyteller and educator who died Wednesday at the age of 57.

"It's a massive, massive loss for everyone that knew Ian, for the theatre community and for the greater community," Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre artistic director Kelly Thornton said.

"He had such a huge impact on so many people."

Ross, who was born in McCreary, Man., in April 1968, later moved to Winnipeg and earned a bachelor’s degree in film and theatre from the University of Manitoba.

His play — a dark comedy about life on a fictional First Nations reserve — premiered at Winnipeg's Prairie Theatre Exchange in 1996 and went on to receive the Governor General’s Award for English Drama, making Ross the first Ind

See Full Page