A life dedicated to making magic and mystery

There's a definite artsy look to Troy Funk's office at St. Albert Place. Behind the honking huge desk, bright show posters line the walls, books and CDs are stacked on shelves and snowflakes dangle from the ceiling.

Bright light streams from the large office window creating a soft glow, and a visible greening of the Sturgeon River's banks simply adds to the tranquility.

As the senior marketing coordinator for the Northern Alberta International Children's Festival, Funk has his fingers in a lot of pies. And the mound of papers scattered across his desk attests to the numerous last minute details he is tending to.

He is one of the five-day festival's most indispensable organizers, yet largely maintains a low profile. Most of the 50,000 people expected to attend the spectacle won't recognize him.

But Funk is the big guy with the ready smile and a twinkle in his eye. And as the festival rages in controlled chaos, he'll be riding a golf cart throughout the grounds checking to see if everyone has what he or she needs.

"I'm not a serious person. I'm laid back and I love to laugh and I think I'm a big kid in many ways. But I also know how to get things done. And this job has been a wonderful opportunity to do so many things and meet so many people," Funk said.

Although he's hit the big 4-0, an age when cynicism starts to set in, he continues to delight in the magic of theatre, the innocence that opens people to infinite creative possibilities.

"I love to watch set pieces fly in. It's so magical. It's one of the most exciting elements of theatre. The trickery and how it transports you to a different world. And that it happens in the moment is the wow factor."

As a creative marketing administrator, he works on everything from media relations and designing brochures to exploring the forefronts of social media.

"I always wanted to be involved back stage. I loved the creation, how it gets put together. How you're seated next to the director and designer and how you break it down and see how it gets put back together."

Creative discovery

Growing up in Edmonton's Westmount community, Funk attended Westminster Junior High where he joined the school band.

"I wanted to be a drummer, but my hands weren't coordinated for drumming. I played clarinet instead. I guess drumming was a pipe dream," he chuckles throwing out one of his trademark witticisms.

It was generally expected that students from his junior high would attend Ross Sheppard High School. Like most adolescents, he was searching for the truth about himself and a certain validation from peers.

"I didn't fit in. I didn't have a lot of friends. It was very cliquey and I'm not a cliquey person."

At the end of Grade 9, the principal of Victoria School of Performing Arts visited the junior high to market the school. Within two minutes of seeing Vic's film presentation, he made up his mind to switch.

"I was looking for acceptance. We can delve deep into things, but I always knew I was gay. There were lots of guys saying because I was big 'you should be in football.' But that's not me. At Vic there were other gay kids and I was accepted. It wasn't an issue. It had exactly the kind of people I wanted to surround myself with. I was given an amazing level of responsibility and the support to do it. And it was always recognized."

The initial exciting adrenalin rush of strutting your stuff was followed by the more hard-core realistic Grade 10 auditions.

"It wasn't as exciting to be on stage as I thought. It didn't fit what I wanted."

Taking on any backstage responsibility that was heaped on his plate, Funk soon became the go-to guy. One of Vic's most energetic drama teachers, Tammy Dowler-Coultman, created Mime-agination, a traditional mime and physical theatre troupe.

"I was immersed in it," he noted. "She (Dowler-Coultman) was always so great in her belief of students, in what we could do. She was always tapping into our strengths."

In addition to a fascination with theatre, Funk sang in three school choirs and as part of the celebrated Centennial Singers conducted by Garth Worthington.

By Grade 11 he knew exactly what he wanted to do.

"I had a leather Aldo briefcase 'cause I was hip," he grins. "I knew I needed to meet people and get out there."

After graduation, he worked part-time at the school's art gallery as a supervisor for touring art shows, and expanded his network of contacts by joining Walterdale's board of directors. It was there he met Gail Barrington-Moss, the St. Albert dynamo who transplanted the International Children's Festival from the Citadel Theatre to our city.

After graduating from MacEwan's one-year arts and cultural management program, Funk picked up commercial freelance work before landing a job as publicist for the Arden Theatre, widely known for hosting roots-based artists.

"I never thought I was an inner folkie. I never listened to CKUA, but I'm grateful about taking this job. I've discovered so many new artists."

For instance, in high school he listened to what he calls his "gay list." It included Madonna, Black Box, Whitney Houston, Bette Midler and Barbra Streisand. Now he carries an 80GB iPod loaded with 11,965 songs.

"It's (music) all over the map. And what I listen to depends on my mood. The Bills, Lynn Miles, the Good Lovelies. It's like going on a road trip and it's the easiest thing to pack."

Funk has dedicated his life to creating a magical escape from life's everyday humdrum existence. And when the festival is over, he just may escape to his family retreat at Osoyoos for a well-deserved vacation.

"I'm happy and settled in what I do. It's never the same twice. It's never monotonous and there's never enough to do."