Carlin Lutzer (00:00:00):
Before we get into today's episode, a huge thank you. We now have listeners tuning in from over 10 countries in 77 different cities around the world, and I couldn't be more grateful. This journey of discovery, connecting with the people and organizations that make the foothills so special has been absolutely fascinating, and I hope you'll continue to join me for each step along the way. And if you have guests suggestions or topics you'd love to hear explored, please don't hesitate to reach out. And if you appreciate this podcast, please share it with friends, family, and anyone you think would benefit from these conversations. If you or your company is interested in sponsoring the show, we'd definitely be open to that as well. A huge thank you as well to stories and strategies, my podcast production team. Without them, this show would not be possible. Now let's get into today's episode.
Announcer (00:00:52):
It's the Okotoks podcast coming at you with small town vibes and big rock energy. Thanks to Carlin Lutzer real estate.
Carlin Lutzer (00:01:12):
Welcome back to the Okotoks podcast. I'm joined by the incredibly talented Maren Ord, a singer songwriter, touring artist, and a musical theater creator. From growing up in a large musical family to performing across the country and now writing and producing her own musicals, Maren shares an inspiring journey full of heart, creativity and resilience. She opens up about the challenges and triumphs of a career in the arts, her transition from pop music to musical theater and the critical role of family support Along the way. We also talk about a little bit more of a personal matter for Maren, and that's regarding how the town pulled out of the deal to build a performing arts center. It's a decision that for Maren and many others, felt like a setback for the local arts community. Whether you're an aspiring artist, a music lover, or someone who believes in the value of creative spaces, this is a conversation worth hearing. Let's dive in. Maren, thank you so much for joining me today to talk about yourself.
Maren Ord (00:02:19):
Hey, thanks for having me. Yeah,
Carlin Lutzer (00:02:20):
Yes,
Maren Ord (00:02:22):
Talking about myself, I love that.
Carlin Lutzer (00:02:24):
Yeah, no, absolutely. I've, the way that I've figured out more about you, I've certainly known about you, but really haven't dove into who Maren is. So I'm using Wikipedia even I went into chat GPT just to find out about you, and it's unbelievable the amount of information you can find out about someone. It's actually a little bit scary, but because you're a public figure, there obviously is more.
Maren Ord (00:02:55):
No way. I feel so much cooler having you. Having said that, because lately I've been using Chad GPT all the time, he has a name, I name him Chad, and it's literally because I thought it was Chad GP for a long time, and I was like, I'm just going to call him Chad.
Carlin Lutzer (00:03:13):
Yeah, Chad. No, that, that's perfect. No, it's crazy that you just put information in there and what they kick out, and sometimes you got to be careful. Sometimes your Chad may be incorrect with the information that kicks out. So I guess maybe what we could do is go through my list of stuff that I have on you to see if Chad,
Maren Ord (00:03:33):
We'll give Chad right chat.
Carlin Lutzer (00:03:34):
GPT is correct. Now, you were born, we won't say dates or anything, but again, I have all that information in front of me. You were born February 28th and you were, you were the eighth of 10 children.
Maren Ord (00:03:48):
Yes. Yeah, it was awesome. It was always a party at my house.
Carlin Lutzer (00:03:52):
Oh,
Maren Ord (00:03:52):
Always chaos. Always a ton of kids. I don't know how it feels to just have a bunch of quiet
Carlin Lutzer (00:03:57):
Well, yeah, going to even, we're a family of three. That would be very much more, even though sometimes I think it's crazy with three, I can't imagine how your parents did it with 10, but I did come from a family of six, and my mom said that as they got more and more kids, it got easier and easier because I think the older ones started to take care of the
Maren Ord (00:04:17):
Younger, and I'm on the younger end, so I'm going to have to do any of that. What happened was they all started having their kids and I became their babysitter, but they would pay me every now and again.
Carlin Lutzer (00:04:30):
For sure. That
Maren Ord (00:04:31):
Doesn't happen if you have the older end of the sibling.
Carlin Lutzer (00:04:35):
And just from what I see about you, it seems like you didn't really stand a chance, but you had no choice but to be musical with your family's background.
Maren Ord (00:04:44):
I really did not stand a chance. No. Yeah. My parents are very musical. My dad was an opera singer slash professor. He went to Julliard and studied. He had book, he's done a lot with his life. And then my mom, of course, like, oh my gosh, yeah, piano lessons after school every day, voice lessons. And we always had, because we had 10 kids every Christmas, the way that my parents would pay for Christmas is we would sing at the mall as the or family singers and the malls and different places would hire us out. And honestly, I think I became, that's how I kind of got good at being embarrassed in front of people. You'd see people from school and you're like, oh my gosh, there's just a fo and I'm wearing, I'll fit my lucky videos. You care so much. But then you get over it real quick because when you do it often enough and you do it for all these different ears, Christmas, you get over it and your voice has up. And those are some of my fondest memories now that I'm an adult. I look back, I'm like, you know what? That was really cool that we did that, but really it was to pay for greatness. It was out of necessity that that was built, and it really became a beautiful thing.
Carlin Lutzer (00:05:58):
Yeah, that's awesome. And I imagine once you get your full extended family together on your side of the family, no doubt it becomes a little bit of a musical production.
Maren Ord (00:06:09):
Yes. So happy birthdays have never sounded more beautiful on my, yeah, everyone think, honestly, everybody, whether or not they're a soloist, it doesn't matter. They all know how to sing parks and harmonies, and it's a lot of fun. Yeah.
Carlin Lutzer (00:06:23):
Yeah. That's very cool. So how did your music career get started? Not just a great singer, but you also, have you written all your music or did you end up with a few songs that you didn't write
Maren Ord (00:06:38):
Might, how does that work? Yeah, there might be songs out there that are co-written. There was a time when Randy Bachman had shown an interest in me, and so we did some co-writing and collaborating and released a DP with him. And so some of those songs are co-written with him. Some of them are purely original, but on my first album, they were all original. And yeah, I would say most of them are original, but where I gets started, goodness sakes. Okay, we're going back a bit.
(00:07:08):
Well, my oldest sister, Shannon, who actually also lives in Altos, I just remember her playing the piano and singing, and she also liked music, and I just thought that that's what people did. I was like, oh, okay. Well, and I was probably about 11 or 12 at the time, and I just thought, okay, I'm going to take some chords that I know from songs that I've learned in my piano lessons and recreate them and create my own song and write my own lyrics. Then I wish I had a copy of that song. I don't know how it goes, but that was the start of the songwriting because I just thought that what people do, and
(00:07:48):
When I was about 14, I remember seeing a classical guitar just kind of stuffed into the music room. We did have a music room, so it was specific for all the instruments, the piano and the guitar. A non in my house picked up the guitar. No one played it. It was my mom's guitar from her college days. I was like, whoa, okay. And when you come from a family of 10, to have something that's like your own was kind of a unique thing because everyone just shared everything. So I was like, I'm going to be the one that played that guitar. And so I picked it up and my mom was like, yep, we have a couple. Here's a chord book, and here's a couple pieces of music. If you look through the piano sheet music, sometimes they've got different chord progressions. So we didn't have the internet way back, way back in the dinosaur age.
(00:08:43):
And so that trusty little book kind of taught me a bunch of different chords. And I kind of then started writing music on guitar. And I would say as far as getting noticed in Edmonton, the radio station had a songwriting contest, and it was my sister Shannon that really pushed me. She's like, Maren, you should enter that. And I was 15 at the time. I was like, no one's going to take me seriously. I think at that point, I had only written maybe five songs on guitar, and she's like, it doesn't matter. They only need four for you to submit. And so I did, and I ended up being one of the people, and my song was the song that was featured as the Single to sell this ep. And that kind of got me attention all across Canada and more, I was recognized by Terry McBride with Network Records, who's Aaron McLaughlin manager? Coldplay manager. He's a big deal. AVR Levine and I were kind of happening at the same time, same manager. So I had some really cool experiences. I ended up signing with him and playing a lot of cool shows, and I got to record my album in New York and London, England, and
Carlin Lutzer (00:10:06):
Very cool.
Maren Ord (00:10:07):
I remember touching this piano that Radiohead Tom York from Radiohead had played. I was like, I'm touching
(00:10:13):
The
(00:10:14):
C piano.
Carlin Lutzer (00:10:15):
Yeah, that's awesome.
Maren Ord (00:10:16):
The guide site that engineered my first album also was engineering. Okay. Computer by Radiohead at the same time as me. I was like, what? You have to get this autograph from me. Anyways, it was really cool because I was still a kid. I signed when I was 18, I signed a record deal with Capital Records as well. So Capital Records for the World, but then Network Records for Canada.
Carlin Lutzer (00:10:42):
So sorry, it took you three years to, because you submitted that song when you were 15, and then it was three years to get your first record
Maren Ord (00:10:51):
Deal. Yeah, they didn't want to sign me as a teenager. They were like, we don't want to go through those hoops. But they prepared me. So I would go to Toronto and I'd be recording a bunch of demos and Game Shameless in Edmonton, and they wanted me to gather experience because I had never played a show in my life. I wasn't ready for it. And so I still lived the life of the Rockstar life, I guess, while going to high school. But in terms of playing shows and learning how to be on stage, learning how to have interviews, I remember, oh, my first round of interviews when I first, I don't know, just started doing shows
(00:11:41):
And I can't remember who it was, but one of my siblings just made fun of me. They were like, you just laughed and giggled the whole time. Because I was so shy that I was like, oh, yeah, it's kind of nerve wracking to be thrown into that industry when you're that young. And so I did have a little growing up to do, and I mean a lot of growing up to do. So that, yeah, by the time on my 18th birthday, I have a picture of me signing this Fat Stack, a record contract, and then, then I went off to New York to record and London, England to record and started touring. That was a weird time of my life because a lot of people think that touring is like this awesome. I mean, there's cool things about it, but legit, you get into the city, you go to your hotel, maybe you have a little bit of time to check things out, but then you have your soundcheck, you have time to eat, and then you got to go back to the venue to play your show. And honestly, I got to a point where I preferred being the opener because I was like, I don't want to be up until midnight or one, I'm going to be so tired tomorrow. So I loved being the opener I could be play my show before I get too tired. I don't dunno how some people do that. Even in my twenties, I felt that way. Sure.
(00:13:03):
And then a little now. Yeah.
Carlin Lutzer (00:13:05):
So you'd do your show and then you'd be able to go back to the hotel and shut her down for the night? Yeah,
Maren Ord (00:13:10):
Yeah. Honestly, I knew I had a show the next day or an early morning interview or whatever. Sometimes it was tv, sometimes it was radio. There was definitely a time in my life where I was more busy than others with my music career path. So in that time in my life, I was bibby and I needed to keep my health, I needed my voice to sing your voice. If you're sick, you still have to sing. You still are expected to do the show. And so that's kind of tough as a singer to do that anyway, but that's also just part of the gig
Carlin Lutzer (00:13:46):
For sure. So when you were on tour, what kind of places did that take you to? Was it all over North America? Was it overseas?
Maren Ord (00:13:55):
Most of my touring happened in Canada and the western states, California, Utah, Idaho, and then all over Canada. I remember taking a singer-songwriter bus tour with, oh my gosh, is his name Snow? That was a little while ago. Nicky Boom, that's him, right?
Carlin Lutzer (00:14:16):
Yeah. Yeah. I'm not sure, but
Maren Ord (00:14:18):
We just had our guitars, but it's not like he's singing that on anyway. But yeah, we would just, sometimes it was in theaters, sometimes it was in pub, which is weird for me because I don't drink and I don't, the pub life is not really my favorite, or bars and stuff. I always felt like a little icky. I definitely preferred theater shows. And then every now and again, I had some really cool arena opportunities. I did Lili Fair several times with Erin McLaughlin and In The Lobe and Sheryl Crow. Really cool opportunities there
(00:14:53):
To
(00:14:53):
Share this with them, with thousands of people. And then I think I remember in Edmund Kin, the World Track Meet happened. That was like 20 years ago though, or more. And there was 30,000 people, and I was the headliner, and that was great. I had never headlined a show for that many people before. And it was outside mad, the full band, and there's all this, a huge energy rush. I don't know. Very cool. I did New Year's Eve and Nanaimo once Outside and Cool an outdoor, I'm trying to remember what the actual place was, but it was cool. Yeah, I've had some really cool fun times for sure.
Carlin Lutzer (00:15:33):
Oh, absolutely. I went onto YouTube and I saw it looks like it was CBC that didn't, and it was a guy, he was introducing you. He was in front of lockers and stuff. I don't know, it was probably right at the close to the start of your career, but it looked like it was a pretty cool venue, pretty cool experience to do a recording and then broadcast. Was that CB, C or was that
Maren Ord (00:15:59):
Yeah, it was. And that's one of those experiences too, where I remember that day being like, oh, my voice, I was sick that day and you had to still pretend to be fine. And my voice, I'm like, oh, man, can we throw that away? But it's there for the world to see. That's what people think. I sound like that's okay.
Carlin Lutzer (00:16:18):
Yeah, for sure. No, well, no, that's very cool. And especially rubbing shoulders with Bachman, Sheryl Crow, who would you say would be some of your big influencers as obviously your family was a huge influence on you in developing your career, but who are some other people along the way that really got you on the right path? Pointed you in the right direction? Okay.
Maren Ord (00:16:49):
Yeah, I mean, I had a really supportive friend group, and I remember one of my friends, and this was kind of at the very beginning, I was still 15. I think I would've been in grade 10 pretty fresh. And there was a battle of the band in my high school, and I had never played a show before, and that was the same year that I had submitted my four songs to the radio. And she's like, you should submit your stuff. No one else is doing original stuff. But I'm like, Tina, but it's a band. I'm not a band. I'm just a girl in her guitar or the piano. And she's like, who cares? She should just do it. And I remember that being a very, just having that supportive friendship, not just from her, but from my little group of friends. And she was older than me too, so she was even more cool in my a, yeah, she was the one that was like, Hey, you should do this. And I did. And I ended up getting second place, but then the guys that won made a big about how I should have won. I was like,
Carlin Lutzer (00:17:52):
Really? That's cool. That's awesome.
Maren Ord (00:17:55):
But it was a good experience for me. And now that I am a mom and I'm older, I feel like, oh man, those experiences are so good. It's good to put yourself out there to build confidence because you're not going to get it, not doing it, not doing the thing. And so the more I've learned how to get out there and fail, the more grit I develop, the more, and I wouldn't even call second plate failing. I just think you're not going to know if you can do something until you do it. And I really didn't know up until that point. Maybe my friends would be like, oh, play one of your new songs or play this song that we know and I would play for my friends in their basement. And that was all I knew until she had kind of helped me realize that, hey, there's more than just us that think you're good. And that was kind of a good opportunity for me to have a bit of a victory enough to go like, oh, even the guys that won first place think I should have won first place. Maybe they know something. I don't know.
Carlin Lutzer (00:19:00):
Yeah,
Maren Ord (00:19:01):
I just did not have the confidence.
Carlin Lutzer (00:19:03):
Yeah. Well, for teenagers to be pushing you into doing something, teenagers typically don't lie. If they see something, they're going to let you know. But if they see value in you and getting you in front of the stage, they know that they're not going to hang you out to dry. And they know that obviously they saw a talent in you even at that age now, your career, it seems like, and I'm just trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together, it kind of transitioned. It went from kind of the pop, do we call you a pop star? That's basically what you were. You've also done some playwriting you've also done, and then now it seems like it has transitioned a little bit more into more inspirational music. Is that what we would call it?
Maren Ord (00:19:56):
It's a bit of both,
Carlin Lutzer (00:19:57):
Is it?
Maren Ord (00:19:58):
I've always, in my pop world, even as a teenager, I still felt like I wrote what I wanted to write and whatever ended up being actually produced and released to the world was kind of up to me and my manager or whoever. So among my songwriting, and through the years, I've definitely written some more gospel related songs that are very Christian, but I never really got into that world of releasing Christian music. I do have a couple of Christmas songs that are out there that have seen the light of Day. Most recently, there's a song called Born to Be a King, and that got a lot of attention. That was probably about four or five years ago. It's a children's Christmas song. So it was one of those things where every Christmas, there's always programs for the kids and whatever, and my song just happened to get some traction, and I thought that was really cool. So there's sheet music up on my website, Maror Music, and you can see the videos on YouTube and through my website as well. But yeah, so I have a little bit, my toes have Kipi Tappi in that a little bit. But as far as theater, musical theater, I mean there's always been a little bit of drama in my life because my dad was an opera professor at the U of A in Edmonton, and I would have opportunities to go see his production because he would get his students, like his university students to perform.
(00:21:40):
And oftentimes I would be backstage helping as an assistant stage manager or a props person or whatever my dad wanted to assign me, or sometimes I would just be there to watch the productions. And so that was a great start, a great starting point for me to go, this is kind of cool. And just to see what that world was like. And I remember after seeing my first musical theater production that wasn't opera, I think I was 15 and I was like, one day I would really like to write a musical. And that has always stuck in my head. But then years went by, I did my record deal, I toured, I started my family, things slowed down in the pop world, and I was like, how am I going to do what I love to do while being a mom?
(00:22:27):
And I had decided for myself, I don't want to be as busy as I was when I was at the height of my career, and I don't want to be as famous as I was. And I wasn't even that famous. There was a point where I do remember I couldn't leave the house without one person recognizing me. So I always felt like I had to be acting a certain way or be careful about someone might recognize you and if you're in the middle of doing something you're not supposed to do, I don't know, I just always was thinking about that. And when you're a mom and you're at church and you're scolding your toddler in the hallway and then someone's like, are you married or that's not when you want to be?
Carlin Lutzer (00:23:10):
Yeah, exactly. For sure.
Maren Ord (00:23:12):
When I started my family, I knew I wanted to make some kind of shift. I didn't know exactly how or what, but I did always have in the back of my mind, you know what, I still want to write a musical. But I was like, I don't know anything about this world. I have no idea. And so what I started to do was I started to audition for different musicals and participate to see if I even really did want to do this and how it's set up, what did the different hat look like? What did the director do? What does the stage do? And that took many years for me to figure out. And really this was hard to do as a mom too. I had young kids
(00:23:54):
And I remember having to go to rehearsals and I would be like, okay, well there's this formula and see you later. I have rehearsal tonight. And it was really good for me though, to have that time for myself and to grow. But honestly, I kind of treated it like a school. I treated it like an education. And each show that I was in, I learned more and more and more. And that also was the case with, I joined a chamber choir here in Okotoks, actually, the OK Phil Harmonic Chamber choir led by Kim Tite, who's awesome.
Carlin Lutzer (00:24:29):
You
Maren Ord (00:24:30):
Should interview him. He's a very interesting
Carlin Lutzer (00:24:32):
Guy. I know Tim actually. You him. Yeah, he would be a great idea.
Maren Ord (00:24:34):
I love him.
Carlin Lutzer (00:24:35):
Yeah,
Maren Ord (00:24:36):
He's lovely. And anyways, I would go to choir with that mindset of how can I use that cool thing in my next song, the composition, because I was so used to writing pop music and I actually started with jazz. So I joined the jazz felt harmonic here first, and then I joined Chamber. And it was really fun to try different things and to stretch myself, but it was always in an educational sense for me in my brain. I was like, okay, that's cool. I'm going to use that in my neck. And yeah, it was probably about 10 years ago when I produced my first musical and it was good. I got my money back. I sold out shows. I sold out four shows.
Carlin Lutzer (00:25:21):
And Sorry, where did the shows play?
Maren Ord (00:25:23):
It was in Edmonton. My first ed show was
Carlin Lutzer (00:25:26):
Edmont. Okay. Yeah. And
Maren Ord (00:25:27):
It did better than I thought. But now that I know more about playwriting, I'm like, that was a bad show, Maren. That was really bad.
Carlin Lutzer (00:25:35):
That was your first one. Can't be so hard on yourself.
Maren Ord (00:25:39):
The music, I was like, okay, the music's not bad. I actually went back and watched it after I haven't touched it for 10 years. And when I was cleaning out some stuff in my computer, I was like, oh my gosh, I should watch this. So I watched Act one and the acting was fine. It was the writing. I was like, Ooh, ooh, Maren, you did not know what you were doing. And I didn't. And it, I actually hired somebody from Alberta Playwright Network, a PN, to come to my show, and I just thought, you're going to be so impressed with what I can do. And I didn't even go to school for this and dah, dah, dah. Well, then we met after the show and she gave me all her notes and I was like, just gutted because it wasn't what, it wasn't as good as I thought it was.
(00:26:29):
I was like, wow, what? I thought she was just going to be wowed and tell me, great job, and I'll take your money. Thanks for letting me come. But I was so grateful for that opportunity to fail because notes taught me, oh, you know what? There's actually a formula in playwriting and I can't just write what I feel like writing. And there's actually character development and there's actually so much more to it. So my first musical, although successful enough to sell out and people enjoyed it, it was entertaining. But in terms of having a show or a story that actually meant something, it was a good place to fail and to learn and to go, you know what? My next show is going to be better now because I know what I'm doing. And I actually submitted my next show to a playwriting contest, and I ended up being one of the winners, and I was matched with a mentor and she was great. Her name is Caroline Raffle King. She scared me a little bit at first, but not anymore. She's very like, this is how it is. This is, but it was for my benefit. And I feel like my show, I feel like it was a better show because she taught me so much.
(00:27:52):
And then the same goes with, there's other mentors that I've connected with. My most recent show was the Night of the Murder, and I matched with Joe sla, who's also in Calgary, and he was great because up to that point, I had only been matched with mentors that know how to write a play and help with character development that they did not know how to write a musical. They couldn't really comment on my music. They could never comment on. And if it was maybe a lyrical, and even then I was like, okay. It felt very opiniony. But being match with Joe was great because that's what he does. He writes musicals.
(00:28:37):
And so it was so refreshing to be matched with somebody who actually does specific musical theater. And I learned so much, even just the past couple of years with my latest show. So it just goes to show you can always be learning, even always be getting better. And it's been really a really fun process. Every time I do a workshop for a new show or a new idea, I still am learning. And you'd think after 10 years I'd be like, I know what I'm doing now, but I still have things to learn and figure out. And it's exciting. It really does keep things exciting
Carlin Lutzer (00:29:17):
For sure. But is it not a very rare ability to not only write the music for a play, but also to do the script and everything that's not normal.
Maren Ord (00:29:31):
I'm learning normal.
Carlin Lutzer (00:29:33):
It can't
Maren Ord (00:29:34):
Be, I'm learning that it's not normal.
Carlin Lutzer (00:29:35):
Yeah,
Maren Ord (00:29:35):
Yeah, definitely. And I actually was like, maybe composition is where I shine, and it is definitely a better composer than I am a playwright. I'll say that out loud. I've been doing it way longer. But even then, you can get stuck in your ruts of writing and you're like, oh, that's too predictable. I feel like I've written a song like this already. I need, that can be kind of tricky too. But I have tried to just write the music and pair up with just a playwright on a couple of occasions, and it was weird for me. I didn't love that.
(00:30:12):
And
(00:30:12):
So there's something kind of special about being able to create what you want to create and you don't have anyone to answer to. You don't have to please anybody. You don't, I mean, hopefully the audience likes it, but in the end, it's really like you have to love it. And I am my harshest critic if I'm being honest. I'm going to make sure that my show is, I mean, hopefully what I want it to be.
Carlin Lutzer (00:30:37):
Right.
Maren Ord (00:30:38):
I mean with a bigger budget, I'm sure it could be so much better.
Carlin Lutzer (00:30:41):
Yeah. Well, what are you working on right now?
Maren Ord (00:30:45):
Well, currently I am working on a musical called Christmas Tree Confessions, and it is a Christmas show about a middle-aged woman touch of myself. I can really relate to this person who gets abducted by a bunch of P tree ornament and she learns some beard of Christmas lessons, which sounds really kind of quirky if when I fade out loud.
Carlin Lutzer (00:31:09):
When are you looking at producing this?
Maren Ord (00:31:11):
Well, right now I am setting up another workshop this summer to hopefully, because I've been writing this for about a year now, almost a year. I don't think it's quite a year, and it's not going to be ready this Christmas. I was really hoping it would be, but I know how much prep work needs to happen. As soon as things are written and young, I still need to get my production team in place. I need to rent a theater. We need to start the audition process. And I was like, I can't do that. Needed to start happening a couple months ago. I were to do it this Christmas. So it's one of those things where I am always working on something, even though this is at the top of my list, I still have about five other musicals that I'm working on in writing. So even if I do finish this, I mean, no, it's not going to be finished this summer. There's no way.
Carlin Lutzer (00:32:06):
Okay.
(00:32:06):
Yeah,
Maren Ord (00:32:07):
It'll be finished probably right before this Christmas.
Carlin Lutzer (00:32:12):
Did you say that currently you're working on five different musicals right now? Is that what you said?
Maren Ord (00:32:19):
Yes. It's because what happened is I've got a superpower called A DHD that just like I have an idea and I have to flush it out. And some of these ideas, there's at least three of them where I'm like, I'm onto something and I really love this, but I'll go through it and I'm like, you know what? I dunno. And so I end up working on the one that I think is most ready and the one that I'm the most excited about. And so right now it's the Christmas tree confession. I honestly thought it was going to be a small and short project because I was like, I've never written a one act musical before. I've always done these big huge productions, two act musicals. I'm like, I'm going to challenge myself. Well, no, I could not keep it to under 90 minutes because I was like, well, this character's really boring. I want some more conflict to happen here and blah, blah, blah. The script, I couldn't enjoy writing a one act, so I was like, well, forget it. And it slowly became a two act as of last month. I was like, okay, this is not a one act anymore.
Carlin Lutzer (00:33:36):
Yes,
Maren Ord (00:33:37):
I'm just going to eat this and know myself and know that this is a two act bite.
Carlin Lutzer (00:33:42):
No, for sure. And so you got a few plays on the fly and something I think to give some greater context, how many kids do you have? I
Maren Ord (00:33:52):
Have five kids,
Carlin Lutzer (00:33:53):
Five kids, two
Maren Ord (00:33:54):
Dogs
Carlin Lutzer (00:33:55):
And two dogs. So that gives you a little bit of a way out that it's not going to be ready for Christmas. You got a lot on your plate.
Maren Ord (00:34:04):
I do. I have to plug in and be a mom every now and again. And when it's summer right now, I'm the surprised. I'm like, is Kevin been knocking on the door like mom, blah, blah, blah.
(00:34:16):
(00:34:16):
Did warn them. I was like, Hey, don't knock on my door. I'm doing an interview. You can't come in. Okay. Because it's summer, everybody's home, and it's crazy. And I've got a crazy stretch of kids. My oldest is 18, he's an adult, and he graduated this year. And I don't know when that happened because I thought I was 18 and not, and then my youngest is nine, and there's just such a myriad of what each kid is going through.
(00:34:44):
And
(00:34:46):
When I started having kids, I did not have the fore fight to be like Maren, there will be a time in your life where you'll be drowning. And it's always in a great way. I love my kids, but it's not 10 kids, it's not 10 kids.
Carlin Lutzer (00:35:02):
It's not 10 kids like your
Maren Ord (00:35:03):
Parents. I didn't think that five kids was that much, honestly, because I grew up in a house full of 10. I was like, I can have five kids, no big deal. I thought I was going to have six, honestly. I was like, I'm going to have six kids. And that's the perfect family. And then if you start to have kids, you're like, oh, this is a lot of work actually.
Carlin Lutzer (00:35:21):
Yeah, well, we just have three and we feel that that's enough. So I imagine as you start, that's my advice. Yeah,
Maren Ord (00:35:33):
I love my kids. They bring me a lot of joy. It is a definitely, I don't want to say a struggle, but I do have to prioritize my life and balance. And there are times where I am very busy whenever I do a production, everyone in the family knows mom might be a little psycho, and so you just got to give her a tiny participate because is only three months of her life. But then there are times where I know that I need to be more present for them. Yeah,
Carlin Lutzer (00:36:06):
No, for sure.
Maren Ord (00:36:06):
Just like with anything, right?
Carlin Lutzer (00:36:08):
Absolutely. And sometimes being present, I know that well, yeah, we all get in there and life and stresses and all that stuff, and you're all of a sudden a few weeks have gone by and you feel that even though you've been present, you're not really present. You kind of check out a little bit with the stresses then going on. For sure. Well, Maren, I feel that we have only touch the surface as to who you are because you've been nominated for a Juno, which is unbelievable.
Maren Ord (00:36:42):
Thank you. Yeah, that was a really cool experience.
Carlin Lutzer (00:36:46):
And is it true, I'm just looking for in my notes here, that's why I've been looking down here for the last little bit, just trying to find it. But did you write some kind of music for Thomas the Train?
Maren Ord (00:36:58):
I sang on the Thomas the train track for the movie, but I did not write that song, but I sang it and I remember they called me, I had their studio was out in Toronto or New York, I can't remember. They
Carlin Lutzer (00:37:12):
Is tons to drink Canadian.
Maren Ord (00:37:13):
No, it's not. It stars Alec Baldwin.
Carlin Lutzer (00:37:16):
Really?
Maren Ord (00:37:17):
Yes. I watched it. It's not my cup of tea, but I watched it to be how maybe whatever. It was fun to see, but definitely a kid show for the honest fans out there. But
(00:37:33):
That
(00:37:33):
Was cool. But I do remember them calling me and being like, so what's your vocal range? And I was in the car with a friend on the way to somewhere. I'm like, I don't know, I guess I can think. And I was figuring out in the car. I'm like, yeah, I bet it's a G. Because they were like, well, we're the orchestration like heyday, so you got to know what it is. I'm like, yeah, I can sing that. And then I get there, they fly me out and I sing the song and the G is in my falsetto, not my chess voice. And they're like, we really want you to sing in your chess voice up there. I was like, oh my gosh. And so I had to really warm it up. But that was one of those things where I was like, okay, I'm going to challenge myself, I guess, and I belted a G, which that was not in my vocal range, but that day it was because it had to be.
Carlin Lutzer (00:38:22):
Yeah, you made it happen. You were just speaking a language that I just don't understand, talking from your chest. And I feel I can sing, but not in public. Okay. I got a really weird question for you. Not weird, it's just a question. Okay, so search your name on iTunes. Your name comes up. Now obviously things have changed over the years as to how artists get paid. How do you get paid? If I listen to your song in iTunes, how do you get compensated for that?
Maren Ord (00:38:53):
You have to be signed up with a company called Soan, or there's other companies that track that stuff. And then every quarter or whatever it is, you get money in the mail. And that's kind of how it works.
Carlin Lutzer (00:39:08):
So I can support you just by hitting shuffle and repeat on your album, and you're getting paid per time that I listen to your song.
Maren Ord (00:39:19):
I mean, I'm no music scientist, but I think so.
Carlin Lutzer (00:39:24):
You think so? Okay.
Maren Ord (00:39:25):
I'm pretty sure that's how it works. Yeah. Every stream, every time I played. But honestly, I don't pay a lot of attention to that. I just kind of live my life. And if money comes through streams, cool. And if it doesn't, then it doesn't. I don't live to generate, what am I trying to say? I don't live to, there was a time in my life where that was what my focus was. I need to sell, sell, sell. And right now I'm like, I did that and now I'm a mom, and if people want to stream my stuff and listen to my stuff, that's cool. And I would love that. It would be a great way to have that extra money coming in, but it's not a huge focus for me right now, which is kind of, I dunno, gives me a sense of freedom. I
Carlin Lutzer (00:40:16):
Not, it's honorable.
Maren Ord (00:40:18):
Well, I don't
Carlin Lutzer (00:40:18):
Even, that's
Maren Ord (00:40:18):
Honorable.
Carlin Lutzer (00:40:19):
I think
Maren Ord (00:40:19):
It's,
Carlin Lutzer (00:40:21):
It's
Maren Ord (00:40:22):
Lucky, I think is probably what it is. I'm married to a guy that can support us and I don't have to worry about what I bring in. You're blessed. I'm blessed. I'm in a situation where that's not our problem. But it doesn't mean it might not be one day. But right now I have a husband. He supports me in many ways, and that's one of the things that I'm able to do because he goes to work, I'm able to spend my time writing, which is not, in case people were wondering, writing musicals is not a huge money maker, and I really do it because I have a huge passion for
(00:40:59):
It,
(00:41:00):
And I've been figuring out the business. But the truth of matter is, is you're kind of lucky to break even in this business. And thankfully I've been able to do more than that. So each time I put on a show, I've been able to break even and make more, but I never pay myself because I want to keep doing it. So I just keep putting it into the next project, the next project. That's kind of how I've been building myself up as a theater company, which is Feather Pens Theater. Or if you search Maror music on Instagram, you'll see more of my journey of me in the studio or me preparing to produce a show. And you can see probably a little bit more of that. But yeah, and Facebook, there's Feather Penn Theater, which honestly,
Carlin Lutzer (00:41:46):
Sorry, what is it called? Feather
Maren Ord (00:41:48):
Feather Penn Theater on Facebook. And it's just a page. And honestly, it only gets busy when I'm ready to produce a show and I'm like, okay, guys, here comes another show coming at you.
Carlin Lutzer (00:41:58):
Sure. Now when your shows are ready and you say you look for a theater, is there theater in Okotoks you can use? Or do you have to typically go to Calgary?
Maren Ord (00:42:10):
I wish there was, when I first moved here, pin the church that he goes to, I was doing a lot of, I rehearsed at his church, the Oke Alliance Church, and at that time they were just building a stage. So I only had the stage dimension and plans. I didn't know what it was going to look like, but I did know that if we wanted to build it out, we could. And so for my first experience in Okat to, because once I moved here, I was like, okay, I'm going to rent this theater because I want to keep it local. I want to keep it in Oke. And there's nothing else. The Rpac is very small, or the old church theater now is what it's
(00:42:50):
Called,
(00:42:50):
And the comp doesn't, and HTA, they don't rent to the public. And so I didn't have options in Oke, so I was like, well, it'd be really lovely to keep up local to Sut Hills. So yeah, I rented that, but honestly, for theater, I didn't feel like it was a good fit. It was lovely to work in the space, but I wanted an actual theater. Theater. And so for my last two shows, I've gone into Calgary. I did the Gardner at the Seton, YMCA, the Evan Hazel, I think that's what it called theater. And that came with a few complications, but it was a lovely theater. And it's South Calgary. And then my last one was at the GPA, the Glenmore Christian Academy Theater, which is owned by a private school. So they were able to rent it out to me. So theater, if you have another hour, I could talk about a theater in Okotoks and how I feel about that. It's
Carlin Lutzer (00:43:52):
Really, yeah, I'm sure you're a little sad as to, because they
Maren Ord (00:43:55):
Put the brain so much. Yeah, you're talking about getting a theater going with a new high school being built and then decided, no, we actually don't have the money for that. And I would try to get more involved because I wanted to know what I could do. How can I support? Basically, they said, you need to just raise money for it. And I'm like, I don't think you know how busy I am.
(00:44:18):
But I think the idea that the message they're trying to send is, if you really want this theater, you need to be more involved. And I was like, oh man, I don't know how to do that. That's not my forte. But it sounds like if we want a theater in Oke, they're kind of putting it back on the people of Oke and saying, you raise the money, you get the donations, you make it happen. Which is a little disappointing because I really thought there was a hope for a theater in this new high school. Part of me is so I guess the new high school doesn't have a theater. What does that mean? And why can't we put in whatever existing money they thought they might have and put a theater rather than say, oh, you guys wanted a theater that's too expensive. I don't know. There's just a lot of things that kind of hit me wrong. I was like, okay, I know we don't have an hour.
Carlin Lutzer (00:45:10):
Yeah, no, it's certainly, well, I guess the big part of it is everybody got their hopes out that this was going to come into play, and
Maren Ord (00:45:20):
It started to feel more legitimate than it has in the past because there are actual meetings happening for it and actual, there's more attention brought to it.
(00:45:30):
So it was very disappointing to be like, actually, no, we're not going to do this. The money needs to go here. And I understand money needs to be allotted to things that need to take precedence, but I was also like, did you know this from the beginning? You know what I mean? Yeah. Obviously you knew that the money that the town has is going to go here, so why did we go through this song and dance with, I dunno, it just kind of felt like a little show to be like, okay, we'll pretend that we want to do this and that. Maybe not. I could be very wrong.
(00:46:05):
I don't want to assume things. I don't know everybody's heart and their intention, but it did feel really deflating. And so I don't want to assume anything, but for me, it was really deflating because I thought, you know what? To bring businesses into Okotoks, I know for me was my theater. And I'm not this theater company, but there are theater companies that could do even better than me. And I do pretty good with bringing people to my show. And I'm just thinking people go out to eat before they go to a show, and we would be bringing that to Oak to, and bringing businesses would thrive because of theater. But I don't know if everyone agrees with that in the C town. So that's unfortunate.
Carlin Lutzer (00:46:47):
And you think of even just taking your show into Calgary and just how things get lost in the big city.
Maren Ord (00:46:55):
That is true.
Carlin Lutzer (00:46:56):
There's so much going on. There's so much activity. But if it was local, if it was in Okotoks, you'd have a lot more attention and
Maren Ord (00:47:07):
It would feel like a bigger deal
Carlin Lutzer (00:47:09):
For sure.
Maren Ord (00:47:09):
And honestly, I tried to book at even the comp, and for a hot minute, I think for seven months, I've back and forth with the principal at the comp. And she was like, yes, yes, yes. And I even met with the drama teacher to kind of talk logistics and see if that was going to work, because in the past, they allowing outside groups to rent, and then all of a sudden I heard that they were so they said yes to me. And then after having a couple of conversations, they were like, actually, the board says no. I was like the board of what? I don't get it. And I just got shut down and ghosted, and it was really upsetting. I was like, I'm trying to, because half of my cast is from Okotoks in the Foothills area, and so I'm trying to keep it local. I am, and there's just not opportunities here. And it was really upsetting to be shut down by the high schools who after being told yes, and then saying, actually, I don't think we can accommodate you. They could, because I see in their shows it would be the same caliber.
(00:48:14):
So that was a little frustrating to be like, oh, okay. I guess I do have to take my business into Calgary and not just my business, but all the people that are local here and in High River and the foothold area and bring it to Calgary, which kind of like you said, it's just a little fish in the big ponds and I don't even care about that part of it. It would be nice to keep things local, wouldn't it?
Carlin Lutzer (00:48:42):
Oh, absolutely. And yeah, it's just the highlight. You even think of your Christmas show and you piggyback along with being close to light up Bocato or whatever, in conjunction with, and it could be, but I don't know how to
Maren Ord (00:48:58):
Make that happen. I don't know how to make that happen anymore. And it's been 10 years of living here, having conversations with various people that I keep getting the word no. And I'm like, well, if I can't do it here, I'll have to do it somewhere else. So even rehearsal spaces, I was like, there's nowhere to rehearse here. I have to take it into Calgary, and it's just not what I wanted to build, I guess. But I also am not being in the arc. It's not like I have a ton of money to be like, oh, and getting grants. I know people are like, you can get a grant. No, you can't. It's not that easy. It's not that easy. A lot of work, and it doesn't come when you need it. And so it's not financially feasible to rehearse in Okotoks because there's not a lot of places to go. And unfortunately, there's nowhere to perform here. The theaters are just either not available, like the high schools or just, yeah, I'm just talking in circles now.
Carlin Lutzer (00:50:01):
No, but I guess a question for you, because you would know, but let's say Okotoks did have a theater that people wanted to rent and to perform in, what kind of bookings would that theater, do you think it would have? Would it be how many nights out of a year? I know it'd be hard for you to say, but would there be a demand not just from your production company, but from other businesses, other events, do you think?
Maren Ord (00:50:28):
I think that's why it was wise to make it like, Hey, this high school, in conjunction with the high school, because then the high school kids can utilize this and they can do their classes there. They can perform in it, but being able to have other bookings, it is hard to say because it seems like there's enough interest within the town. I'm in a world of musical theater and theater in general, and everyone that I know that's in theater wants it. But I can't say, oh, me alone, me alone. I couldn't keep that theater running. I wouldn't be able to book enough shows there to keep it running a boy. Would it be nice to have that available here in Okotoks? It also sounds like it's probably a first role problem.
Carlin Lutzer (00:51:23):
Well, yeah.
Maren Ord (00:51:24):
I'm getting really whiny about,
Carlin Lutzer (00:51:26):
But someone with your experience and your desires and passions for theater and the arts. I certainly am sympathetic towards a group that all they need is a facility to do this. It would be nice if they could combine it with a church where a church is built potentially being built, but they had in mind that, yes, we're going to open up our auditorium and build it so that maybe the church, a church is a way to go versus,
Maren Ord (00:51:56):
Yeah, I have no idea
Carlin Lutzer (00:51:58):
A school, but because, yeah, I imagine the costs would be astronomical, but if you can piggyback with someone else, whether it be in a church or a school, would be
Maren Ord (00:52:07):
Very beneficial. Honestly, the high school is honestly the best way to go. I know the HT A has a great theater, and I'm like, man, if they could even just build that for this new high school and just allow it to be open and so that I don't have to talk back and forth to the principal and they say, no, we can't accommodate
Carlin Lutzer (00:52:27):
You.
Maren Ord (00:52:29):
When I thought that they could and the town looked like, oh yeah, sure. And it just didn't work out that way, and I'm not sure why. And now they're like, no, nevermind. We're actually not going to build a theater. I'm like, well, then what options do I have here? I don't have any.
(00:52:44):
And so it is a little frustrating. It has felt like a bit of a fight. And I don't really love controversy if I'm being honest. I don't even talking about this on your podcast. I'm like, well, I don't want to. I don't know. I guess the real thing is I don't want to sound like this whiny little stuck up whatever, that I just want my theater. That's not really what it is. And it's not just my voice that feels that way. There's a lot of people in theater and in music too. A theater isn't just for play the musicals, it's also for bands and performances. The amount of times I played a theater across Canada, those are my favorite kinds of shows because of the venue. I've definitely preferred a theater over a bar, but there aren't that many theaters sometimes. And so it would serve more purposes than just theater, I guess. And especially if on a high school they get to utilize it too.
Carlin Lutzer (00:53:45):
In a perfect world, and you had the ability to build a theater in Okotoks, what would the seating capacity of that theater be?
Maren Ord (00:53:55):
Oh, man. I think honestly, something like 300 is perfect because I've done a show where it's just shy of 200 and it feels small. And I've done a show, my most recent show, it needed 530, and that felt like a lot. And we did good. We were able to sell it what we wanted to, but it still felt like a really, if you got a seat in the back, you're not getting the best view. So I feel like anywhere between two 50 to 300 is probably a really nice,
Carlin Lutzer (00:54:26):
A theater of 500, you're running a few shows, and then you might have a few empty seats, and then the feeling's just not the same
Maren Ord (00:54:31):
As well. Yeah, the feeling totally changes when it doesn't feel full. And I was doing a murder mystery in that theater, and I just thought, there's a few moments where you have to really be paying attention to what they're doing on stage. And if you're in the back corner, I was like, are they going to even see this moment that they need to see on stage? They're sitting way back there. That's a stage where you have to be doing really big, really big dancey stuff, which we did also do, but if you're doing anything intimate on stage, that's not a theater for you. But the YMCA seat in theater beat just under 200, you can see everything. You can hear everything. But it did feel like we had to do eight shows in order to recoup costs. You know what I mean? So I was like, that's a lot to ask for community theater. People that are like, I have a full-time job to do eight shows, which it was a lot of fun. But then at the big theater, we could only do four shows because that's all we could probably sell out.
(00:55:34):
And
(00:55:34):
So there's a business end to that where I'm like, I really do feel like anywhere. Yeah, two 50 to 300 would be
Carlin Lutzer (00:55:42):
Good.
Maren Ord (00:55:42):
Ideal.
Carlin Lutzer (00:55:43):
Maren, I have taken a lot of your time, but before we go, I have a really hypothetical question for you, and you can't, you can see what I'm doing, but I'm putting this in quote
Maren Ord (00:55:58):
Quo, do the quote, fingers.
Carlin Lutzer (00:55:59):
Yes. Hypothetical. Let's say someone was to have a daughter. And that daughter, she's 15 years old, and she's very talented. She's a great singer, even has some ability to act and she can mimic a lot of different people. And her singing range, she's actually been training quite a bit. So again, this is all hypothetical. She's 15 years old, but she's getting in front of people. She's a little shy. She doesn't love it, but she's so talented. But there's this hurdle that she needs to get over as to just being in front of people and showing and using her talents.
Maren Ord (00:56:47):
Don't be afraid to fail. You know what you're describing. Somebody who auditioned for my last play, she was the youngest person in the cast, and she came to her audition and she was shaking like a feather. You could tell she was nervous and she did her audition, but she had a lot of talent. And depending on the director, they might've been like the peace out. But I was like, no, I really want to see what you can do. So I was like, okay, just stop. Just breathe. And from a director standpoint, I want to see what she can really do instead. Of rather than being like, go audition and auditions are terrifying, you never really get a real spin sometimes from people. And so we'd spent a little bit more time with her and she was a freaking rock star. She was one of the best people on stage and one of the most memorable because how she just brought it. And so I just feel like don't be afraid to fail, I guess is what I would say. And I didn't know that when I was 15. I wish I did. I don't think I even figured that out until maybe five years ago.
(00:57:57):
And even then, it's so scary to sail because you don't want to look stupid or bad in front of people, but you're going to fail. You're going to suck. Sometimes you're going to have times where you go to that audition, you're like, I shook like a lease. And, and the directors might be like, okay, see you later. Or they might say, no, you know what, just take a breath. You're fine. We all are rooting for you. Let's do this again. Or let's try to, let's blah, blah, blah. And she ended up really relaxing into what she was trying to do and what she was trying to give us. And it was great. And I am so grateful that she had the, I dunno, the bravery. It's just taking that step. I've auditioned for professional theater and I've never gotten nothing, but mostly because I was like, I just want to see how it feels to step up from community theater and see what that feels like and see what that room feels like.
(00:58:58):
And I am pretty good. I'm pretty good at what I do. I'm not the best, but I feel like it's worth me trying to audition and fail so that I can be like, okay, what do I need to work on for my next audition? And to be honest, I don't really want to do professional theater because I can't memorize lines worth beans. My words really is composing and writing, not necessarily being on stage even though it's fun. But yeah, I would just say don't be afraid to fail inevitable, and it'll strengthen you. And even if you don't get that thing, it will build you up to do the next thing.
Carlin Lutzer (00:59:42):
Right, for sure.
Maren Ord (00:59:43):
Yeah.
Carlin Lutzer (00:59:43):
Yeah. No, that's great. Well, Maren, thank you so much for your time. Please keep in touch when you do have the next big theater presentation. And yeah, I look forward to seeing it and supporting you in any way. And yeah, I do hope that talks, no doubt have just been tabled temporarily in regards to some kind of theater for Oak tos, because I do think that would be, it would be booked a lot and used quite a bit if there was some kind of game plan moving forward. I
Maren Ord (01:00:21):
Think so. And honestly, I don't want to shoot anyone down this on the Town council. I don't want to make things sound like I don't appreciate all the work that's gone into them trying and looking for opportunities. I think that's admirable and great, and I hope that we can just keep trying, really.
Carlin Lutzer (01:00:37):
Yeah, absolutely. Perfect. Well, thank you, Maren. Look forward to crossing paths with you one day soon. Thanks for your time on the podcast, and please keep in
Maren Ord (01:00:48):
Touch. Thanks for having me.
Carlin Lutzer (01:00:50):
Okay, thanks Maren. Thanks for tuning into the Okotoks podcast. A huge thank you to Maren Ord for sharing her story and giving us a behind the scenes look at life as an artist from the songwriting desk to the theater stage. If you enjoyed this podcast, please consider leaving a review or sharing it with someone you know who loves music or theater. If you're an artist or a creator yourself, I hope Maren's journey reminds you that setbacks can be stepping stones and that community and creativity go hand in hand. Until next time, I'm Carlin. Thanks for listening.
Announcer (01:01:34):
You've been hanging out with us on the Okotoks podcast. Thanks to Carlin Lutzer Real Estate, we'll see you again real soon. I.