The creator of CBC’s hit series “Little Mosque on the Prairie,” Zarqa Nawaz, will speak about creating and developing a comedy series that has drawn large audiences in Canada, and share her experiences of how producing the show has helped her bring into the open, in a light-hearted and comedic way, issues of culture, justice, tolerance and respect that are central to contemporary Canadian life. The show’s local setting will provide a context for her discussion on Saskatchewan society as a reflection of Canadian cultural values in transition.

Nawaz will deliver her talk entitled “Big Humour on the Prairies” on Thursday, March 22, at 7:30 p.m. in the Education Auditorium, University of Regina. It is free to the public.

Nawaz, who lives in Regina, was born in Liverpool and raised in Toronto, where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree and a Bachelor of Applied Arts in Journalism. She has worked as a freelance writer and broadcaster for CBC and CTV. Her work includes award-winning radio documentaries and two short films, both of which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. She recently completed a feature-length screenplay entitled, “Real Terrorists Don't Belly.”

In 1989, Dr Elsie Maude Stapleford established an endowment for a lecture series at the University of Regina in honour of her parents, Dr. Ernest W. Stapleford and Mrs. Maude Stapleford. Ernest Stapleford was the president of Regina College from 1915 to 1934, and principal from 1934 to 1937. Maude Stapleford was active in the community, taking a particular interest in the arts and in the advancement of the rights of women and children.

Each year the lecture touches on one or more of the following areas: human justice, the status of women, the education and care of young children, the rights of disadvantaged groups, and the history and art of Saskatchewan.

For more information, please contact Jennifer Arends at
585-4226. Free parking is available in Lot 15 in designated “M” areas.