We are truly grateful for our Board of Directors. They are vital members of our Bard family and they give generously of their time and expertise to provide the oversight and guidance that helps our not-for-profit Festival Society stay healthy and strong. Today we’re proud to introduce you to two new Directors, Marian Ngo and Aveen Maharaj, and to say a heartfelt thank you to two retiring Directors: Dr. Jim Bovard and Doug Welch. These changes were made official at our recent 2020 Annual General Meeting.


Marian Ngo – Director (2021)

Marian has been an avid fan of great works of prose and verse since she was a child and she looks forward to doing her part in supporting the ongoing Vancouver tradition of Bard on the Beach. She believes in promoting the relevancy and wonderfulness of Shakespeare’s timeless works for future generations, in ways that are specific to the changing times.

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Aveen Maharaj – Director (2021)

Aveen is the current principal at nuHaus.ca, a development and construction company servicing the Metro Vancouver area. With his formal education in structural architecture, he has helped the company grow from single family residential to several arms of construction, development and investment.

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We say “welcome” to Marian and to Aveen, with our hopes that your new relationship with Bard will bring you much happiness and satisfaction. Meantime, we say thank you (but not goodbye!) to two precious members of our family, who have completed their final terms on the Board.


Dr. Jim Bovard

Jim has served as a Director since 2008, and Board Chair from 2013-2019. He has brought both organizational leadership and health and safety expertise to Bard, including the creation of an Integrated Support Team to serve our Company artists. Many of our artists and administrators owe him a personal debt for his generous consults when they’ve faced a health issue.  Jim is a respected sports physician who serves as the Team Physician for both the Vancouver Canucks and the Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club, while maintaining a busy North Shore family practice. Despite his demanding schedule, we’re excited to say that he’s about to take on a new official role with Bard; details coming soon!

Douglas Welch

Doug has served on the Bard Board since 2013. He has given generously his time and expertise, in particular through the complex process of designing and constructing our state of the art administrative facility, the BMO Theatre Centre. Doug has contributed a deep understanding of performing arts facilities and stage design, gained through his many years of work with performing arts presenters as the founder of DWD Design Associates, Western Canada’s most successful theatre consulting firm, and his current business, Eos Lightmedia, a lighting and audiovisual design firm focused on architecture, themed attractions, museums, and public art installations. We will miss him at the Board table, and he leaves with our deep gratitude.