From Flin Flon to the Toronto stage, the inspiring journey of a gay disabled person

The musical comedy, “The Flin Flon Cowboy”, which is inspired by the life of its creator, Ken Harrower, a homosexual and disabled man from northern Manitoba, will be presented at the Passe Muraille Theater from October 19 to November 2. This work explores themes of identity and love, with an authentic touch of the Canadian North.

Ken Harrower is originally from Flin Flon, a Manitoba community of just over 5,000 people located about 630 kilometers northwest of Winnipeg.

Met one day during rehearsals, this long-haired man in a motorized wheelchair showed no visible signs of enthusiasm.

Ken Harrower, 63, suffers from arthrogryposis multiplex congenita. He used a wheelchair his entire life and faced many challenges, spending his first five years mainly in hospital.

An employee told me that my mother had put me in a trash can. After that, I became a ward of the province of Manitoba from about the age of five.

A life of chasing your dream

During his childhood, Ken Harrower also lived in Winnipeg, with five foster families until he was 18. Her experiences, recounted in the play, range from abuse to empowerment.

Around the age of 19 or 20, the social worker gave him an ultimatum. It was either I got into an institution or I was on my own. I told him: [… ]no, I will not go to an institution.

The decision marked the start of a series of ups and downs for Mr Harrower. After moving to Vancouver in 1986, then to Waterloo in 1987 to continue his studies, he finally confronted a repressed aspect of his personality.

I knew since I was 10 that I liked boys, but I didn’t come out until 1997-1998, at age 37. he said.

Unable to integrate into the small gay community of Waterloo, he left that city in 1999 for Toronto, where he began to realize his dreams, including becoming an actor through the drama program at the Toronto Film School.

I started at drama school in 2011, and found that most of the teachers had bet that I wouldn’t make it to the end. However, I graduated in 2013 with honors.

After appearing in a few short films, he decided to make a place for himself on stage.

It all really started when he made contact with Marjorie Chan, then artistic director of the Cahoots Theatre today artistic director of the Théâtre Passe Muraille.

One day I got up the courage to go to Cahoots Theater and introduce myself and said, “Hey, I’m a new actor and I don’t know any directors, could you help me find some A ?”

In 2023, he was starring in a play called Access Mewhich featured him and two other disabled homosexuals.

It was while working on this show that Mr. Harrower met Debbie Patterson, artistic director of the Sick and Twisted Theatrebased in Winnipeg, and local artist with disabilities.

Ken is a fascinating man said Debbie Patterson, who helped create The Flin Flon Cowboy.

He had to fight hard to lead an independent life. It’s amazing that he’s still alive, considering the hardships he faced and how he started life.

Since I started acting, I wanted to put my story to music explains Ken Harrower.

He spent about eight years working on this piece, and now that it’s about to be staged, I’m very happy about it he declared.

It is hoped that the play will have a future beyond its presentation in Toronto, including in Winnipeg, concludes Ken Harrower.

With information from Randall King