PLAYWRIGHT

Nicolas Billon is an award-winning Canadian playwright and screenwriter whose works have been staged worldwide and translated into multiple languages. His debut play The Elephant Song premiered at the Stratford Festival in 2004 and was later adapted into a feature film, earning him a Canadian Screen Award and a Writers Guild of Canada Award. His acclaimed triptych Iceland, Butcher, and Fault Lines won the 2013 Governor General’s Literary Award for Drama. Raised in Montreal and now based in Waterloo, Billon is recognized as one of Canada’s most compelling theatrical voices. Billon’s play The Neighbours premiered in 2019 with Theatre Office Natori in Japan. N.B.

DIRECTOR

Matt White is a director, actor, dramaturg, educator, and producer with over 20 years’ experience in Canadian theatre. He is the Co-Founder and Artistic Director of Green Light Arts. He has directed numerous productions for Green Light Arts and beyond and is the recipient of two Region of Waterloo Arts Awards. Matt is also an adjunct professor at the University of Waterloo and the National Theatre School of Canada. Originally from Kitchener, he is dedicated to building a thriving arts community in Waterloo Region.

SET & PROPS DESIGNER

Kelly Wolf is a Theatre Maker, a Set and Costume designer and an Artist Educator who is interested in exploring the ways that design can augment the theatrical experience. Recent Theatre Design work includes The Last Timbit at the Elgin Theatre, The Farmerettes, Team on the Hill, Judith and Berlin Blues at the Blyth Festival, Hare and Tortoise, Pop Pop, and the Incredible Adventures of Mary Jane Mosquito with Carousel Theatre. Multiple designs with Shaw Festival, Stratford Festival, Brock University and Sheridan College. 

Recent work has taken her into the realm of site-specific theatre creation with her Hamilton Arts Award winning company Open Heart Arts Theatre in Hamilton.

COSTUME DESIGNER

Des'ree is a Toronto based Costume Designer with experience in film and theatre. She is a graduate of Toronto Metropolitan University's Production Design Program and takes pride in her abilities at all stages of the design process. She recently received two 2024 Dora Mavor Moore Award nominations for outstanding Costume Design, and a 2024 Virginia and Myrtle Cooper Award in Costume Design nomination.

Recent productions include: Romeo and Juliet (George Brown Theatre School), Beyonsea and the Mothers (Green Lights Arts), Anna Karenina (George Brown Theatre School), Seven Methods of Killing Kylie Jenner (Obsidian Theatre), Tyson’s Song (Pleiades Theatre & Factory Theatre), Three Fingers Back (Tarragon Theatre), Three Sisters (Stratford Festival Conservatory), Jesus Christ Superstar (Talk is Free Theatre), Appropriate (Coal Mine Theatre), and The Musical McCoy (Paper Mill Theatre).

LIGHTING DESIGNER

Paul Cegys’ work merges multiple practices of performance creation and design, from theatre and opera to site-specific installation and intermedial mixed-reality scenographies. He has worked abroad in Italy, Finland, Czech Republic, India, Sweden, Denmark, Belgium, Poland, Lithuania, the United States, and for such companies as La Monnaie/De Munt (Royal Belgian Opera), Canadian Opera Company, CanStage, Soulpepper Theatre Company, and Opera Hamilton. Upholding his commitment to ecological imperatives he merges his artistic work with his sustainability practice (MSc. in Sustainability Science and Environmental Studies, Lunds University, Sweden). Paul is the Co-Creator of Blue Hour VR, a site-responsive mixed-reality performance premiered at the 2019 Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design. He is also the Co-Creator of Individuality and Interconnection, a 360º video project that maps the creative processes and spaces of Canadian performance designers. He is the digital scenographer for The Home, a VR experience designed for the Digital Oral Histories for Reconciliation project funded by the SSHRC and in partnership with Oculus VR. He currently serves on the advisory board of the Toasterlab Mixed Reality Performance Atelier.

Paul teaches in the Theatre and Performance Program at the University of Waterloo. He is a PhD. Candidate in the School of Arts, Design and Architecture at Aalto University in Finland.

PERFORMER (Denise)

Ordena Stephens-Thompson is a professional actor and acting coach who has worked in the theatre, television and film industry for many years. She is a two time Dora nominated actress and two time Dora award recipient for best ensemble. Her selected theatre credits includes, It’s A Wonderful Life (New Stages Theatre), Sankofa A Soldier’s Tale Reimaged (Art of Time Ensemble), A Streetcar Named Desire (Soulpepper), Three Sisters (Soulpepper/Obsidian Theatres), Fairview (Canadian Stage/Obsidian Theatres), ’Da Kink in My Hair 20th Anniversary (Soulpepper/TO Live), Contraction (Studio 180 Reads), Sweat (Canstage/Studio 180), Fences (Grand Theatre), Harlem Duet (Tarragon Theatre), Risky Phil (YPT), Other Side of the Game (Cahoots/Obsidian Theatre), For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow Is Enuf (Soulpepper Theatre), How Black Mothers Say I Love You (Factory Theatre). Selected television and film credits include, Back in Black (Feature Film), Small Achievable Goals, Law and Order Toronto, Finch and Midland (Feature Film), Skymed, Christmas at the Drive Inn, Ruby and the Well, The Handmaid’s Tale, Kings of Napa, Hudson & Rex, Salt n’ Pepa, Grand Army, Umbrella Academy, Da kink in my hair (TV series, 2 seasons).

The art of storytelling is a passion and a privilege.

PERFORMER (Simon)

Theatre acting credits: Motel Hélène, Sideman, Little Mercy’s First Murder, Alias Godot, The Real World, The Golden Dragon, A God in Need of Help, Mustard, The Summoned (Tarragon Theatre); Butcher,  God of Carnage (Mirvish/ Studio 180); Jesus Hopped the A Train, Betrayal (Soulpepper); The Africa Trilogy (Volcano Theatre); Another Africa, Wild Dogs, The Cosmonauts Last Message… (Canstage); Paradise By The River (Centaur); A Streetcar Named Desire ( Theatre Calgary); A Woman is a Secret (Theatre Centre); Problem Child, Home is my Road, The Gwendolyn Poems ( Factory); The Seagull, The Dirty Beautiful, Unidentified Human Remains (Crows); Hosanna (Buddies in Bad Times); Murderers Confess at Christmastime (Outside the March). Tony has been nominated for two Doras, Two Actra Awards, one CSA Award and a Broadway World Award. He has 215 film and television credits and is a self-proclaimed National Treasure.

PERFORMER

Richard Tse was born in Indonesia, grew up in Hong Kong, and came to Canada when he was 18. Richard has a background in Computer Science and worked as an IT professional in finance and insurance for 15 years before pursuing a career in the performing arts. Select Theatre: Ga Ting (ARTillary Collective), Red Snow (Toronto & Shanghai - Red Snow Collective), Tuesdays with Morrie (Cantonese – TorCanAA), Jasmine, Pu-Erh (Summerworks Festival, Stage One Prod), Iron Road (Tapestry Music Theatre, Dora winner for Best New Musical). Select Film & Television: Finch & Midland, Umbrella Academy, The Unrestricted War, Second Jen, Mayday, Inside These Walls, Baroness von Sketch Show, Bloodletting & Miraculous Cures, Rick Mercer Report, Nikita, The Border.   

STAGE MANAGER

APPRENTICE STAGE MANAGER