actor

as an actor, i’ve worked with heaps of people i admire so much, i’m surprised i could squeak a word out when required.

i trained at red deer college and the university of alberta, B.A. stream. i’m proud of the latter because we were the underdogs in the program, and some of the finest fighting artists hearts i know – pj prudat, leah simone bowen, chris hanratty, chris stanton – took the same path at the u of a. we fought for minimal rights to the resources our tuitions allegedly paid for, sometimes staying in hallways overnight to try to grab a small parcel of  rehearsal space. this schooled us in the ins and outs of indie theatre in the best possible way.

while my primary practise is now as a playwright, i came to it through my first love, which was embodying the stories – as a job, we call it acting. i’ve been out of the game for awhile, now, not pursuing auditions or opportunities to be on stage, but now and then a beautiful offer is made me and i gratefully accept. my intention is to do a lot more acting and making of every kind, now that i am free of the onerous honour of being the NEPA AD, and free of all that entails. though i am grateful for my time at NEPA, i don’t do well with office hours and environs. here’s to more creating, and less desktime!

SELECTED CREDITS:
The Hours That Remain by Keith Barker. An NHP/SNTC theatrical co-pro hit huge with the SATAs. we were very thrilled when Dr. Lillian E. Quan came to the show one night in s’toon. every night there was a hugely supportive parade of brave souls who shared their own stories with us. much gratitude.
Foundlings at imagineNATIVE, alongside Michael Greyeyes. a multi-disc work that, truthfully, greyeyes and i both directed. andy moro also helped us bring the iteration to performance readiness.
Thy Neighbour’s Wife first with UnSpun Theatre and then with Urban Curvz. i was nominated for an acting Dora and Betty, respectively, though did not win either. the bettys had me nominated with the magnificent valerie planche, who directed the calgary production – she and i hugged each other in relief when neither of us took the big glass prize, which later was dropped and shattered in the can at the Auburn.
I’m Not the Indian You Had in Mind a short film directed and written by my beloved Thomas King. a Big Soul Production, tom and i got to spend the day with lorne cardinal in a very strange empty warehouse on queen st. west. tom and i went shopping for blundstones for him that day. the clerk asked “any relation to stephen king?”, and tom said yes, but that steve got all the writing talent in the family.
Eustache Wake by the wonderfully talented and kind Alan Dilworth and vibrant Jorge Gidi. this was a Belltower SummerWorks show. NOW magazine noted me as an outstanding performer in the festival that year, ever nice.
Dead Dog in the City the CBC Radio series. the fiery kathleen flaherty directed/produced. on day one i was so excited to be working alongside tom, i kept making inappropriate jokes. thank goodness he laughed at them. and then we ended up calling graham greene, so he could record his “Bluebird of Happiness” lines. i nearly fainted.
This is Wonderland, the CBC TV series. i was in two episodes of this, as were most actors in TO at the time. my first day on set, yanna mcintosh asked for an impromptu, casual meeting with george f. walker and i to discuss the scene we would be shooting. i played it pretty cool, though. then i sat at a lunch table with diane d’aquila and michael healey. quite surreal. the second episode i did, i played billy merasty’s girlfriend. curiouser and curiouser!

i’ve also worked on a few collective creations, which was the focus of the stream i took at the u of a. i’m not sure about them anymore. collaborations, hell yes – but collective creations? perhaps it’s of a certain time in one’s career. perhaps it will return for me some day.
in the meantime, i continue to write works i will act in, and far more that are for other actors i continually marvel at.