I’m in a place in my life where the pandemic taught me to take care of myself first a little bit more. With self care, things then fall in line around you versus trying to take care of other people, or take care of your job or try to serve something without serving yourself in a way that helps you and lends better results

I don’t think anyone can be unchanged by these 20 months from a social-political perspective, from a personal perspective, from not experiencing in person theatre. A lot of our work (from Theatre Passe Muraille) that is to come on our stages is work that was postponed from the pandemic. I’m definitely intrigued to see what’s to come.

“The advice I would give is to stay true to yourself and flourish without personal compromise.”

“Just Breath. Live your truth, no one else’s. Speak up; remember you have a voice. Soak up everything around you in the world, both the good and the bad because it all adds to you and is what makes you thrive in the end.”

When I was in my early 20s in Chicago for a year and a half performing ‘Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat’ with Donny Osmond…when he would enter the group of the ensemble it was a pretty sublime moment of being with him. He let go of who he was for the moment, and his kids, and his commitment to the show and he would just BE with us…

Initially there will be a struggle to bring audiences back safely. But once they feel safe and ready to return, they’ll be so hungry for a live experience. I’m hopeful that theatres will be able to capitalize on that energy.

“My advice to a young aspiring artist is totally cliche, but it works. FREE YOURSELF. BE YOURSELF. LOVE YOURSELF. Everything else is here today, gone tomorrow.”

“I would tell any young aspiring artist to do it because you love it. I would also say to study your craft. Love yourself, and learn as much as you can about other aspects of the industry. My sound advice is to leave no stone unturned.”

What intrigues me is seeing how theatre will be shaped as we start implementing more and more of the lessons we are learning … I am intrigued to see just how much we can decolonize this beloved art form and make it of use for the world we want to see.

I have a lot of close friends who surprised me in the way they are challenging the vaccinations and Covid. They challenged me on who I thought they were, and they were also challenged on who they thought I was. It really brought politics, beliefs and who you really to the forefront, and made you stand there and confront what’s happening.

“Lead, discover and create with love and curiosity.”

“Keep. Pushing. Forward. It is not always easy, but if you truly love what you do, it will happen for you. Continue to train, and always be authentically yourself.”

Rehearsals are going SOOO WELLL they’re a delight. I wake up every day excited before I’m even awake enough to know what I’m excited about. It’s wildly exciting and very stimulating. Chris (Abraham) is an excellent, excellent wingman to have as a dramaturg and as director…

“A teacher I love once told me to stop being a "human doing" and just be a "human being." I try to remind myself of that every day- both in life and in my work.”

As a female, I do have a somewhat marginalized viewpoint to share, because we’re still struggling to achieve gender parity in the theatre industry, but I’m extremely aware that there are voices far more marginalized than my own… is there a way for me to support those voices being heard in my role as an emerging playwright? That’s what I’m exploring now.

I’m very grateful for my early drama teachers - Dorothy Leitch in Kitchener at the Beckett School and Mrs. Catherine Carlson, my drama teacher, at Grand River Collegiate. Both these women were great teachers who believed in me and fueled my passion in acting. I’m also grateful to Andy Massingham…

“Some people will love this play. Some people might hate it. If they’re a certain kind of person, I actually hope they hate it. But regardless of whether or not they liked it, as I always say before my premieres, I hope it gets them thinking, and that it sparks conversation that will lead to serious action.”

I love directing. My insecurities as an actor leave me when I’m directing. When I think of a play, I never think of the part I want to play but the play I want to do. I often think I get hired as an actor, I love acting, but if someone told me tomorrow that I’m not going to be acting anymore, I’d be okay.

“Be curious. Work hard and then work harder than you thought you could.”

I’ve lost so much of my family time to the arts just with late nights and weekends, and all the demands the arts takes from you. I’ve really lost a good amount of family time over my lifetime. To have this time is an important place for me to continue to grow.