The Importance of Being Earnest

(she/her) Theatre Calgary debut. Kathleen is an emerging Filipino-Canadian artist, born and raised here in Mohkintsis. This past June she graduated with a BFA in Drama from the University of Calgary, and performed over the summer with Theatre Calgary’s touring Shakespeare on the Go production of The Merry Wives of Windsor. Other recent performance credits: Little Elves (ATP Playwrights Projects); Kisapmata (Lunchbox Theatre Stage One); Horse Girls, The Tao of the World, We The Same (UCalgary SCPA); The Mire, Lola, Nanay, Anak (Jupiter Theatre). As an artist of colour, she is eager to bring representation of her heritage onto the stage, and is grateful to be working again with Theatre Calgary as she continues her first steps into the world as a professional actor. She extends hugs and kisses to her mom, her partner, her friends, her professors, and her peers for helping her get this far. “I love you, and thank you! Mwah!”

(he/him) Christopher Duthie is a Calgary-based actor and playwright. He has been acting professionally for more than a decade in productions with Theatre Calgary, Vertigo Theatre, One Yellow Rabbit, Ghost River Theatre, Lunchbox Theatre, Quest Theatre, Alberta Theatre Projects and others. He is represented by Details Talent for voice over and film/tv, recently appearing in Under the Banner of Heaven, Ties That Bind and The Children of Ar. His plays and collaborative creations include A Dinner Party (Bad Knaps Theatre Collective – Gwen Pharis Ringwood Award for Drama Shortlist); n00b (Y-Stage Vertigo Theatre); SensoryBox/SensoryBox TYA with Eric Rose (Ghost River Theatre/Young People’s Theatre). He is currently developing his first rock opera, Identikit. He holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Guelph and a BFA in Drama from the University of Calgary. He lives in Calgary with his wife, Alexandra, and their cat, Isabelle.

(she/her) Emily is thrilled to be making her debut on the Max Bell stage in The Importance of Being Earnest! She received her BFA in Acting from the University of Alberta and studied Neo Bouffon at the Manitoulin Conservatory for Creation and Performance, better known as "The Clown Farm.” Credits include: Miss Teen (Shadow Theatre), A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Two Gentlemen of Verona (Theatre Calgary/Shakespeare by the Bow), The 30 Below Show (Chinook Blast), My Life with the Walter Boys (Netflix), and Joe Pickett (Paramount+). In addition to acting for the stage and screen, Emily works as a production assistant, coordinator, and set decorator in the film and television industry for productions including Property Brothers: Forever Home! She would like to thank her friends and family for their unending support, and Nicole and Mom, for carrying her always. For her own Earnest, Sam. @emilyjaynehoward

(he/him) Duval has had a long-standing relationship with Theatre Calgary since the mid 1970s. He was part of the Stagecoach Players, the touring arm of Theatre Calgary for several seasons and took that experience to co-found Quest Theatre which he ran for 25 years. He has been happily freelancing as an actor or director, and serving on Theatre Boards for the past 15 years. Memorable Theatre Calgary productions include Noises Off, The Crucible, To Kill A Mocking Bird, Liberation Days and Romeo and Juliet. Earlier this year he was featured in Cantata for Sage Theatre and in 2019 he played Pozzo in Waiting for Godot for Black Radish Theatre, a company he co-founded with three prominent Calgary actor friends. Stay tuned for what we will do next!

(she/her) Based in Calgary Alberta, Valerie is an award-winning actor, director, and arts educator with over 35 years’ experience on Stage and in Film and Television, in classical, contemporary, and new play development. She has taught at various post-secondary institutions, studios, and coaches privately for theatre and film. She garnered a graduate teaching award from the University of Alberta in 2014, the Michelle Dias Award from Theatre Alberta 2018; the Gina Wilkinson Prize in 2015 from the Shaw Festival. Valerie will next be seen at Vertigo Theatre in Gaslight in 2023.

(he/him) Theatre Calgary debut. Michael is a performer, writer, and improviser based out of Southern Alberta, and is beyond thrilled to join Theatre Calgary’s 2022-23 season in this iconic British classic as Jack or, as some people know him, Earnest. An avid world traveller, he made a timely visit to London before joining the cast of Importance. With more travel on the horizon, he will be working with Gwaandak Theatre and the Yukon Human Right’s Commission in January 2023 to tour a new production to schools across the territory. It may have been a while since we’ve all sat in a dark room together and laughed, but he can’t wait to indulge in that feeling with all the audiences of Calgary. Selected Credits: The Tempest (The Shakespeare Company), Between Us (Handsome Alice Theatre), The Ressurrectionists (Larrikin Theatre), Wynonna Earp (Seven24 Films/Syfy).

(he/him) For Theatre Calgary: One Man, Two Guvnors, Death of a Salesman, All My Sons, Cabaret, as well as many seasons as Christmas Present in A Christmas Carol. Audiences may recognize Kevin from his work on Calgary’s many professional stages, including ATP, Vertigo, Lunchbox Theatre, Sage Theatre, Stage West, Elipsis Tree Collective, Quest Theatre, and Stage West. His work has also taken him to British Columbia, Ontario, most of Atlantic Canada, and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia . He was a member of the “Streetact” team doing Popular theatre work for the Calgary Birth Control Association, engaging Calgary youth living on the street, in group homes, and in detention. Kevin is also a past member of “Dirty Laundry” - Calgary’s only live, completely improvised Soap Opera. He is a past Theatre Alberta Board member, and member of CALGARY’s ACTRA council. This past year, he had the pleasure of working on the Billy the Kid TV series filmed in the Calgary area.

(he/him) David is an actor/playwright who divides his time between Montreal and Calgary. He is a graduate of theatre from the Bristol Old Vic and playwriting from Concordia University. Crazy Love, his first play, has been published in an anthology entitled Out on a Limb. He was artist-in-residence at the Jerusalem Theatre Company, Shakespeare-in-the-Rough, and assistant directed the Canadian Badland’s Passion Play in Drumheller. He has acted with Theatre Calgary, Alberta Theatre Projects, Lunchbox, Theatre BSMT, Annerin Productions and Theatre NorthWest in B.C. He has toured across North America with the Dora Award nominated and META Award winning, Jabber, by Marcus Youssef and will be touring with A Dinosaur Tale across Western Canada in the new year. His latest play, Vial, was recently shortlisted for the Sharon Pollock Prize.

(she/her) Shari is absolutely delighted to return to Theatre Calgary where she spent ten years as part of the artistic staff from 2007-2017 as Artistic Associate, then Associate Artistic Director, and finally as Interim Artistic Director. In 2019-20 she was the Artistic Producer of Lunchbox Theatre. As an actor, she has appeared in productions at Vertigo Theatre, Alberta Theatre Projects, Theatre Calgary, Quest Theatre, Forte Musical Theatre, Lunchbox Theatre, Shadow Productions and the improvised soap-opera Dirty Laundry. She has also worked as a dramaturg for numerous workshops and productions at Theatre Calgary, Alberta Theatre Projects, Quest Theatre, Lunchbox Theatre, Alberta Playwrights Network, Vertigo Theatre, Swallow-A-Bicycle, and Bard on the Beach. Recent directing credits include Last Christmas, Book Club and Book Club II: The Next Chapter at Lunchbox Theatre, and Huck Finn for Storybook Theatre. She would like to thank her amazing husband Trevor for always being such a huge support in all her endeavours.

(she/her) Making her Theatre Calgary directing debut with one of her favourite plays of all time inspires Bronwyn with "feelings of unmixed delight." Bronwyn is a theatre director and community builder; she’s passionate about making theatre an inclusive gathering space where stories are shared that celebrate the diversity of human experience. She’s the Artistic Director of Lunchbox Theatre here in Calgary/Mohkinstsis, where last season she directed All I Want for Christmas by Rebecca Northan, and she has workshopped multiple plays as part of Lunchbox's Stage One Festival of New Canadian Work. She is the founding Artistic Director of Ottawa’s indie series TACTICS, and her credits as an award-winning freelance director include The Drowning Girls and Bang Bang (Great Canadian Theatre Company), The Revolutionists and Miss Shakespeare (Three Sisters Theatre) and Twelfth Night (A Company of Fools).

(he/him) Anton is a set, light, and sound designer based in Calgary, and the Production Manager for Lunchbox Theatre. Selected credits include: Noises Off, The Shoplifters (Theatre Calgary); Bronte: The world Without, HMS Pinafore, Treasure Island (Stratford Festival); Murder in the Studip, CLue, Whispers in the Dark, Dracula: The Bloody Truth, Nine Dragons, Travels with My Aunt (Vertigo Theatre); Giant (Ghost River); Waiting for the Parade, The Circle (ATP); All’s Well That Ends Well, Macbeth, Goblin Macbeth, King Lear (The Shakespeare Company); Smoke, Crime Does Not Pay, In the Wake, Good Fences, Sequence (Downstage); Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Jersey Boys (Stage West). Anton received the Betty Mitchell Award for Outstanding Light Design for Macbeth, All’s Well That Ends Well, and Nine Dragons; and Outstanding Set Design for Travels with My Aunt and Crime Does Not Pay. Up next: Struck with Ghost River Theatre.

(she/her) Theatre Calgary debut. Ralamy is deeply grateful for the opportunity to work with these creative souls, especially the extraordinary costume team. It is a gift to learn from the best! The first professional play Ralamy saw was Earnest at TC in the late-1970’s when she fell in love with theatre. She has a BFA in Drama and a Master’s degree in Anthropology. Recent design credits: Fresh Hell (Fire Exit); Screwball Comedy (Stage West); The Importance of Being Earnest, Much Ado About Nothing (CYPT); Hair, Sweet Charity (Brown Cow Collective); Twelfth Night (Ambrose College); Annie, The Neverending Story (Storybook Theatre); Waiting for Godot (Black Radish Theatre). Ralamy also works in film and is the co-founder of The Costume Collective (an industry costume rental warehouse). She thanks her beloved family: Hugh (costume illustrator extraordinaire), Avalon, Aidan, Maya & Juno. Thank you for your beautiful mind Mr. Wilde.

(she/her) Beth is a theatre-maker and an award-winning lighting, set, projection, and mixed-reality designer whose work has been seen on stages around the world for over 30 years. For Theatre Calgary she has designed Steel Magnolias, Ragtime: A Concert Performance, and this past summer’s Shakespeare on the Go - The Merry Wives of Windsor. A leader in new forms of performance, she recently led a VR Performance residency at Canadian Stage, and co-created and directed Bury The Wren, a Virtual Reality / Live performance which will next be presented at World Stage Design in Calgary. Her favorite production is her son, Aaron. www.playgroundstudios.ca

(she/her) Theatre Calgary design debut. Alixandra was previously a TC Mentee for Sound Design for The Scarlet Letter. Elsewhere: All I Want For Christmas, The Pink Unicorn (Lunchbox Theatre); Grace & Glorie, Lilia! (Rosebud Theatre); Kodachrome (Fire Exit Theatre); Bright Lights (Theatre BSMT). Alixandra also works as an actor and composer for musical theatre. You may have seen her onstage last season in Alberta Kitchen Party at Alberta Theatre Projects, where she also had the privilege of composing, arranging, and playing some of the music heard on stage. Home For The Holidays, a musical co-written by Alixandra Cowman and Cayley Wreggitt, will receive its world premiere at Lunchbox Theatre this Christmas. She is also in the midst of writing a new musical with Kodie Rollan entitled Little Elves, which was a part of Alberta Theatre Projects’ 2021-22 Playwright’s Unit. Many thanks to Conrad and her family for the boundless love and support!

(she/her) For Theatre Calgary: Resident Voice Coach – More than 60 productions since 2000 including Million Dollar Quartet, Steel Magnolias, Admissions, The Louder We Get, Noises Off, Billy Elliot the Musical, The Scarlet Letter, Mary and Max – A New Musical, Honour Beat, 11 seasons of Shakespeare by the Bow and 15 years of A Christmas Carol. Recently, Jane adapted and directed the 2022 Shakespeare on the Go production of The Merry Wives of Windsor. She has also worked for ATP, is the Voice & Dialect Consultant for Vertigo Theatre and the Voice & Text Coach for The Shakespeare Company. Jane also coaches Voice and Presence through her business Voice Activated. She has taught Voice for the Actor and Acting at such institutions as York University, Harvard University, Southern Methodist University, MRU, UofA, and is currently on faculty in the Drama Division in the School of Creative & Performing Arts at the UofC. Jane lives in Mohkínstsis, with her husband and daughter, and their sweet lab, Trixie.

(she/her) For Theatre Calgary: BOOM, BOOM X, BOOM YZ. Elsewhere: BOOM (Thousand Islands Playhouse & Off-Broadway); BOOM X (Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre); Murder in the Studio (Vertigo); Flora and Fawna Have Beaver Fever (Lunchbox); The Wizard of Oz and The Sound of Music (Western Canada Theatre); Buying the Farm, Annie, Fiddler on the Loose (Drayton Entertainment); 60+ productions at Stage West Calgary, including: Jersey Boys, Legally Blonde, Rock of Ages, Avenue Q, The Producers, Game Show, 39 Steps, Chicago, Spamalot, Young Frankenstein, Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story. Laurel would like to dedicate her work to the loving memory of her mom, who helped her find her love of theatre at young age. She would also like to thank her family and friends for their unending love and support.

(she/her) Theatre Calgary debut. Claire is thrilled to be joining the Theatre Calgary team! She is a graduate of the University of Calgary’s Drama department (BFA ’09), and has made her career as a stage manager, performer, producer, and educator. Upon graduating she was granted an internship with Quest Theatre, and has remained a part of the company as a member of their Artist in Residency Program and Camp Coordinator. Along with being a member of these programs Claire is a teacher for Puddle of Mud Productions, a member of Calgary Opera’s Let’s Create An Opera Program, and Co-Artistic Director of Full Circle Theatre. Past Stage Management credits include: O’kosi; Time Stands Still; Kaahsinnoniks (ASM) (Making Treaty 7 Cultural Society); Girl Discovered; UNGANISHA (Woezo Africa Dance Theatre); Sherlock Holmes and the Vanishing Thimble; Sherlock Holmes and the Raven’s Curse (ASM) (Vertigo Theatre); Hamlet: A Ghost Story (Vertigo Theatre/The Shakespeare Company/Hit & Myth Productions).

(she/her) Theatre Calgary debut. Naomi is thrilled to be working with Theatre Calgary this season! Her favourite Stage Management credits include; Heaven (Lunchbox Theatre); Much Ado About Nothing (CYPT); Men Express Their Feelings (Downstage); A Christmas Story, Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Christmas Carol, The Christians (Rosebud Theatre); [titleofshow] (Birnton Theatricals); and Junie B. Jones; The Musical (Storybook Theatre). She is also an actor, musician, seamstress, part-time princess, and baker of many cupcakes.

(they/them) Theatre Calgary debut. Andrés Moreno is a proud Colombian artist, creator, and a settler to Turtle Island. Storytelling for them is a tool to build community connection while continuing the tradition of sharing wisdom. Mostly Andrés has been working to increase representation and reflectivity in their work. Their interests include multi-media, puppetry, film, playwriting, directing, creation work, design, and piña coladas. Previous directing credits include Like Orpheus (Theatre Outré); Ray and Cora Plan a Heist (Azimuth Theatre); A Puppet’s Midsummer Nights Dream (Freewill Festival); Party Animal (Thousand faces Festival); A Didi Christmas Carol (Theatre Outré); and Bard in the Big Top (Primestock Theatre). Andrés is forever grateful for the privilege to work and live within Treaty 6 and Treaty 7 territory, and holds it a priority to give back to those communities whose land they are residing in. If you want to learn more about whose lands you are on, please visit native-land.ca.

(he/him) Brendan is beyond thrilled to be joining Theatre Calgary in his first production here. Brendan has been involved in the theatre / digital media creation world in various capacities over the years. From performing on cruise ships and the Toronto area, receiving his diploma in Visual Effects to most recently acting as the Head of Projection at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, he is very excited to be assisting Beth and bringing his talents to the theatre. Thank you Mark for always being my guiding light. brendanbriceland.com  IG: @bsquaredcreative