Guest Artists 2010 - 11

David Jansen

Director, Attempts On Her Life

David Jansen most recently directed Harold Pinter’s Betrayal for BeMe Theatre in Munich and The Return of Corporal Mazenet at the 2010 Summerworks Festival. He also played Clive and Cathy in the Mirvish production of Cloud Nine. He spent the four years prior with the Shaw Festival; and has played leading roles at most of Toronto’s theatres including Canadian Stage, Tarragon, Soulpepper, Passe Muraille, Necessary Angel, Factory, Theatre Centre. He was a member of the Peter Hall Company in the UK. And he performed at Stratford for five seasons. David is also proud of his work with The Wrecking Ball and with Wild Pig Theatre, notably in The Conquest of the South Pole (Dora Award) and Greek. Coming up: David will be performing in The Cosmonaut’s Last Message... at Canadian Stage, directed by Jennifer Tarver.

Jennifer Tarver

Director, Attempts On Her Life

Originally from New York, Jennifer Tarver is based in Toronto and works internationally in both opera and theater. She recently made her debut with the Goodman Theater in Chicago where she directed Krapp's Last Tape with Brian Dennehy. She has been directing at Canada’s Stratford Shakespeare Festival for the past three years, where her works include Krapp's Last Tape, Zastrozzi and the world premiere of George F. Walker's King of Thieves. Canadian premieres include Crave at Nightwood Theatre, Thom Pain (based on nothing) at Tarragon Theatre and Ines, a contemporary Fado opera at Queen of Puddings Music Theatre. Her own works as adaptor/creator include Not Faust, History Play and the award winning She's Gone Away with choreographer Susanna Hood. She has directed opera at the Royal Conservatory of Music and the University of Toronto, including The Rape of Lucretia, L'Enfant et les Sortileges, The Magic Flute, The Turn of the Screw and A Midsummer Night's Dream. Canadian honors include Best Director 2007 in Now Magazine and both the John Hirsch Director's Award and the 2006 Pauline McGibbon Award in Directing. Her composition of Beckett plays, That Time – Five Beckett Shorts, garnered eight Dora Award nominations and four wins, including Best Director and Best Production. She is currently in development with a new work based on Calderon's Life is a Dream.

Ruth Madoc Jones

Director, The Girls Who Saw Everything

Ruth Madoc-Jones is an award-winning performer, dramaturge and director and co-founder of Les Vaches (the ecstatics, Jekyll and STEM). Directing credits include SPIN by Evalyn Parry (Hysteria Festival/Buddies in Bad Times Theatre), The Enormous Radio by Michael Healey (Diaspora Dialogues), Madness of the Square by Marjorie Chan (Cahoots Theatre Projects/Factory Theatre), them & us by Tracy Dawson (Theatre Passe Muraille), Bird Brain by Vern Theissen (LKTYP, 2009 Dora Nomination Best Production), Three Birds by Joanna Laurens (Ryerson Theatre School), Stitch – an a cappella opera by Anna Chatterton and Juliet Palmer, Dora nomination Best Opera), a nanking winter by Marjorie Chan (Nightwood Theatre/Cahoots Theatre Projects), The Drawer Boy by Michael Healey (Theatre Passe Muraille), The Gladstone Variations – Requiem for a Hotel by Mike McPhaden (Convergence Theatre, 2009 Dora nomination Best Direction and 2007 NOW Magazine Outstanding Production), Antony and Cleopatra (Shakespeare in the Rough) and Dreary and Izzy by Tara Beagan (Native Earth Performing Arts). She has dramaturged and directed work for the Eastern Front Festival, the Rhubarb! Festival, the Groundswell Festival, the Paprika Festival, the Hysteria Festival and the Summerworks Theatre Festival. Ongoing work in development includes Free as Injuns with Tara Beagan, and a new solo work by Marie-Josée Chartier. Upcoming work includes Hum by Susanna Hood (Buddies in Bad Times Theatre), Bird by Sonja Mills (Union Eight Theatre) and a new opera with Queen of Puddings. Ruth is an active member of the Wrecking Ball and is on the board of directors for the Summerworks Theatre Festival. She was the recipient of the 1998 K.M. Hunter Award and the 2008 John Hirsch Director's Award. Ruth is a graduate of the Acting Program at the National Theatre School of Canada.

Stewart Arnott

Director, Unity (1918)

Stewart Arnott has been an actor on stage and screen, a director and a teacher for almost 35 years.

As a director, Stewart's work includes the world premiere of POBBY & DINGAN on the mainstage at LKTYP (Toronto); MASTER HAROLD & THE BOYS; KILT and STRAWBERRIES IN JANUARY at Prairie Theatre Exchange (Winnipeg); AMADEUS and THE MYSTERY OF IRMA VEP at Theatre Aquarius (Hamilton); and PATIENCE; UNITY(1918) and DEMOCRACY at The Great Canadian Theatre Co. (Ottawa). He has also directed at George Brown Theatre School, Ryerson Theatre School and Theatre Humber.

Recent acting highlights onstage include HALLAJ and WAITING FOR GODOT (Modern Times Theatre Co.); LADY IN THE RED DRESS (fu-GEN Theatre Co.); the lead in THE CARD TRICK (THE GLADSTONE VARIATIONS) at the Gladstone Hotel; starring with Dixie Seatle in the Canadian premiere of Edward Albee's THE GOAT ( GCTC); and the premiere production of THE LAST DAYS OF JUDAS ISCARIOT (Birdland Theatre).

His many television credits include series lead in the CBC soap opera RIVERDALE, as well as principal appearances in the upcoming miniseries THE KENNEDYS and MURDOCH MYSTERIES. Film credits include LESLIE, MY NAME IS EVIL; LOVE, SEX & EATING THE BONES; ABSOLON; and the acclaimed shorts TRAILING ARBUTUS and THE OLD WAYS.

Stewart has taught acting at George Brown Theatre School, The Players Academy, Teatro Escambray (Cuba), The Actors Workshop, and C.A.S.T. He is also a busy private coach.

Teresa Przybylski

Set and Costume Designer, Attempts On Her Life

Teresa Przybylski is an architect and a theatre designer. She is known for her designs in theatre, opera, dance and film. Her credits include designs for National Arts Centre, Stratford Shakespeare Festival, Shaw Festival, Canadian Opera Company, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Pacific Opera, Young Peoples Theatre, Tarragon Theatre, Factory Theatre, Nightwood Theatre, Canadian Stage, Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, Blyth Festival, Theatre Smith - Gilmour, Theatre Columbus, Pleiades Theatre and others.

Her theatre work in theatre was awarded with five Dora Mavor Moore Awards and several Nominations. She is a recipient of two Gemini Awards for Production Design. She is a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts and Associated Designers of Canada. She teaches Theatre Design at York University.

Vicki St.Denys

Choreographer, Ryerson Dances

Vicki St.Denys is one of Canada’s leaders in the field of jazz dance and has toured internationally as a performer, teacher and choreographer. Her unique blend of authentic jazz music and original choreography along with a solid technical dance foundation has made her a most sought after dance artist both here in Canada and the United States. Currently, she is a full time faculty member at Ryerson University where she teaches jazz, creative studies, musical theatre, is a resident choreographer and also produces Choreographic Works. Vicki has choreographed for television, film, video, theatre and most recently opera, including The Cunning Little Vixen, Carmen, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Dido and Aeneas for the Opera as Theatre program at the Banff Centre for the Arts. Other credits include: original works, Suite Second Thoughts performed in Austria at the 8th international Ballet Festival; Pulse and Interstice at Premiere Dance Theatre in Toronto; new works for ROTO Dance Festival in Rochester, NY and Ballet Kelowna’s 2009/2010 season; and a new adaptation of Pride and Prejudice for the Citadel Theatre in Edmonton, AB, which garnered a Sterling award nomination for choreography. In June 2009, Vicki presented her paper titled "Death of Jazz: Metamorphosis and Reconciliation" at the Society for Canadian Dance Studies conference. Vicki also serves as an assessor for the Canada Council for the Arts, Dance Division. From 2000-2007 she was jazz pedagogue and choreographer for the dance program at The Banff Centre for the Arts. Vicki holds a Master of Arts degree in dance from York University.

Kate Hilliard

Choreographer, Ryerson Dances

Kate Hilliard began her preparation for a professional career in dance at the Quinte Ballet School in Belleville, Ontario where she completed eight years of classical ballet training. She then moved to the School of Dance in Ottawa to attend the Professional Training Program in Modern Dance. During her time in Ottawa she trained with Peter Boneham at Le Groupe Dance Lab and performed with the company in 2003. Hilliard was one of six emerging artists in Canada selected to work with Paul-André Fortier in his creation /Risque/, which toured extensively for three years. She performed in Sylvie Desrosier’s Flots at the 2006 Canada Dance Festival in Ottawa and has worked with Berlin’s Tino Sehgal, performing his Kiss at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Kate was a full time company member of Dancemakers and the Centre for Creation in Toronto under the directorship of Michael Trent from 2006 to 2010. She is currently working with Susie Burpee. Hilliard’s choreographic projects have enabled her to be mentored by established Canadian artists: Yvonne Coutts, Heidi Strauss, Bonnie Kim, Michael Trent, Hélène Blackburn, Peter Boneham and Margie Gillis. She has participated in several choreographic labs at Dancemakers and her works have been presented in Guelph, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Toronto and New York City.

Robert Glumbek

Choreographer, Ryerson Dances

Bio to come

Heidi Strauss

Choreographer, Ryerson Dances

Bio to come