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Festival Theatre
May 6 – October 27 |
Opens June 1
Shakespeare

ROMEO AND JULIET


By William Shakespeare

Directed by Sam White

Audience Advisory »


“DID MY HEART LOVE TILL NOW?”  

When two young star-crossed lovers lock eyes across a crowded dance floor, their hearts are forever bound. But can their love survive the brutal blood feud that has torn apart their rival families, the Capulets and Montagues? The greatest love story of all time, Romeo and Juliet has captivated audiences and artists for centuries and provided the inspiration for hundreds of films, ballets, operas, novels and the iconic Broadway musical West Side Story. This production, which features lavish period sets and costumes, is a wonderful introduction to Shakespeare and a welcome return to a beloved story.

“A heady evocation of heedless first love” – The New York Times

“This Romeo and Juliet is worthy of a visit” – Toronto Star

“A relatable and moving rendition” – Broadway World


Runtime:

Two hours and 50 minutes, including one 18-minute intermission*
*Please note that all run times are approximate


Ways to Save

Shakespeare 2-for-1 – Buy one adult ticket, get a second adult ticket free on select performances of Romeo and Juliet and Twelfth Night. Buy Now


Resources:

Romeo and Juliet Study Guide


The 2024 Season is supported by Ophelia Lazaridis.


Production Sponsor:

The Jentes Family


CAST & CREATIVE

CAST

    Portrait of Jonathan Mason
    Jonathan Mason
    Romeo

    Birmingham Conservatory 2020/21

    2024: Romeo in Romeo and Juliet and appears in Twelfth Night and London Assurance. Fifth season. Stratford: Shrimp Man in Wedding Band, Much Ado About Nothing, Lord in All's Well That Ends Well, Little Women, Demetrius, Quince, Mustardseed in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Valentine in Two Gentlemen of Verona (Birmingham Conservatory). Elsewhere: Paul Bratter in Barefoot in the Park, Paul Verral in Born Yesterday (Blue Bridge Repertory Theatre); Henry Baskerville in Hound of the Baskervilles (Royal Canadian Theatre Co.); Young Sherlock in Sherlock Holmes (Chemainus Theatre Festival). Film/TV: Fragile Seeds (feature), The Flash, Far Cry 4, Monkey Up, Cascadia, Ollie and Emma. Training: Birmingham Conservatory, LAMDA (Masters with Distinction, Classical Acting). Et cetera: Thanks to my family and the cast and crew. Jonathan dedicates this season to his late father Gregory Mason.

    Portrait of Vanessa Sears
    Vanessa Sears
    Juliet

    (she/her)

    2024: Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, Olivia in Twelfth Night and understudy in London Assurance. Fourth season. Stratford: Little Shop of Horrors, Billy Elliot, Why We Tell the Story, Up Close and Musical. Elsewhere: New York, New York (Broadway); Alice in Wonderland (Bad Hats/Soulpepper); Queen Goneril, King Lear (Soulpepper); Is God Is (Obsidian/CanStage/Necessary Angel); Mary Poppins, The Wizard of Oz (YPT); An Octoroon, Grand Hotel, The Magician's Nephew, Holiday Inn (Shaw Festival); Passing Strange, Caroline or Change (Musical Stage Co/Obsidian); Kinky Boots (Mirvish). Film: Sappy Holiday, 14 Love Letters, Suits, Sex/Life, Y: The Last Man. Voice Acting: My Little Pony, The Downloaded. Awards: Multiple Dora Award and TTCA Award wins, BroadwayWorld Award, Critic's Pick Award. Online: Instagram: @Vanessa_Sears. Et cetera: Vanessa is an educator, an emerging director, and Vice Chair of the CGA board. Love to Richard and the whole team.

    Portrait of Graham Abbey
    Graham Abbey
    Capulet

    Langham Directors' Workshop, 2015/2017

    2024: Capulet in Romeo and Juliet and Mark Meddle in London Assurance. 25th season. Stratford: Benedick (Much Ado), Claudius (Hamlet), Simon Pilkings (Death… King's Horseman), Mr. Ford (Merry Wives of Windsor), Aufidius (Coriolanus), Orgon (Tartuffe), Bolingbroke/Henry IV, conceiver, adaptor (Breath of Kings), Iago, Petruchio, Henry V, Macbeth, Romeo, Henry VIII.  Elsewhere: Hamlet (Resurgence); Sam Byck (Assassins). TV: Lead - The Border (CBC). Recent - Under the Banner of Heaven (Disney/Hulu), SkyMed (CBC), Diggstown (CBC). Recurring - Degrassi, Murdoch Mysteries, Republic of Doyle. Guest star - Flashpoint, Lost Girl, Remedy, Frontier, Ransom. Film: Delia's Gone, Take This Waltz, Casino Jack, Defendor, Stealing Paradise, Milton's Secret. Awards: Two Dora Awards, Monte Carlo Television nomination. Directing: Stratford - The Front Page; associate director, Breath of Kings; assistant director Twelfth Night, The Alchemist. Elsewhere - The Winter's Tale, Measure for Measure, Lear (Groundling). Et cetera: Artistic Director, Groundling Theatre.

    Portrait of Jessica B. Hill
    Jessica B. Hill
    Lady Capulet

    Birmingham Conservatory, 2014/15

    2024: Viola in Twelfth Night and Lady Capulet in Romeo and Juliet. Eighth season. Stratford: Helen in All's Well That Ends Well, Lady Anne in Richard III, Emily Brontë in Brontë: The World Without, Bess in Mother's Daughter, Antipholus of Syracuse in The Comedy of Errors. Playwright: The Dark Lady (Shakespeare in the Ruins/Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan), Pandora (Prairie Theatre Exchange) - both are available in the Stratford Festival Shop. Film/TV: Five Days at Memorial, The BoysKings of Napa, Hero: The Life and Times of Ulric Cross, 30 vies. Voice/Mocap: Assassin's Creed: Origins, Unannounced Ubisoft project. Training: Dawson College, McGill University, Birmingham Conservatory for Classical Theatre. Awards: Bernard Amyot Teaching Award - National Theatre School, Mary Savidge Award - Stratford Festival. Online: Instagram: @jessicabhill. Et cetera: To the people who bring us home.

    Portrait of Andrew Iles
    Andrew Iles
    Mercutio

    Birmingham Conservatory, 2017/18

    2024: Valentine in Twelfth Night, Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet and appears in London Assurance. Seventh season. Stratford: Duke of Burgundy in King Lear, Jeremy in Hamlet-911, The Boy in Three Tall Women, Sir Henry Guildford in Henry VIII, Eribo, A Bully in The Neverending Story, Harold in An Ideal Husband, appeared in To Kill a Mockingbird and understudied in Julius Caesar and Much Ado About Nothing. Elsewhere: Atreyu in The Neverending Story (National Arts Centre). Film/TV: Guest star on What We Do in the Shadows season four finale (FX), Reign (CW) and Murder U (Discovery ID). Training: BFA, University of Windsor; Birmingham Conservatory. Instagram: @iles4miles.

    Portrait of Glynis Ranney
    Glynis Ranney
    Nurse
    2024: Nurse in Romeo and Juliet, appears in Twelfth Night and London Assurance. Sixth season. Stratford: Much Ado About Nothing, HMS Pinafore, The Sound of Music, The Mikado, The Gondoliers. Shaw: Mack & Mabel, Tristan, Floyd Collins, The Constant Wife, Happy End, The Coronation Voyage, She Loves Me, Easy Virtue. Elsewhere: Into the Woods [New Zealand], The Other Place, Sweeney Todd [Toronto & UK - Dora Award],  Sunday in the Park with George (Talk Is Free Theatre); London Road, Passion, The House of Martin Guerre (Canadian Stage Company); Anything That Moves (Tarragon Theatre - Dora Award); Falsettos (Musical Stage Company); Annie, The Drowsy Chaperone (Drayton Entertainment); Side by Side by Sondheim (Grand Theatre); A Streetcar Named Desire (Atlantic Theatre Festival); The Glass Menagerie (Prairie Theatre Exchange); My Fair Lady (Neptune Theatre, Centaur Theatre, PTE, ATP). Et cetera: Glynis lives with her husband, Mike Nadajewski, and their son in Stratford.
    Portrait of Scott Wentworth
    Scott Wentworth
    Friar Laurence
    2024: Sir Toby Belch in Twelfth Night, Friar Lawrence in Romeo and Juliet and Constable Samuel Squeezer in London Assurance. 28th season. A Tony and Olivier Award nominee, Scott has worked on and off Broadway, in London's West End and in theatres across the US and Canada. Stratford credits include Macbeth, Iago, Shylock, the title role in John Gabriel Borkman, Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof and James Tyrone in Long Day's Journey Into Night. His directing credits here include both parts of Henry IV, Pericles, Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar and All's Well That Ends Well. Film and TV work includes Ang Lee's The Ice Storm, George A. Romero's Diary of the Dead, Law & Order and Orphan Black. Fans may remember him as Kermit in Kung Fu: The Legend Continues. Last season he played King Lear for Shakespeare BASH'd, and Henry in the first American production of The Lehman Trilogy.
    Portrait of Hilary Adams
    Hilary Adams
    Understudy

    (she/her) Birmingham Conservatory, 2024

    2024: Pert in London Assurance, appears in Twelfth Night and understudy in Romeo and Juliet. Third season. Stratford: Grand Magic, Love's Labour's Lost, The Miser, Hamlet. Elsewhere: Schoolhouse, Macbeth, The Ruins, Frankenstein, In This Light, As You Like It, Iliad by Fire (Two Planks); A Midsummer Night's Dream, As You Like It (Shakespeare BASH'd); As You Like It, King Lear, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Antony and Cleopatra, The Merchant of Venice, The Taming of the Shrew (Shakespeare by the Sea). Film/TV: Compulsus, King & Pawn (BellTV). Recordings: Ophelia, Sending Love (Spotify, Apple Music) Composer: WOLF, Flimsy (Hurricane Productions); A Midsummer Night's Dream (Shakespeare BASH'd). Awards: Merritt Award for Outstanding Performance in a Leading Role (Schoolhouse). Training: Dalhousie University. Online: @hilary_adamss.Et cetera: This season is dedicated to Gordon Bowlby, who took me to my first Stratford show where I fell in love with Theatre…I made it Grandad!

    Portrait of David Collins
    David Collins
    Citizen, Watch
    2024: Sea Captain in Twelfth Night, Max Harkaway in London Assurance and appears in Romeo and Juliet. 16th season. Stratford: Richard II, Grand Magic, Richard III, The Miser, Merry Wives of Windsor, The Front Page, Coriolanus, Napoli Milionaria!, The Changeling, Macbeth, As You Like It, Pericles, King Lear, Titus Andronicus, The Tempest, Caesar and Cleopatra. Elsewhere: Shakuntala (Premiere Dance Theatre); The Adventures of a Black Girl in Search of God (Mirvish); Twelfth Night, Donut City (Canadian Stage); Pusha Man, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (Passe Muraille); Top Gun the Musical (Factory Theatre/ NYC); Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare in Action); Founding Member of Obsidian Theatre Company. Film/TV/Video Games: Sex/Life, Frankie Drake, Diggstown, The Coroner, Assassin's Creed: Origins, Killjoys, Watch Dogs 2, Saving Hope, Murdoch Mysteries, Nikita, Owning Mahowny, The Incredible Hulk, Nurse.Fighter.Boy. Training: MFA, York University. Awards: Tyrone Guthrie Award. Dora nominations: Twilight Café, The America Play.
    Portrait of Howard Dai
    Howard Dai
    Gregory

    (he/him)

    2024: Gregory in Romeo and Juliet and Ding, Policeman in Salesman in China. Stratford debut. Elsewhere: Swing in Forgiveness (Arts Club and Theatre Calgary); Banger in The Five Vengeances (Affair of Honor); Passenger Seat (Library Performance Co.); New Societies (Re:Current Theatre); Collider (Single Thread Theatre). Assistant Directing: Forgiveness; East Van Panto 2023 (Theatre Replacement). Training: BFA in Theatre Performance (SFU). Online: www.howarddai.com; @howardai. Et cetera: 2022 digital-artist-in-residence with PuSh Festival and Royal Court Theatre with his play 菠蘿麵包Pineapple Bun; Associate Artist with rice & beans theatre. His performances and creations have existed in theatre, films, public spaces, Zoom screens, Google Sheets, automated phone calls, interactive websites and virtual reality. Much love to mom and every mentor/teacher/friend that's been in his life. Proud to be Taiwanese.

    Portrait of Nick Dolan
    Nick Dolan
    Prince Escalus
    2024: Prince Escalus in Romeo and Juliet, Seth Soakem in London Assurance  and appears in Twelfth Night. Fourth season. Stratford: Gordon in Rent, Much Ado About Nothing, The Merry Wives of Windsor. Elsewhere: The Louder We Get (Theatre Calgary); Killing Time (Mixtape Projects); A Midsummer Night's Dream (Driftwood Theatre); Once (Theatre St. John's); Written in Blood (Talk is Free Theatre). Film/TV: Partum, recurring principal on Locke & Key, Red Iron Road. Training: BFA, Toronto Metropolitan University. Et cetera: Nick wishes special thanks and love to his partner Sara, and family Sean, John & Jen. He is thrilled to return to the Festival this year.
    Portrait of Thomas Duplessie
    Thomas Duplessie
    Peter

    Birmingham Conservatory, 2024

    2024: Peter in Romeo and Juliet, Martin in London Assurance and appears in Twelfth Night. Second season. Stratford: Harry Percy in Richard II, Waiter in Grand Magic and understudy in Love's Labour's Lost. Elsewhere: A Few Good Men, Twelve Angry Men, The Miracle Worker, The Birds and the Bees, Death of a Salesman, Brighton Beach Memoirs (Drayton); The Cider House Rules reading (Talk is Free); Suitcases/Provenance workshop (Canadian Stage). Film/TV: JumpDarling (opposite Cloris Leachman), In The Dark, Murdoch Mysteries, Man Seeking Woman, Heroes Reborn, Bitten, Reign. Radio/Recordings: Strange Loops (audiobook). Training: The Randolph College for the Performing Arts. Online: Instagram: @tomsdup. Et cetera: Thomas dedicates this season to his teachers past and present. 

    Portrait of Austin Eckert
    Austin Eckert
    Paris
    2024: Sebastian in Twelfth Night, Paris in Romeo and Juliet and Charles Courtly in London Assurance. Third season. Stratford: Claudio (Much Ado About Nothing), Albany (King Lear), Laertes (Hamlet). Elsewhere: The Royale (Citadel Theatre); Being Here: The Refugee Project, Taking Shakespeare, Spring Awakening (Belfry Theatre); As You Like It (Chicago Shakespeare Theater) Beauty and the Beast (Arts Club Theatre); Miss Understood (PuSh Festival); The Taming of the Shrew, Macbeth, Shakespeare in Love, Much Ado About Nothing, The Winter's Tale (Bard on the Beach); Mamma Mia! (WCT); HAIR (Mayfield Theatre); As You Like It (Citadel Theatre/MTC). Film/TV: Supernatural, Batwoman, The Flash (CW); Colony (USA); The Magicians (SyFy); Narcoleap (CBC/Telus). Training: The Canadian College of Performing Arts. Awards: Sterling Awards (The Royale), Leo Awards (Narcoleap). Online: @austineckert.
    Portrait of 郝邦宇 Steven Hao
    郝邦宇 Steven Hao
    Benvolio

    (he/him)

    2024: Benvolio in Romeo and Juliet and Li Shilong in Salesman in China. Stratford debut. Elsewhere: Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream (Canadian Stage); Pirithous/Wooer in The Two Noble Kinsmen (Shakespeare Bash'd); Scott The Rat Man/Mr.Rumpelstiltskin in Storybook Search (Bad Hats Theatre); Cockroach in Cockroach (Tarragon Theatre); Duke of Burgundy/Gentleman in King Lear (Shakespeare Bash'd); Dionysus/Zeus in Trojan Girls & Outhouse of Atreus (Outside the March/Factory Theatre). Director: A Perfect Bowl of Pho (Kick & Push Festival/Toronto Fringe Festival); Death to Prometheans (Studio 180); Ordinary Days (Shifting Ground Collective). Training: Toronto Metropolitan University, RBC Emerging Artist Program with Musical Stage Company. Awards: Toronto Workshop Productions (George Luscombe Award); Harold Awards (House of Daniel MacIvor); RBC Emerging Director's Prize (Studio 180). Online: @steven_haoby. Et cetera: Steven is approachable, he rarely bites, please say hi!

    Portrait of Graham Hargrove
    Graham Hargrove
    Percussion

    2024: Percussion in Romeo and Juliet. 14th season. Stratford: Performed as a member of the Festival orchestra for many productions as well as several onstage musician roles at the Festival Theatre and Tom Patterson Theatre. Elsewhere: Three seasons at the Blyth Festival, most recently as Fred/Musician in the Huron County Christmas Carol (2023). 13 seasons as a percussionist with the Inner Chamber ensemble. Recorded and toured with Loreena McKennitt on the Under a Winter's Moon tour (2022) as well as on her LostSouls album (2018). Training: BMus (University of Victoria) and MMus (University of Toronto) in Percussion Performance. Awards: Dora (2015, Sound Design/Composition) 2nd and 3rd place in the All-Ireland Bones Competition (2017, 2019).

    Portrait of Ziye Hu
    Ziye Hu
    Understudy

    (he/him)

    2024: Guan in Salesman in China and understudy in Romeo and Juliet. Stratford debut. Elsewhere: Yun in Eastbound (Musical Theatre Factory, New York). Film/TV: Lido TV (CBC Gem). Training: Tisch School of the Arts - New York University. Online: @ziyehu. Et cetera: We are not strangers. For third culture kids everywhere.

    Portrait of Jenna-Lee Hyde
    Jenna-Lee Hyde
    Citizen, Partygoer, Watch

    (she/her)

    2024: Appears in Romeo and Juliet, London Assurance, and understudy in Twelfth Night. Second season. Stratford: Cecilia in Women of the Fur Trade. Elsewhere: Every Brilliant Thing (Burnt Thicket/Live Five, Fire Exit, Globe Theatre, Winterruption); Our Town (Theatre Rusticle/Buddies in Bad Times); Drowning Girls, Secret Mask, Pride and Prejudice (Globe Theatre); Much Ado About Nothing, Taming of the Shrew, Romeo and Juliet, Comedy of Errors, Macbeth (Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan); Birds and the Bees, Farndale Ave...Christmas Carol (Persephone Theatre). Other: House Co (Second City). TV/Film: Workin' Moms (CBC), Benched (Short). Training: Globe Theatre Conservatory, University of Saskatchewan (BFA). Awards: SAT Award for Outstanding Performance (Narrator in Every Brilliant Thing, Beatrice in Much Ado About Nothing, and Callie in Stop Kiss). Online: www.jennaleehyde.com. Et cetera: Born-and-raised on Treaty 6 territory in Saskatchewan, Jenna-Lee now lives in Tkaronto. She's very grateful to be here. 

    Portrait of Jasmine Jones-Ball
    Jasmine Jones-Ball
    Percussion

    (she/her)

    2024: Percussion in Romeo and Juliet. Stratford debut. Elsewhere (drums):Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Grand Theatre); Jesus Christ Superstar (Theatre Sheridan); Bitter Girl (Thousand Islands Playhouse); Sub for Maria on Drums in Six (Mirvish Productions); Let's Dance (Terra Bruce Productions). Training: Humber College Music. Online: Instagram: @jazzyjas52.

    Portrait of John Kirkpatrick
    John Kirkpatrick
    Balthasar, Friar John
    2024: Priest in Twelfth Night, Balthasar, Friar John in Romeo and Juliet and James in London Assurance. 10th season. Stratford: Reynaldo, Hamlet; Endicott, The Front Page; Walter Cunningham Sr., To Kill a Mockingbird; Lt. Brannigan, Guys and Dolls; Apothecary, Romeo and Juliet; Doctor, Macbeth; Oliver, As You Like It; Deuxfois, The Hypochondriac; Marcellus/Fortinbras, Hamlet; Boyet, Love's Labour's Lost; Descartes, Christina, The Girl King; Red Knight/Walrus, Alice Through the Looking-Glass. Elsewhere: Jaques, As You Like It; Cassius, Julius Caesar; Lucio, Measure for Measure (Citadel); Slim, Of Mice and Men (Canadian Stage/Theatre Calgary); Tybalt/Friar Laurence, Romeo and Juliet (Theatre Calgary); Everard, Age of Arousal (ATP); Milan, Rock 'n' Roll (Canadian Stage/Citadel); Kent, King Lear; Sir Andrew Aguecheek, Twelfth Night (Freewill).Training: BFA Acting, University of Alberta. Awards: Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Award, Measure for Measure. Et cetera: Former Artistic Director, Freewill Shakespeare Festival. All my love to Breanna, Aidan, Finn and Betsy.
    Portrait of Derek Kwan 關顯揚
    Derek Kwan 關顯揚
    Tybalt Follower, Partygoer, Watch

    (he/him)

    2024: Appears in Romeo and Juliet and Salesman in China. Stratford debut. Elsewhere: Zhang Lin in Chimerica (Duceppe); Jay in Frog Song (Here For Now/Stratford Symphony); Old Man and the River (WeeFestival); Antonio in The Tempest (Citadel); Narrator/Mysterious Man in Into the Woods, Louis in Pal Joey, Beadle in Sweeney Todd (TIFT); Mr. Beaver in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (Theatre New Brunswick); Mr. Shi and His Lover (Tarragon/NAC); Boy in Blood Weddings (Modern Times/Aluna Theatre). Audiobooks: Batshit Seven by Sheung-King, The Book of Rain by Thomas Wharton. Recordings: Future's Market (Rodger/Njo); Chinatown (Thien/Ho); The Cave (Highway/Millard); Mr. Shi and His Lover (Wong/Njo); The Lesson of Da Ji (Chan/Ho). Awards: Toronto Theatre Critics Award - Best Supporting Actor in a Musical. Online: www.derekkwan.net, @kwanzoku. Et cetera: Derek is Artistic Director of Common Boots Theatre and is also a therapeutic clown.

    Portrait of Tarique Lewis
    Tarique Lewis
    Sampson

    2024: Sampson in Romeo and Juliet and appears in Twelfth Night and London Assurance. Stratford debut. Elsewhere: Kirk in Riot (Renaissance Canadian Theatre Company). Training: Toronto Metropolitan University: School of Performance. Online: @Incogtico. Et cetera: I dedicate this to my family and friends who continue to support me. PS. Momma I love you.

    Portrait of Marissa Orjalo
    Marissa Orjalo
    Citizen, Partygoer, Paris's Page

    Birmingham Conservatory, 2024

    2024: Grace Harkaway in London Assurance and appears in Twelfth Night and Romeo and Juliet. Second season. Stratford: Les Belles-Soeurs and King Lear. Elsewhere: Nina in Lucky by Marie Barlizo (rEvolver); Hermia in A (Musical) Midsummer Night's Dream (Driftwood Theatre); Lucky in FEARLESS by David Yee (fu-GEN Theatre); Olivia in Twelfth Night (Theatre Erindale). Film/TV: Eli Roth's Be Mine, 13: The Musical, Titans season 4, Daughter Dearest, ReGenesis. Audio/Voiceover: Anne of Green Gables. Playwriting: twice blessed (fu-GEN Theatre). Awards: Joseph-Armand Bombardier SSHRC Award (University of Toronto); Dora Mavor Moore Award (Stratford Festival). Training: Birmingham Conservatory; Theatre and Drama Studies with Sheridan College; University of Toronto (MA). Online: www.marissaorjalo.com @MarissaOrjalo. Et cetera: Gratitude always to Carlos Bulosan Theatre and fu-GEN Theatre.

    Portrait of Antonette Rudder
    Antonette Rudder
    Lady Montague, Partygoer, Watch

    (she/her) Birmingham Conservatory, 2024

    2024: Lady Montague in Romeo and Juliet and appears in Twelfth Night and London Assurance. Fourth season. Stratford: Julia Augustine in Wedding Band, understudy in Les Belles-Soeurs, Chorus in Hamlet-911, understudy in Every Little Nookie, Angela in Here's What It Takes (workshop), Swing in Little Shop of Horrors. Elsewhere (selected): Princess Buttercup in Jack and the Beanstalk: The Panto, Lorraine in All Shook Up (Drayton Festival); Soul Sistas (Mayfield); Mamma Mia! (Theatre Aquarius/WCT); Chiffon in Little Shop of Horrors (Thousand Islands Playhouse). Film/TV: In The Dark, Take Note, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, The Hot Zone: Anthrax, The Rocky Horror Picture Show: Let's Do the Time Warp Again, People of Earth, Surviving Evil. Training: St. Lawrence College Musical Theatre. Online: @Toni_Rudd.

    Portrait of Michael Spencer-Davis
    Michael Spencer-Davis
    Montague, Ol' Cousin Capulet
    2024: Fabian in Twelfth Night, Montague in Romeo and Juliet, Adolphus Spanker in London Assurance. 12th season. Stratford: Richard II, Love's Labour's Lost, Hamlet, The Miser, The Front Page, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Paradise Lost, Timon of Athens, The Changeling, Shakespeare in Love, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Aeneid, Taming of the Shrew, Possible Worlds, The Beaux' Stratagem, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Richard III, Julius Caesar, Bartholomew Fair, Shakespeare's Universe. Elsewhere: Dock Spider (Magnus Theatre); The 4th Graders Present An Unnamed Love Suicide (Tiny Room); Jerusalem (OTM/Company Theatre); Silence, Art (Grand Theatre); A Christmas Carol (Western Canada Theatre); Hound of the Baskervilles, Robin Hood (Globe Theatre); Pitmen Painters, Boeing Boeing (Theatre Aquarius); Vigil, Lawrence and Holloman (Prairie Theatre Exchange); Having Hope at Home (Neptune); Twelfth Night, The Tempest (Hartford Stage); The Lonely Diner (Blyth Festival); Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth (NAC).
    Portrait of Emilio Vieira
    Emilio Vieira
    Tybalt

    (he/him) Birmingham Conservatory, 2015/16

    2024: Antonio in Twelfth Night, Tybalt in Romeo and Juliet and Richard Dazzle in London Assurance. Seventh season. Stratford Festival credits include: Richard II, Grand Magic, Love's Labour's Lost, Richard III, The Miser, The Tempest, Coriolanus, Napoli Milionaria!, Twelfth Night, A School for Scandal, Tartuffe, Macbeth, All My Sons, Bunny. Elsewhere: The Three Musketeers (RMTC); february: a love story (Globus Theatre); Two Noble Kinsmen and Cymbeline (Shakespeare BASH'd); Towards Youth: a play on Radical Hope (Crow's Theatre); Measure for Measure, Much Ado About Nothing, As You Like It, Titus Andronicus (Shakespeare in High Park); Tartuffe (Canadian Stage); Coriolanus (Dartmouth, New Hampshire). Emilio trained under the direction of Martha Henry and Stephen Ouimette in the Birmingham Conservatory for Classical Theatre. Thank you for supporting live theatre. Instagram: @emiliovieira. 

    Portrait of Rylan Wilkie
    Rylan Wilkie
    Citizen, Watch

    (he/him)

    2024: Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Twelfth Night, Cool in London Assurance and appears in Romeo and Juliet. Ninth season. Stratford: Cornwall in King Lear, Balthasar in Much Ado…, Parolles in All's Well…, Reverend Hale in The Crucible, Professor Bhaer in Little Women, Lucullus in Timon…, Wessex in Shakespeare in Love, Karl Gustav in Christina, The Girl King, White Knight in Alice Through the Looking-Glass. Elsewhere: La Bête (Talk is Free); Lion in Winter (Grand); East of Berlin, The December Man, Shakespeare's Dog (ATP); Am I Not King? (Zone 41); Enron (Theatre Calgary); Beyond the Farm Show (Blyth); The Story (Common Boots); Macbeth, Mother Courage (Caravan Farm); A Doll's House (Globe). Film/TV: Murdoch Mysteries, Wilfrid, Charity, Blue Smoke, The Secret of the Nutcracker, See This Movie. Training: National Theatre School. Awards: John Hirsch Award; Betty Award for Vincent in Brixton; Dora, Montreal Critics' Circle and Evie Award nominations. Instagram: @wilkierylan.

    Portrait of Angus Yam
    Angus Yam
    Prince's Guard, Partygoer

    (he/him)

    2024: Mi Tiezeng, Red Guard in Salesman in China and appears in Romeo and Juliet. Stratford debut. Elsewhere: Greg in Peace Country (rice & beans theatre); Gilbert Blythe in Anne of Green Gables (Gateway Theatre); Benvolio in Romeo and Juliet (Bard on the Beach); Brad Majors in The Rocky Horror Show (Studio 58); Chorus in East Van Panto: Alice in Wonderland (Theatre Replacement). TV: Appears in Lucky Hank (AMC). Training: Langara College, Studio 58. Online: @anguzyam. Et cetera: Angus is a Hong Konger-Canadian artist based in Vancouver, BC, on the unceded traditional Indigenous territories. Shout-out to Mamei, hater sister, and friends. Glory to God.

CREATIVE

    Sam White
    Director

    (she/her)

    2024: Director of Romeo and Juliet. Third season. Stratford: Director, Wedding Band; Assistant Director, The Tempest. Elsewhere: Founding Artistic & Executive Director at Shakespeare in Detroit. Training: Wayne State University, B.A.; Michael Langham Directors' Workshop, Stratford; 2019 Directors' Workshop, Yale University; Paul Nicholson Arts Management Fellow, Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Et cetera: Sam dedicates her work to her mother who gave her The Complete Works of William Shakespeare at eight years old. Miss you, mommy! 

    Sue LePage
    Set and Costume Designer
    2024: Set and costume designer for Romeo and Juliet. 10th season. Stratford: Brief Lives, Victoria, The Beggars' Opera (costume), When That I Was, Hamlet (with Brent Carver), Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Nora, Richard IIIIrma la Douce (costume), Mother Courage (with Susan Wright), No Exit, The Human Voice, Elephant Song. Sue's first job in the theatre was here at the Festival in accessories 50 years ago. Elsewhere: Over 200 productions for theatre, dance and opera. Shaw Festival: Saint Joan, Ragtime, The Doctors' Dilemma, Born YesterdayUncle Vanya, Arcadia, Brigadoon (costumes). Premières of Canadian work include Anne of Green Gables The Ballet, the Estacio/Murrell operas Filumena, Frobisher and Lillian Alling and more than 25 new plays at the Tarragon. Most recently: Liars at a Funeral (Blyth Festival)Downed Hearts (Ship's Company). Et cetera: Delighted to be back!
    Louise Guinand
    Lighting Designer

    2024: Lighting designer of Romeo and Juliet. 38th season. Stratford: 80 productions including Casey and Diana, Les Belles-Soeurs, All's Well That Ends Well, 1939, Edward Albee's Three Tall Women, Henry VIII, Twelfth Night and All My Sons. Ms. Guinand is delighted to be returning to Stratford. Elsewhere: Ms. Guinand has designed lights for over 600 shows across Canada and the United States. Recent productions include Casey and Diana (Soulpepper); Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Classes (Thousand Islands Playhouse); Liars at a Funeral (Blyth). Training: A graduate of Queen's University and the National Theatre School. Awards: One Dora Award. Over 20 award nominations across Canada. Louise was the recipient of the 2018 Bradley Garrick Guthrie Award. Affiliation: Member of ADC659. Other: Louise is within seven Shakespeares of achieving her desire to light the entire Shakespearean canon.

    Debashis Sinha
    Composer, Sound Designer

    2024: Composer and sound designer of Romeo and Juliet. Eighth season. Stratford: Composer for Serving Elizabeth; composer and sound designer of Casey and Diana, Women of the Fur Trade, The Crucible, Treasure Island, The Changeling, Breath of Kings; sound designer of Wedding Band, Death and the King's Horseman, Mother's Daughter, The Aeneid. Elsewhere: Music and sound for Peggy Baker Dance Projects, Soulpepper, Volcano Theatre, Theatre Centre, and others; appearances at MUTEK Japan, MOCA Toronto, Banff Centre, Haus der Kulturen der Welt, and other venues. Radio/Recordings: Radio works on Deutschlandradio Kultur, ORF Kunstradio, Radio National España, Tsonami Festival, NAISA; numerous solo recordings, audio artworks, and audiovisual projects. Awards: Dora Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Design (Opera) and for Original Music and Sound Crash (Theatre Passe Muraille); We Are Proud to Present… (Theatre Centre/Why Not); 2023 Louis Applebaum Composers Award Laureate.

    Anita Nittoly
    Fight and Intimacy Director

    2024: Fight and intimacy director of the 2024 season. Seventh season. Stratford: Fight director of The Rez Sisters and intimacy director of Serving Elizabeth (2021); Fight director for the 2019 and 2020 seasons. Selected Fight/Intimacy Director Credits: 3 Sisters (Soulpepper); Bad Roads (Crow's); WildWoman (Soulpepper); Hamlet (The Rose); Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Classes (TIP); Fall on Your Knees (Canadian Stage/Neptune/NAC); Maggie (Theatre Aquarius); Counter Offence (Segal Centre); Fairview (Canadian Stage); Prodigal (Crow's); Trojan Girls & The Outhouse of Atreus (Factory); Our Place (Cahoots/TPM); Kronborg (Confederation Centre). Other: Stage combat instructor, fight director, and sexual choreographer at the National Theatre School. Selected Stunt Performer/Stunt Actor Credits: Law and Order: Toronto, SEE, Star Trek: Discovery, Pretty Hard Cases, Titans, The Boys, Rabbit Hole, What We Do in the Shadows, various Ubisoft motion capture productions. Online: anitanittoly.com.

    Adrienne Gould
    Choreographer

    Birmingham Conservatory, 2002

    2024: Movement coach and choreographer. 17th season. Adrienne Gould came to the Stratford Festival in 2000 as an actor. Over 10 seasons, some of her roles included Ophelia, Miranda (with William Hutt), Bianca in The Taming of the Shrew, Yasmin in Pentecost, Hero in Much Ado About Nothing, Regina in Ghosts (with Martha Henry), Phebe in As You Like It, Jaquenetta in Love's Labour's Lost and Jessica in The Merchant of Venice. Her choreography credits include last season's Much Ado About Nothing, Grand Magic and The Miser; assistant choreographer for Shakespeare in Love; movement director for Timon of Athens and The Crucible; intimacy choreography for Love's Labours Lost and the Birmingham Conservatory's Three Sisters. Adrienne is a recipient of the Mary Savidge Award and is a graduate of the North Carolina School of the Arts.

    David Chinchilla
    Associate Fight Director

    2024: Associate fight director of the 2024 season. Third season. Stratford (selected):King Lear, Richard III, Little Women. Elsewhere: Hamlet (Hit & Myth Productions); The Amen Corner (Shaw Festival); Romeo and Juliet (National Theatre School); Girl in the Photograph (Chameleon Productions). Selected Film and TV (Acting and Stunts):FUBAR, The Fabric of Christmas, Chucky, Far Cry 6, Mayor of Kingstown, Reacher, Revenge of the Black Best Friend, The Hot Zone, The Boys, Dark Matter, Kill Joys, Teen Titans, Lucky Day, Amazing Race Canada, Frankie Drake. Training: Humber Theatre Performance program, various martial arts schools, acting for film and TV at the renown Pro Actors Lab in Toronto. Online: Instagram: @davidchinchillaofficial. 

    Ludmylla Reis
    Assistant Director

    Langham Directors' Workshop, 2024

    2024: Assistant director of Romeo and Juliet. Stratford debut. Elsewhere: My Good Friend Jay (undercurrents); Caravan of Illusion (University of Ottawa); The Glass (Parque das Ruinas). Leadership: Metcalf Fellow with GCTC, BTW and NAC; Co-Artistic Producer for TACTICS; Capital Heritage Mentee; WIFT Toronto Mentee. Film/TV: Writer/Director - Away and Lina & LuisTraining: University of Ottawa, MFA in Directing; CAL Institute of Arts Conservatory for Acting. Awards: Best Cinematography - FICIMAD Madrid. OAC Pauline Gibbons Nominee. 2023 Prix Rideau Winner for Outstanding Direction - Ottawa. Online: ludmyllareis.ca @ludmyllareis.

    Freddy Van Camp
    Assistant Set Designer

    (she/they)

    2024: Assistant set designer of Something Rotten!, Twelfth Night, Romeo and JulietLondon Assurance and assistant costume designer of Get That Hope. Second season. Stratford: Richard II, Wedding Band. Elsewhere: Designer: There are No Gays in Chechnya (Page 1 Theatre). Costumes: Sweet Charity (AUTS). Online: @freddy.vancamp. 

    Barbara Morrone-Sanchez
    Assistant Costume Designer

    (she/her)

    2024: Assistant costume designer of La Cage aux Folles and Romeo and Juliet. Third season. Stratford: Assistant costume designer for Casey and Diana, Women of the Fur Trade and Love's Labour's Lost (2023); wardrobe apprentice (2022). Training: B.F.A in Theatre Production and Design, York University. Et cetera: Barbara hopes you enjoy the show!

    Sruthi Suresan
    Assistant Lighting Designer

    (she/her)

    2024: Assistant lighting designer of Something Rotten!, Romeo and Juliet and London Assurance. Third season. Stratford: Assistant lighting designer of Rent, Much Ado About Nothing, Les Belles-Soeurs, Chicago, Hamlet and The Miser. Elsewhere: Lighting design: The Two Noble Kinsmen (Shakespeare BASH'd); Legally Blonde, London Road (MacEwan University); La Boheme, Is He Dead?, Almost Maine, The Underpants, Stupid F***ing Bird, Threads: Impact (University of Wisconsin); The Drawer Boy (Port Stanley Festival Theatre); Three Sisters (University of Windsor). Associate lighting designer: FRONTIERS | FRONTIÈRES and WATER SPIRIT (Lua Shayenne Dance Company); Maggie (The Savoy); The Rhubarb Festival (Buddies in Bad Times). Assistant lighting designer: NutcrackerFall for Dance North (Meridian Hall); White Girls In Moccasins (Buddies in Bad Times); Tea (University of Wisconsin); Training: MFA - Theatre and Drama - Lighting Design (University of Wisconsin - Madison); BA(H): Drama and Communication Media and Film (University of Windsor). 

    Nicolas Van Burek
    Assistant Fight Director

    2024: Assistant fight director of CymbelineRomeo and Juliet and Wendy and Peter Pan. 11th season. Nicolas Van Burek is a multilingual actor, stunt actor, fight director, teacher and coach. As an actor, he has worked in almost every Canadian province in theatre, television, voice, video games and film for nearly forty years. After ten years as a lead actor at the Stratford Festival from 1997-2007, Nicolas returned to Toronto to focus on work in film, television, voice and video games. He has amassed numerous credits as a stunt actor in shows like Reacher, 12 Monkeys, Suits, The Boys and Star Trek. He currently teaches stage combat at Centennial College. Nicolas is a proud father to five-year-old Zayla, who is his toughest boss. 

    Marie Fewer-Muncic
    Stage Manager

    (she/her)

    2024: Stage manager of Romeo and Juliet. 18th season. Stratford: Production stage manager of the Tom Patterson Theatre (2023) and Studio Theatre (2018, 2019). Stage manager - Wedding Band; Freedom 2.0: Black Music That Shaped the Dream of America; A Midsummer Night's Dream; Julius Caesar; Romeo and Juliet (2017); Bunny; Possible Worlds; Hirsch. Assistant stage manager - Tartuffe; As You Like It; Twelfth Night; Evita; Kiss Me, Kate; Macbeth; Rice Boy; Romeo and Juliet (2008); Caesar and Cleopatra; My One and Only; To Kill a Mockingbird; The Duchess of Malfi; The Blonde, the Brunette and the Vengeful Redhead. Apprentice stage manager - Noises Off. Elsewhere: University of Waterloo, Inter Arts Matrix, Theatre Sheridan, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Tarragon Theatre, Theatre Erindale, Theatre Direct Canada/Eldritch Theatre, Theatre Passe Muraille/Obsidian Theatre Company, Bluewater Summer Playhouse, Charlottetown Festival. Training: Sheridan College.

    Alice Ferreyra Galliani
    Assistant Stage Manager

    (she/her)

    2024: Stage manager of Get That Hope and assistant stage manager of Romeo and Juliet. Eighth season. Stratford: Women of the Fur Trade, Monty Python's Spamalot, Hamlet, Death and the King's HorsemanR + J, Henry VIII, Birds of a Kind, Bakkhai. Elsewhere: The Phantom of the Opera, Maggie & Pierre (Grand Theatre); Jack: A Beanstalk Panto (Capitol Theatre); The Marriage of Figaro, The Magic Flute (Canadian Opera Company); Every Silver Lining (Next Stage Festival); Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls (Roseneath Theatre); The Drowsy Chaperone, Footloose, The Addams Family, Spring Awakening, Spelling Bee, Nine (Randolph College); Godspell (Theatre Sheridan); Anne of Green Gables, Evita, Shrek the Musical (LOT); The Canadian (Thousand Islands Playhouse); Hamlet (Tarragon Theatre); City of Angels (Theatre by the Bay); The Story (Theatre Columbus). Et cetera: Originally from Lima, Peru. Loves food, music, dancing. Always looking for a good book recommendation.

    Anne Murphy
    Assistant Stage Manager

    2024: Stage manager of Twelfth Night and assistant stage manager of Romeo and Juliet. 32nd season. Elsewhere: Back in '59 (Thousand Islands Playhouse); Cabaret (MTC); Sleeping Beauty (Globe Theatre); Orpheus Descending (MTC, Royal Alexandra Theatre); toured the Belfry Theatre's The Year of Magical Thinking to the Tarragon Theatre and the National Arts Centre; toured with Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and the NAC's The Mikado, The Lion King and Jane Eyre in Toronto. She has had the pleasure of working across Canada at the Grand Theatre, Vancouver Playhouse, Neptune Theatre, Manitoba Theatre Centre and Expo '86 in Vancouver. Et cetera: Annie lives in Stratford with her partner, Anne; their daughter Brianna; Luna, the cutest German Spitz/poodle ever; and two beautiful cats.

    Corinne Richards
    Assistant Stage Manager
    2024: Assistant stage manager of Twelfth Night and Romeo and Juliet. 37th season. Stratford: Festival productions include 24 Shakespearean plays plus Serving Elizabeth, The Front Page, Napoli Milionaria!, The School for Scandal, All My Sons, The Physicists, The Beaux' Stratagem, The Thrill, Wanderlust, The Grapes of Wrath, For the Pleasure of Seeing Her Again, Home, Memoir, Les Belles-Soeurs, Alice Through the Looking-Glass, Amadeus, Little Women, The Country Wife, Pride and Prejudice, An Ideal Husband, Ghosts, The Lark, a 1998 New York City transfer of Much Ado About Nothing and The Miser. Elsewhere: Corinne has also worked for the Grand Theatre, Manitoba Theatre Centre, National Arts Centre and Red Barn Theatre. Training: University of Waterloo. Et cetera: I dedicate this season to my Dad. I thank him for instilling in me a love of the arts and for always supporting me through my own journey.
    Krista Blackwood
    Production Stage Manager

    2024: Production stage manager of the Festival Theatre. 10th season. Stratford: Production stage manager of the Festival Theatre ('23). Assistant stage manager of Chicago, The Music Man, Guys and Dolls, Romeo and Juliet, A Chorus Line, As You Like It, Hamlet, The Sound of Music, Crazy for You and Fiddler on the Roof. Elsewhere: Production stage manager for the Charlottetown Festival, Soulpepper, Perchance Theatre, Theatrefront. Stage manager for The Segal Centre/NAC, Citadel Theatre, Neptune Theatre, Opera on the Avalon, Western Canada Theatre, Persistence Theatre, Theatre New Brunswick, Tarragon Theatre. A proud Newfoundlander, Krista stage managed the first Newfoundland production of Come From Away (Rubinoff/ACC) in Gander last summer.

    Lourdess (Louey) Sumners
    Production Assistant

    (she/her)

    2024: Production assistant of the Festival Theatre. Stratford debut. Elsewhere: Ghost the Musical, The Fiancé (Chemainus Theatre Festival). Training: University of Victoria. Online: @louesums. Et cetera: Louey would like to thank her little sister, family and friends for all their love and support. 

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