Hometown: Born and raised in Whitehorse, Yukon which is situated on the Traditional Territories of the Kwanlin Dün First Nation and the Ta’an Kwach’an Council.
Education: I spent a year at Simon Fraser University within their Theatre & Performance stream before switching over to Capilano University’s Musical Theatre program where I recently finished my first year!
What influenced you to pursue a career in theatre?
Honestly, it’s kind of a long story so we’ll go through an abbreviated version. I moved away from Whitehorse to Montréal with the idea of learning French and eventually returned back around the time the pandemic hit. The situation as it was, there weren’t many opportunities to socialize and find new friends to hang out with in-person. It was strange seeing all of these people I used to grow up with again years later, developing new social dynamics, and I was too anxious to reach out.
Eventually, I found a group of friends at work including Jasmine who ended up being my roommate and ride-or-die person. She and I bonded over singing and her friendship was one of the deciding factors in my pursuit of a performance career path.
Enter Yukon Theatre for Young People: I was introduced to the company from a group of friends I had met at this performing arts experiential program called M.A.D. where a majority of the students were part of the company’s Mainstage return with Les Misérables. They convinced me to join and soon enough, the rest of the summer was spent creating priceless memories on and off the stage fuelled by unbreakable bonds.
I had applied to Simon Fraser University for their Theatre & Performance program because a friend of mine encouraged my innate potential for contemporary dance. Having no clue at the time what that was, I searched high and low for contemporary schools within B.C. that would partner well with an emergency dispatcher program and the rest is history. As you might’ve guessed, I never did apply for that extra program but it’s always still in the cards.
What do you love about theatre?
It all boils down to the people. EVERYONE says this but that’s because it’s true!! Being able to tag along with a group of friends to a random show and hang out talking about whatever all over a mutual bond of theatre is a feeling unlike any other. It’s such a unique experience to have everyone put their best foot forward in creating these magical moments with the goal of putting on the best damn show we could hope for.
As for specific aspects in theatre, I’m a massive fan of production elements as they can make or break a show. I’m a big fashion observer so costume design is a key interest of mine. Lighting and sound are key to enhancing the storytelling as well as every other production choice that is ESSENTIAL in formulating a cohesive experience.
Which plays and musicals were you in, and what were your roles?
Some of my favourite musicals to have been a part of were Les Misérables and RENT with YTYP. I was part of the ensemble (u/s Enjolras) and Angel Dumott Schunard respectively.
As for plays, my very first one was Concord Floral where I played One a.k.a. Just Joey. Some other highlights are Jay in Mustard with the Guild Hall and Ben/Jean-Pierre in Strange Joy with Simon Fraser University. The latter has got to be my favourite character and production I’ve been a part of all around. The show combined world building theatre with live technical filmed elements in the same sphere as what I assume the Sunset Blvd revival has been doing.
I wouldn’t consider myself a dancer per se but I have been fortunate enough to join some pretty neat projects if I do say so myself such as UZUMAKI, choreographed by the electric Perelandra Waddle.
A few upcoming projects in the works are Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with Theatre Under the Stars, THE PERELANDRA PROJECT with Wapanacahkos and a black box theatre musical with Capilano University in the spring.
Is there a performance venture you haven’t explored that you would like to?
I like to think I’ve got a pretty varied performance repertoire. There isn’t one particular field that overwhelmingly stands out when looking at past works (although musical theatre is a rising star!)
Film and TV is an aspect of genre I’ve always been intrigued by. One of the driving factors to pursue a career in the arts was a mini-dream of featuring on the TV series, 9-1-1.
I would love to tackle developing my pop/rock skills as a lot of my inspiration for performance in general is derived from the music industry touring scene. Seeing the level of planning and pure control of the craft that those artists exude is the dream I wish to achieve one day!
Career goals?
There are all these major goals of Broadway, Hollywood, etc. Those are fine and dandy ambitious dreams, but in the meantime, I’m having a lot of fun living and learning with the people of Vancouver. A lifetime dream of mine has been to release my own music into the world and be fortunate enough to perform around town.
Touring is another pit stop on the vision board for me. Doesn’t matter if it’s through theatre or music, I’ve always loved traveling and touring presents itself under the perfect umbrella to do so. Exploring new cities and meeting people have proven to be some of the most exciting parts of life.
Theatre 604 
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