KATHRYN SHAW - Artistic Director
Kathryn Shaw is the Artistic Director of Studio 58, a position she has held since 1985. She received her B.A. in Dramatic Art from Whitman College and an M.F.A in acting from New York's Columbia University School of Arts. For the past 30 years, Ms. Shaw has directed for theatre companies across Canada and has taught acting for professional and community groups in British Columbia, Winnipeg and Halifax. She has also been a guest instructor at the National Theatre School in Montreal.

Ms. Shaw's most recent directorial work includes THE GOAT by Edward Albee for Presentation House Theatre, MEASURE FOR MEASURE for Bard on the Beach, TRELAWNY OF THE WELLS for Studio 58, THE GREAT DEPRESSION by Joan MacLeod for Green Thumb Theatre/Studio 58, THE WEIR for the Belfry Theatre in Victoria and Western Canada Theatre Company in Kamloops and A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM for Studio 58. She also co-wrote and performed in Angry Actors’ production of FAMOUS DEAD STORIES.

In 2005, Kathryn was elected into the BC Entertainment Hall of Fame. She is a recipient of the 1996 SAM PAYNE AWARD given by UBCP/ACTRA in recognition of “humanity, integrity and the encouragement of new talent.” In 2001, Kathryn was on the first Siminovich Prize Jury which recognized an outstanding director from nominations received from across Canada. She has served as the Festival Adjudicator for Theatre BC’s Mainstage 1991 and 2004. Ms. Shaw has been nominated for four Jessie Richardson Awards for her directing work and has received two Jessie Richardson Awards for Direction and Best Production. She is a founding member of Angry Actors, an independent theatre company.

DAVID HUDGINS - Associate Director
David is an accomplished playwright, actor, director, songwriter, sound designer and video designer. He is co-founder of the highly acclaimed Electric Company Theatre in Vancouver, whose artists he met while attending Studio 58, Langara College and with whom David has won numerous Jessie Awards including: Best Original Script (Brilliant!, The Score) and Outstanding Production (Brilliant!, The Score, The One That Got Away, The Fall); and Video Design in The Fall.  His nominations include Outstanding Sound Design - Composition in The One That Got Away and Flop; and Video Design for The Palace Grand and The Flannigan Affair. David has also worked for a variety of other companies including: The Arts Club, Green Thumb, Richmond Gateway, Touchstone, and Carousel.  Recently he directed Guys and Dolls and Bye Bye Birdie for Studio 58.  David received his B.A. Honours in English Literature at McGill University and a PDP Diploma in Education from Simon Fraser University. He is married to Julia McGeer. They have two children, Sophie & Evan.

DAVID BLOOM - Solo Show
In addition to his professional credits, David Bloom has extensive experience working at colleges, universities and workshops. He has taught stage fighting, acting, improvisation, Shakespeare, script analysis and play creation as far afield as Whitehorse (Guild Hall) and Thunder Bay (Magnus Theatre School), and in B.C. for The Playhouse Theatre School, Douglas College, the University of British Columbia, Capilano College and for the Association of British Columbia Drama Educators. His directing, acting and fight choreography credits have taken him to almost every company in British Columbia, across the country including the Theatre Festival of the Americas, Shaw Festival, Manitoba Theatre Centre, the Citadel, and to London, England. David is founder and co-artistic director (with Linda Quibell) of the theatre company Felix Culpa. Directing work for the company includes the North American premiere of Howard Barker's Und, Palace of the End, The Monument, Judith, Bawdy, Savage Council, The Compleat Works of Love, Macbeth at Camp Six, ‘Tis Pity She's a Whore, The Figures Underneath and his play Two in The Morning which was produced in Vancouver and London. He co-created Trouser Parts for the company with Rita Bozi and David Rhymer. Most recently he co-created News of the World for Felix Culpa with Marcus Youssef and Alex Ferguson. David Bloom is a graduate of Studio 58.

AARON BUSHKOWSKY - Playwriting
Aaron has been produced and published in several genres: film, poetry, theatre, prose, and non-fiction. His book of poetry ed and mabel go to the moon was nominated for the Dorothy Livesay Award. His latest book of poems, Mars is for Poems (Oolichan Books), garnered critical acclaim. His short film, The Alley, which aired on CBC, won the National Screen Institute drama prize, was nominated for six Leos (BC Film Awards). Aaron has several optioned screenplays in development. His plays have been produced throughout Canada. His newest, My Chernobyl, received its world premiere in March 2008 at Richmond Gateway Theatre before moving to the Belfry in Victoria. The play received nine Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards and led all Vancouver productions. It was published in 2009 by Playwrights Canada Press and is being translated into French for publication in France. Aaron has also been nominated for Jessie Theatre Awards for Outstanding Original Play seven times over the past ten years, more than any other playwright in Canada, winning two. His plays have received 33 Jessie nominations in total. Aaron has served as playwright-in-residence at Touchstone Theatre, The Playhouse, Rumble Theatre and as a resident film-writer at the Canadian Film Centre in Toronto, and recently as part of Tarragon Theatre's Playwrights Unit. As a dramaturge and story editor, Aaron has worked on over 50 plays and a number of film-scripts. Other books include a collection of short stories, The Vanishing Man (Cormorant Books), and drama Strangers Among Us (Playwrights Canada Press, 1999), as well as The Waterhead (Playwrights Canada Press), that features three plays of his produced by Solo Collective, a theatre company he helps run. Aaron’s new novel is Curtains for Roy (Cormorant Books, 2010), a serious comedy about the Vancouver theatre scene, and a new play The Project, produced by Solo Collective Theatre, November 2009. It’s a black comedy about Hollywood North directed by Studio 58 grad Rachel Peake.

DALE GENGE - Voice
Dale is Head of Voice at Studio 58, where she has taught since 1982. She teaches voice to all terms at Studio 58, coaches productions and specializes in classical text. Ms. Genge has also taught voice at the Vancouver Playhouse Acting School and Simon Fraser University. Throughout her career, she has worked as a voice and text coach for professional theatre and dance companies in Vancouver and elsewhere in North America. She is a founding faculty member of the Canadian National Voice Intensive where for the last 24 summers she has taught professional actors and voice teachers from all over the world. Training: Dale studied Linklater voice work and received her certification as a Laban Movement Analyst in New York City. She spent two seasons as a vocal coach at the Stratford Festival under David Smukler and Patsy Rodenberg. She has also trained with Richard Armstrong in the Roy Hart tradition of voice work. In 2007 she completed the Leadership Training Program with Jungian Analyst, Marion Woodman, and now teaches with Ms. Woodman internationally. She is currently writing a book on Voice.

BRAD GIBSON - Movement
Brad was previously the Director of Voice and Speech at HELP University College in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia where he developed a Voice, Speech and Movement curriculum for the College. Brad's academic training includes a B.A.(Theatre) and B.A. (Psychology) from Simon Fraser University, and an M.F.A. (Performance) and Graduate Diploma in Voice Teaching from York University. Currently Brad teaches Movement and Voice at Studio 58, has taught Voice at UBC, and is senior faculty member of the Canadian National Voice Intensive. He also works as a professional actor and Voice and Dialect Coach for theatre, film and TV, and is a member of VASTA (The Voice and Speech Trainers Association) for whom he is the Web-Bibliographer, HYPERLINK "http://www.vasta.org" www.vasta.org.

WENDY GORLING - Acting, Physical Theatre
Wendy is involved in theatre both in front and behind the stage. As a director, she has created four non-verbal pieces with Morris Panych, (their Overcoat has toured the world) and choreographed movement for plays such as Equus, Greeks, and Herringbone. She was the movement coach for Vancouver Opera’s Suzannah and for two Spirit of the West videos. As an actress, Wendy has been a member of two alternative theatre companies: Axis Theatre, which she co-founded, and Tamahnous Theatre. Some of her favorite acting roles have been in Flea in her Ear, The Visit, Seven Stories, Blithe Spirit, Blue Window, Imaginary Invalid and School for Scandal. She has received six Vancouver Jessie theatre awards, and is a graduate of the prestigious Ecole Le Coq in Paris, France. She was featured in the book ‘Theatre Without Borders’ as a master teacher. She was part of the 2009 Stratford Theatre, creating the movement choreography for Trojan Women and Moby Dick. In 2009, Wendy was inducted into the British Columbia Entertainer's Hall of Fame.

MARA GOTTLER - Costume Design
Since last designing Summerfolk and Guys & Dolls at Studio 58, Mara has also created costumes for A Doll's House (Chemainus Theatre Festival), Revenge (Felix Culpa) and A Christmas Carol (The Vancouver Playhouse). As resident costume designer for Bard on the Beach, Mara designed all four mainstage and studio stage productions last season: The Taming of the Shrew, Romeo and Juliet, Julius Caesar and Timon of Athens. A recipient of numerous Jessie Richardson Theatre Awards, Mara has also been twice nominated for the prestigous Siminovitch Award and has had her work showcased at the World Stage Design Exhibition.

SUSAN HOGAN - Film & TV Audition/Acting
A graduate of The National Theatre School, Susan has been successfully working as an actor on stage and screen for the past twenty-five years. For television, Susan has had a leading role in five series, two of which shot more than one hundred episodes each. Night Heat and Family Passions. In addition, her favourite Canadian features are Rupert's Land , Bordertown Café, and Everything’s Gone Green. Favourite American features include White Fang, Narrow Margin and Phobia . Selected theatre credits, among many, are Copenhagan and Equis (Playhouse) Communicating Doors( Stanley Theatre) Adult Entertainment( Vancouver East Cultural Centre) King Lear (Necessary Angel, Toronto) and Pal Joey(National Arts Centre) . She also performed for five seasons at the Shaw Festival. Susan had a long association with Studio 58 prior to joining the faculty. Her daughter, Jennie Rebecca, a former student, and her friends often enlisted Susan's help in practicing their scene work. What started as a tentative foray into teaching has grown into a deeply committed love of her new craft.

FRANKIE KERR - Tap
Since teaching herself the basics of tap dancing from Busby Berkley movies in her parents' basement, Frankie has shared them all over the Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands. Working on an assortment of stages in classrooms, theaters, ads, videos and films, She is fortunate to have met, learned from, worked with, and even formed friendships with some of the very heroes and heroines she first saw on television as a child. In recent years, she has travelled extensively in Mexico, sharing what she knows & learning from a variety of folk forms. Every June for the past 6 years, she has taught for the famous "Camp Winnarainbow" Circus and Performance program in California. But her longest association has been her 30 years as Studio 58's resident tap instructor, where she continues to teach the basics, and joyously take students from a standing start to a finished routine by the end of term.

CATHERINE LEE - Movement
A richly diverse artist, with deep immersion in many performance areas, Catherine is a creator, performer and teacher. She has extensive experience instructing young adults in professional training programmes: movement at Studio 58 (since 1979), dance and singing at Tooba Physical Theatre Centre (since 1995) and dance styles for UBC theatre department. She also taught historical dance at the now defunct Playhouse Acting School, and modern dance at Anna Wyman Studio and SFU’s dance and theatre departments. She is artistic director of True North Performance and Historical Performance Ensemble. She has written and produced one short and one long Canadian work (Les Filles du Roi and, Le Masque Canadien) about early New France. Since 1992 she has been in great demand as a choreographer and movement consultant/coach for historical plays, movies, operas etc. Catherine has worked with actors at the Arts Club, Blackbird Theatre, Bard on the Beach and The Jericho Arts Centre in Vancouver and Paideia Theatre Co in Brazil. In 2005, 06 and 07 she traveled to Brazil and Nicaragua to create and collaborate on contemporary movement and voice works (Boi e Burro). As well she taught Renaissance dance to actors and musicians specializing in early music. In Brazil she also choreographed dances for Midsummer Night’s Dream and Faust. She has sung in the world famous women’s choir ELEKTRA since inception in 1987, enjoying 6 major tours to Australia and New Zealand and several US cities including New York (Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Ctr, Riverside Chrch) and International festivals in Alberta, BC, Newfoundland and Nova Scotia. She is heard on all 9 Elektra CD’s and 2 CDs by US and German producers. An inherent Ludite, she collaborated with several brilliant computer programmers at SFU to produce ‘Compose’ (later ‘Lifeforms’), a computer tool for choreographers and animators. Catherine presented papers in the US, Canada and France on this groundbreaking programme.

ADRIAN MUIR - Lighting Design
Adrian has taught Lighting and Computer Assisted Design at Studio 58 since 2003. In addition to twelve shows he has designed at Studio 58 Adrian works as a professional lighting designer for Theatre, Dance and Opera across Canada. He has designed lighting for many local companies including: Vancouver Opera, The Playhouse, Ballet BC, The Electric Company, Touchstone Theatre, Ruby Slippers, Wild Excursions, Felix Culpa, and Realwheels. Other credits include designs for: Richmond Gateway Theatre, Pacific Opera (Victoria), Western Canada Theatre Company (Kamloops), Theatre Calgary, Citadel Theatre (Edmonton), Globe Theatre (Regina), Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, Canadian Stage Company (Toronto), Desrosiers Dance Theatre and the Charlottetown Festival. Adrian has been the recipient of four Jessie Richardson awards and numerous nominations for his work as a lighting designer and is a member of the Associated Designers of Canada. Adrian lives in Burnaby and on Nelson Island with his long time partner Tracy Lynch.

LLOYD NICHOLSON - Singing, Choir
Lloyd has served as musical Director for many Studio 58 productions, Pal Joey, Trelawney of the ‘Wells’, Hair, Cabaret and She Loves Me. His musical work for the Playhouse theatre includes Oliver, A Little Night Music, Hello, Dolly, A Chorus Line (Jessie nominations), Fiddler on the Roof and Guys & Dolls, and Suds for the Arts Club Granville Island Stage. Lloyd is also active as a Stage Director (Annie, South Pacific, Kiss me, Kate and Anne of Green Gables for Theatre Under the Stars) and is Artistic Director of Royal City Musical Theatre, directing Peter Pan, The Music Man, and 42nd Street.

PAM JOHNSON - Set Design
Since graduating from Studio 58 in 1980, Pam's work has been seen across Canada; in New York, Australia and Japan. She was the resident designer at the Vancouver Playhouse for 20 years where she has designed 43 shows. She is a five time Jessie Award winner, a Monday Magazine Award winner and an Interior Design Institute Award winner. Her numerous design credits for Studio 58 are, House of Blue Leaves, The Bat, A Flea In Her Ear, Joe Egg, Village of Idiots, Nymph Errant, As You Like It, Cyrano, Macbeth, Hair, King Lear, The Cradle Will Rock, Hamlet, Pal Joey, You Can’t Take It with You, SummerFolk,The Boy Friend and Bye Bye Birdie.

IAN RAFFEL - Speech
Ian is a long-serving teacher of speech and voice. He was trained in the Drama Department of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where he was graduated in 1966 with a BFA in directing. At CMU, Ian studied speech under the influential teacher Edith Warman Skinner. Since coming to Vancouver in 1980, Ian has taught on the faculties of Studio 58 Langara College, The Vancouver Playhouse and The Film/Theatre School. In addition to teaching at Studio 58, he serves as Head of Voice at the Vancouver Film School. From 1989 to 1994, he served as an assistant professor in the Theatre area of Simon Fraser University's School for the Contemporary Arts. He has been the instructor of Speech for the Canadian National Voice Intensive, a highly successful training program for professional actors and teachers held in Vancouver for the last 24 years. Ian has appeared in the Vancouver Fringe Festival in his original one-person show, Not My Army. He recently played his show at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre in New York City. Ian has served as both dialogue and dialect coach for feature films and television programs shot in Vancouver. Currently, Ian is also on the faculty of the Acting division of Langara’s Film Arts program where he teaches on-microphone acting and dialect creation.

CHICK SNIPPER - Movement
Chick is a Vancouver-based director, choreographer and teacher. In 2007 she retired as the Artistic Director of DSB (DanStaBat) after 23 years of creating, teaching and mentoring under the aegis of the company. Chick has created over 60 dance, theatre and interdisciplinary works. Her dance for four women Chrysalis was presented at The Canada Dance Festival in Ottawa in 2004 to rave reviews. Her evening length dance slab was commissioned by the Vancouver East Cultural Centre and premiered in March 2003 to critical and audience acclaim for which she won the inaugural Isadora Award for Choreography in 2004. Her 2001 documentary ‘Secret War’, won first prize at the New York Film Festival. Her short dance performance film "Instructions from the Dead" was awarded Best Experimental Film at the 1999 Sea to Sky Festival. A highly respected teacher, Chick has been leading classes in modern dance and other movement forms for over 30 years. She is highly respected for her abilities as a facilitator in workshops and seminars that focus on the creative process and on developing directorial/performance techniques. She also coaches and mentors emerging artists in both dance and theatre. Chick recently opened a new business Functional Fitness to train individuals in the privacy of their home, in a variety of healthful and progressive physical practices.

BRIAN TATE - Singing, Choir
A native of Vancouver, Brian directs the 120-voice Vancouver Island Gospel/World Music choir and is music director for Mt. Seymour United Church in North Vancouver. He is also in demand across Canada and the US as a choral and vocal clinician and facilitator. Brian is an award-winning composer/arranger with many published choral works to his credit. He is on the faculty of the Banff Centre for Leadership Development, and he performs with the Vocomotion vocal trio as well as a jazz vocalist.

CAROL CHRISJOHN - Production Manager
Carol has worked as Production Manager for Studio 58 since 1987 where she coaches student stage managers.  She also has taught stage management for Douglas College Stagecraft Department.  Carol has been in professional theatre for over 35 years as an actor, director and stage manager and has had the opportunity to work for companies across Canada.

BRUCE KENNEDY - Technical Director
Bruce has worked at Studio 58 for many years, managing the shop and teaching the building of sets and props to countless waves of Studio 58 students.

SHERRI SADLER - Manager of Communications
Sherri has been Communications Manager for Studio 58 since 1987. When time permits she does freelance work for dance, music, theatre, travel and special events. Sherri has 2 demanding cats, 2 incredible daughters and a newfound passion for mountain biking. Originally from Seattle, she is a graduate of Western Washington University with a degree in Arts Administration.