Sanitas
Playback Theatre
Reflecting the Heart of Your Story
Our Ensemble
Just click on a name for a picture and bio! Brie Barker ~ Lorrie Beaton ~ William Beddoe ~ Mish Boutet Karl Claude ~ Scott Florence ~ Natalie Fraser ~ Paul Gareau Mike Kosowan ~ Ellen Manchee ~ Megan Piercey Monafu ~ Jen Vallance |
Brie Barker
Founder, Artistic Director, Conductor
Brie’s story began in 1967 in Toronto, and continued to develop in Vancouver, Toronto again, Kingston, Toronto yet again, and then Ottawa since 2008.
"My name is Brie ~ yes, pronounced like the cheese! In writing this blurb about myself, I acknowledge that it's pretty darn long and that a lot of it just might not be of interest to you. But there's only one way to find out, right?! ...
"I was a founding company member of Toronto Playback Theatre back in 2002 and it didn't take long for me to get hooked on this rich and deeply fulfilling theatrical art form. It’s my six wonderful years with that fantastic ensemble that forms the core of my experience in playback theatre. I gained additional training through the Centre for Playback Theatre in New York and was awarded their first International Fellowship in 2004. Since then I’ve become part of a global community of playback practitioners ~ people I feel truly grateful to know. Being invited as a guest performer with National Playback Theater (USA) is just one great experience that’s come from these heartfelt connections. Organizations I served through playback when I lived in Toronto include:
- Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation
- Canadian Coalition for Christians & Jews
- Centre for Addiction & Mental Health
- FedEx
- Future Shop
- Home Depot
- Hospice Association of Ontario
- Loyola Arrupe Centre for Seniors
- Ralph Thornton Community Centre
- Sunnybrook & Women's College Health Sciences Centre (Palliative Care Nursing)
- Toronto District School Board
- Toronto Housing Corporation
“When I moved to Ottawa with my wife and then 17-month old son in the spring of 2008, I knew that playback theatre would somehow continue to be an essential part of my life. By the time the leaves were changing colour that fall, I had decided to create a new playback theatre company in my new community. I couldn’t be happier with how it’s gone so far!
“I also work as an experiential educator and coach in helping people develop authentic human communication and leadership practices in the workplace. Through this work, I've enjoyed designing/delivering programs in service to a wide variety of organizations throughout North America, including:
- AstraZeneca
- Bank of America
- Bombardier
- Brown Governance
- BMO
- CIBC
- General Electric
- Hay Group
- Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy
- Leadership Ottawa
- Manulife
- Merrill Lynch
- Philips Medical Systems
- Royal & Sun Alliance
- Royal Bank
- Scotiabank
- Standard Life
- TD Canada Trust
- Watson Wyatt
"I'm also an actor. My first Ottawa acting gig was as Howie in the 2008 production of Rabbit Hole at The Gladstone Theatre. I enjoyed the variety of my previous scripted theatre work in Toronto, which includes The Vigil Crasher, The Woodcutter in Rashomon, Wib in Criminal Hearts, Capt. Breen in Robert Fothergill's Borderline, Friar Laurence in Romeo & Juliet, and Sgt. Troughton in the British farce Run For Your Wife! I also did a lot of comedic improv, including The International All-Star Theatresports Jam in San Diego (dir. by Keith Johnstone), Neil Muscott's The Comedy Debates and a whack of gigs with Bad Dog Theatre (formerly Theatresports Toronto). On the film side of the business, I've worked in a lot of independent films along with a couple of music videos ~ Soap Box Preacher anyone? The shoots I did with Sideview Productions top my list; watch for this company in the future! I also hosted a live TV talk-show called Interact for a season, back in the day. I trained as an actor at Ryerson Theatre School and later completed my B.A. in Theatre at York University.
"As a writer, my past work includes the live theatrical component of Gift of the Gods - Wine & Revelry, a 2001 exhibit of the Royal Ontario Museum's. Currently, I'm writing a full-length play ... finishing it means I need to sit in the chair more. I also wore the hats of producer/director/writer in my former theatre company, Electric Dog Productions Inc., who were involved in promoting youth empowerment to high school audiences across Canada and to making the work of Shakespeare more accessible to teens.
"I've also been an Ottawa Theatre School faculty member and an instructor at OSSD (Ottawa School of Speech & Drama.
“My son is five now and my daughter just had her second birthday ... and neither of them seem to care about any of the above!"
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Stage Manager
Lorrie's
story began in 1968 in Sault Ste. Marie, and continued to develop
in Toronto, Ottawa again, Cambridge, Ottawa yet again, Waterloo, Ottawa (yes, again), Carleton Place, and then (surprise, surprise) Ottawa again since 2008. Lorrie joined our ensemble in 2010.
"My
name is Lorrie. I'm so thrilled to be a part of Sanitas Playback
Theatre ~ such a dynamic group of individuals! My journey towards
playback theatre began in 1999 when I received my honours degree in
Theatre from the University of Ottawa, where I focused on arts administration, directing and stage management. I've worked in arts administration over the past 7 years, during which I also furthered my studies in fundraising (Algonquin College) and grant writing (Humber College). Much of my experience came through my role as the Administrator and Board Secretary for Arts Carleton Place, where I was responsible for laying down the foundations of this arts council and then building it further to be a boon to the community and artists of Carleton Place.
"My directing work has lead me towards empowering women through my involvement in Ottawa V-Day and the direction of The Vagina Monologues. The production takes place every year as a fundraiser towards ending violence against women and girls worldwide. While directing, I've always played with the lines that separate the audience from the performers, but it wasn't until I received my post-graduate degree in Expressive Arts that I made the connection to playback and its importance in my life.
"Expressive Arts mixes all sorts of artistic modalities together and I'm an active Expressive Arts Practitioner. My passion is working with children who are grieving. I help to give them a voice to tell their stories and help them to express their pain. Those moments I've shared with them have made me see the world with new eyes.
"I'm also a practicing visual artist. I paint in the style of Abstract Expressionism while assuming the character Hannah Von Eden. My artwork celebrates the glorification of the act of painting itself, and not necessarily on the desire of a specific finished product."
"My directing work has lead me towards empowering women through my involvement in Ottawa V-Day and the direction of The Vagina Monologues. The production takes place every year as a fundraiser towards ending violence against women and girls worldwide. While directing, I've always played with the lines that separate the audience from the performers, but it wasn't until I received my post-graduate degree in Expressive Arts that I made the connection to playback and its importance in my life.
"Expressive Arts mixes all sorts of artistic modalities together and I'm an active Expressive Arts Practitioner. My passion is working with children who are grieving. I help to give them a voice to tell their stories and help them to express their pain. Those moments I've shared with them have made me see the world with new eyes.
"I'm also a practicing visual artist. I paint in the style of Abstract Expressionism while assuming the character Hannah Von Eden. My artwork celebrates the glorification of the act of painting itself, and not necessarily on the desire of a specific finished product."
Other on-going artistic affiliations:
~ Lorrie The Creative Explorer ~ Website
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William Beddoe
Actor
William
joined our ensemble in 2011. Photo and bio still to come!
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Mish Boutet
Actor (Bilingual)
Mish's
story began in 1977 in Ottawa, and continued to develop
in Cold Lake (Alberta), Ottawa again, Kitchener-Waterloo, Stratford, Ottawa again, Kyoto (Japan), Newcastle (UK), and then Ottawa again since 2008. Mish
joined our ensemble in 2011.
"My name is Mish (rhymes with fish). In playback theatre, I like how the performers listen to the audience every bit as much as the audience listens to them ~ and I like listening. I also like learning, so I think it's great that in playback there is always a generous audience willing to share and teach.
"I've enjoyed improvisational theatre ever since I played in the Canadian Improv Games in high school. I enjoyed it so much that I subsequently imposed lots of improv on the students I went on to teach as a high school drama teacher, knowing that it developed skills that were useful well beyond the stage. I've also enjoyed acting, directing and stage managing; these productions were mostly in Southwestern Ontario. My favourite experiences were with Theatre 311 in Listowel, where I performed in Norm Foster's Sinners and The Foursome."
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Karl Claude
Actor (Bilingual)
Karl joined our ensemble in 2011. Photo and bio still to come!
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Scott Florence
Actor, Conductor
Scott's story began in 1969 in Ottawa, and continued to develop in Sept Isles, North Bay, Kingston, Lahr (Germany), Blue Lake (California), on a tall ship that plied the waters of the U.S. eastern seaboard, and then Ottawa since 1999. Scott joined our ensemble in 2009.
Actor (Bilingual)
Natalie's story began in 1972 in Ottawa, and continued to develop in Montreal, Strasberg (France), Ottawa again, Aylmer, Mattawa, and then in Buckingham since 2010. Natalie joined our ensemble in 2010.
Paul Gareau
Musician (Bilingual)
Paul's story began in 1977 in Wakaw (Saskatchewan), and continued to develop in Saskatoon, St. Boniface, Montreal, and then Ottawa since 2009. Paul joined our ensemble in 2009.
"My name is Mike. I'm an actor, comedian and improvist. I'm a graduate of the University of Ottawa's theatre program, which has led me to develop and grow. I've also performed in various festivals such as the Ottawa Fringe Festival, Magnetic North Festival and both the Montreal and Ottawa Improv Festivals. I perform weekly at Yuk Yuk's on Elgin Street with the improv comedy troupe Insensitivity Training."
Other on-going artistic affiliations:
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Ellen Manchee
Actor (Bilingual)
Ellen joined our ensemble in 2011. Photo and bio still to come!
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Megan Piercey Monafu
Actor (Bilingual)
Megan's
story
began in 1989 in Halifax, and continued to develop
in Corner Brook (Newfoundland), Montreal, and then Ottawa since
early 2011. Megan
joined our ensemble in 2011.
"My name is Megan. I started my schooling in the BFA Theatre (Acting) program at Memorial University of Newfoundland, and I'm preparing to graduate from Concordia University's BFA Theatre & Development program in the fall of 2011. I'm new to Ottawa and I'm excited to experience life here, to learn from local artists and to continue to create! My artistic journey continues to bring me to new understandings of how theatre can empower and connect us all ~ so I'm thrilled to be working in this fascinating form that is playback."
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