Play Description

Frequently Asked Questions

Cast

Akari Van Driesen as Zippy

Akari van den Driesen (she/her) is proud to be performing in Theatre Skam’s production of You Are Here. Her last performance was as a criminal receptionist in Jetic Gu’s short film Heist. Other roles she has played are Jackie from Augusta Stander’s short film Bunk Beds, Juliet from William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, and Aunt March from Little Women:The Musical. She has trained as an actor for the last 3 years at the University of Victoria, the Shaw Festival, and King Creatives Studio. Alongside acting, Akari has found her passion for directing, where she and Hannah Farquar co-directed a play called Straw, by Jasper Mallette, and is now directing a play called Bruised Fruit by Sarah Shepherd. Akari is excited to share the heartfelt story of You Are Here and how it reveals the rich tales about the communities in Victoria, BC. She hopes you enjoy the show.

Kendra Bidwell as Driver

Kendra (she/her) is an actor, dancer, singer, musician, and graduate from Company C at the Canadian College of Performing Arts. Currently, she has been sharing her passion for performing, teaching theatre classes at Theatre SKAM and Kaleidoscope Theatre, and acting as a character performer with Enchanted Fables. Some favourite past credits include Ekans in The Shrine of the Ouroboros (Hollow Hound Arts), Peggy Sue in Buddy Holly’s Happy Days (Jubilations Dinner Theatre), Frenchie in Cabaret (CCPA), as well as numerous shows aboard SKAM’s own Pop-Up Home Delivery truck. Kendra is thrilled to be back with SKAM, performing live theatre!

Creative Team and Crew

Lynnéa Chan – Playwright

Lynnéa Chan (she/her) is a queer, Chinese-Canadian theatre artist, vocalist, and graduate of the University of Victoria. Through writing, directing, and performance, Lynnéa hopes to create stories that are provocative, loving, and dedicated to casual diversity. Her creative interests include collaborative creation, experimental prose, grounded themes explored whimsically, and the legitimacy of genre fiction—specifically, fantasy, horror, and sci-fi. Theatrical credits include The Children’s Hour (Phoenix Theatre), The Open Gate (Bottled Theatre), It’ll Come To Me (Theatre SKAM), Home Delivery Pop-Up Theatre (Theatre SKAM), and Ouroboros (Hollow Hound Arts Collective). Lynnéa spends her spare time baking, bookbinding, making music, doing needlecraft, and rotating her ever-changing wheel of hobbies.

Justin F. Lee – Playwright, Videographer

Justin (He/Him) is a filmmaker, playwright, and sailor with an interest in the evolution of Canadian drama as a source of national identity and collaboration between entertainment mediums. He is an associate producer and artist in residence at Electric Company Theatre. He is currently working on his next short film short: Knots as a writer/director. A story following the relationship of an older married couple, seasoned sailors who find their relationship tested by the sea and the people they encounter on it.

Theatre Credits: ECT’s Undeveloped Sound workshop (script assistant), Belfry Theatre’s Serving Elizabeth (videographer), Theatre SKAM’s Fall Pop-Up Shows (director), SKAMpede’s The Open Gate (writer), SATCo Theatre’s Ngaii Duk (director/writer) and the audio drama A Way Out (Showrunner). Film Credits: The Observatory (Director/Co-writer/Producer), Smile for Me (Director), Bunk Beds (cinematographer), The Batshits (2^ndAC), Ashley by the Ocean (2^ndAC), Dream Book (CamOp)

Matthew Payne – Playwright

Matthew (he/him) is a founding member of Theatre SKAM (he’s the ‘M’). His work at SKAM has been as a playwright, performer, production manager, and arts administrator. Since graduating from the University of Victoria’s theatre program, Matthew has been producing theatre, performance events, and public programs for audiences of all ages for twenty-plus years, working with a variety of partners and stakeholders.  Past SKAM creations include How To Make Love, He Said/She Sang (with Carolyn Neapole), Cariboo Buckaroo, Joan, and Shop Talk.

Paula Humby – Director

Paula Humby (She/Her) is a bilingual theatre artist with a BFA in Acting from the University of Alberta. Selected acting credits include: Mr. Burns, a Post-Apocalyptic Play (You are Here Theatre), Skirts on Fire (Teatro la Quindicina), Hamlet and a Comedy of Errors (Freewill Shakespeare Festival), and a Christmas Carol (Theatre Calgary). Paula has co-created works for several site specific festivals including SKAMpede, Found Fest and the CITF in Monthey, Switzerland. She was making her directing debut with Martine à la Plage at l’Unithéâtre when the pandemic hit. Since then, she has had the chance to direct a variety of non-traditional pieces including À Vendre, a radio play for the Alberta Queer Calendar Project, The Home Suite, a theatrical guided walking tour for the Found Festival, and the SKAM Pop-Up Truck plays in 2021.

Branden Sudgen – Video Designer

Branden (he/him) is a theatre artist, originally from Treaty 7 territory (Calgary). You may have seen him at SKAMpede or a number of other SKAM events in the past couple of years. Select credits include: Survivors (Actor—Bema Productions); Problem Child (Livestream Director), Shakespeare’s Women (Asst. Director), Dead Man’s Cell Phone (Actor—Phoenix Theatre); The Audition (Director—Theatre Inconnu); Hey There, Mr. Moon (Director—Student Alternative Theatre Company). Branden is a graduate of the University of Victoria (BFA with Distinction in Theatre, 2022). He is excited to be making his Theatre SKAM debut in an artistic capacity.

Laura Farn – Set Designer

Laura Farn (she/her) is a lifelong prop builder, sculptor and mask maker with an extensive history of work in Western Canada. Laura Farn received a 2007 Jessie nomination for ‘Significant Artistic Achievement: Outstanding Mask Making’ (Peer Gynt, Blackbird Theatre), and stood in for her mentor Bryn Finer as Faculty Head of Props at The Banff Centre for two years. Other highlights include: Midsummer Night’s Dream (Bard on the Beach), Donald’s Ship Builders (Disney Tokyo, F&D) and Shanghai Noon (East/West Films, F&D). As a theatre maker, Laura Farn wrote The Bike Ride (Solo Collective Emerging Playwrights Winner, 2006) and developed two scripts for projects with choreographer Kyrsten Blair, including Missy (High Performance Rodeo, One Yellow Rabbit). These days she is working on her independent art practice.

Christian Turvo – Assistant Set Designer

Christian (he/him) is a recent University of Victoria graduate from their department of
Theatre with a career focus in Props, with hopes to becoming a props master
in the theatre industry. His theatrical focus also extends into scenic carpentry,
scenic painting, and puppet fabrication.

Sadie Fox – Stage Manager

Sadie (they/she) is a theatre professional, creative, entrepreneur, environmentalist, community enthusiast, and tradesperson who experiences the world through a queer, non-binary lens. Born on Traditional Snuneymuxw Territory and currently residing on WSANEC Territory, they have lived on Vancouver Island their whole life where she has learned to filter all of her interests through a lens of respect for and reciprocity with the land and others. Sadie is passionate about art in the community and waste reduction! Favourite Stage Management credits include: 21 Ways to Make the World Last Longer (SM, Runaway Moon Theatre), Law of the Land (ASM, Caravan Farm Theatre), Salt Baby, Gracie, The Children’s Republic… (A(pprentice)SM, The Belfry Theatre). You may also recognize Sadie as The Sustainable Fox at the last four SKAMpede Festivals.

Francyne Morrison – Production Manager, Assistant Researcher

Francyne (she/her) a BFA grad with a double major in Anthropology and Theatre at the University of Victoria. Her passion for theatre and storytelling originated at a young age and has been a predominant focus in her academic studies for as long as she can remember. Her experiences in theatre range from the University of Victoria’s Phoenix Theatre work-study program as a Marketing and Communications Assistant to working at Quest Theatre in Calgary, Alberta as a Summer Camp Assistant. Francyne is excited to work with Theatre SKAM and looks forward to nurturing old skills and learning new ones under the company’s influence.

Janine Rzeplinski – Researcher

Janine (they/she) graduated from the University of Victoria in 2020 with a B.A. in History with a focus on 19th-century history and the history of sex and medicine. She is passionate about sharing stories, fictional or not, and connecting with people. Their background in communications centers around non-profit work and freelance writing. Their poetry has appeared in various publications and one of their articles on the history of Stanley Park is available in The Corvette Undergraduate History Journal.